The castle and the Monte Baldo cable car
On the eastern, Veronese shore of Lake Garda, the largest lake in Italy, Malcesine is one of the most picturesque villages, with a tangle of cobbled lanes, a small harbour and the Scaliger Castle, built on a rock jutting into the water. The castle, rebuilt by the della Scala family on Lombard foundations, can be visited and has a natural history museum and a room dedicated to Goethe: in 1786, during his journey to Italy, the poet was arrested here as an Austrian spy because he was sketching the castle, and only released after convincing the authorities of his innocence.
Behind the village rises Monte Baldo, the long ridge separating Lake Garda from the Adige valley, called the "Garden of Europe" for the variety of its flora. The Malcesine-Monte Baldo cable car climbs to about 1,760 metres in about ten minutes, with cabins that rotate on themselves during the ascent, offering a 360-degree view over the lake, from Riva to Sirmione. At the top there are paths for hiking, paragliding take-offs and, in winter, some ski slopes. The northern part of the lake, swept by regular winds, the Pelèr and the Ora, is a paradise for windsurfing and sailing.
Tip: take the cable car early in the morning to avoid queues in summer; from Malcesine, ferries cross to Limone on the opposite shore.
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