Northern Italy's Residence Bella Vista

Searching the Internet for an apartment somewhere around Lake Garda in northern ITALY for our 3-week stay, April 21-May 12, 2007, I found Residence Bella Vista (Via Rimembranza 29, 25080 Manerba del Garda, Italy; phone/fax +39 0365 551805, www.residencebellavista.com).

The former hotel, converted to seven apartments in 2000, is in an ideal, quiet location in a small village on a ridge overlooking the southwestern part of the lake.

An apartment cost €55 ($75) per night in low season and €95 ($130) in high season. Half pension was an additional €17 ($23) per person, and breakfast added €7 ($10). You also can self-cater. Wine as well as linen changes cost extra.

With the large living room sofa bed and the roomy bedroom, our apartment had room to sleep four. There were a large balcony with extensive views; a full kitchen, and a large bath with a walk-in shower.

The building had indoor and outdoor restaurants, a pool (unheated), a poolside bar and an outdoor café. Free parking was available; it was not guarded, but a guard did not seem necessary in the area.

Within walking distance were more cafés, restaurants, a small supermarket and a post office.

You need a car to get to the nearest lake ferry stop from where you can go in any direction on the lake. We used the ferry dock in the small village of Portese. It was easy to find, with frequent road signs directing us to “Porto Portese.”

At the dock in Portese, we were fortunate to find an extremely helpful ticket agent who could speak English and was happy to suggest the best routes and times for where we wanted to go. The longest ride we took, a full day to Riva at the northern end of the lake, cost just over €20 ($27) round trip.

During the summer months Manerba has its own port, Port Dusano, but you still need a car to reach it.

If you need more info, send me an e-mail at alanwolsty@lightningspeed.net.

ALAN WOLSTENCROFT

Dunnelon, FL