The drive to Limone sul Garda was completely different from driving along the eastern shore of the lake. The road narrowed and we drove through tunnels literally carved into the rock. Scooters everywhere, and it felt to me like we were a step closer to the “real” Italy again. I loved it. Daniel, not so much. 😀
Limone sits in the northern part of the lake, so it probably won’t surprise anyone that German is spoken a lot here. It’s genuinely close to Germany, so you’ll often get by more easily in German than in English. And then there are the hills. Everywhere. The waterfront promenade is flat, but the moment you want to see the real Limone, you’re in for a little hill… steps… and another little hill.
In this guide you’ll find where to park in Limone and how much it costs, where to stay both in the centre and outside it (8 handpicked options plus the hotel where we stayed), what to see, how much money to budget, and what to avoid. If you’re planning the whole lake, take a look at our Lake Garda guide.
Limone is a place you visit for the atmosphere, not for long sandy beaches. Compared to Sirmione in the south of the lake, where everything is flat and easy, here you have a rock face above your head and houses clinging to the slope. And Limone is smaller, more tightly packed and far more “lemony” than Riva del Garda next door.
And lemons really are everywhere here. On T-shirts, bags, fridge magnets, in a glass and in a cone. For me, Limone is the yellowest Italy you can imagine.
We start from Prague, and from there it’s 778 km to Limone, according to Google Maps about 8 hours 35 minutes via Austria and the Brenner Pass (tolls apply). The last 13 km from Riva run along the Gardesana Occidentale (SS45bis). The stretch between Gargnano and Riva via Limone opened in 1931 and runs through dozens of tunnels carved directly into the rock.
For me, as the passenger, it was the best part of the drive. For Daniel behind the wheel, rather less so; dodging buses on the bends took some doing. If you’re not keen on narrow roads and oncoming buses, expect a test of concentration rather than a scenic drive.
From Limone it’s 13.1 km to Riva del Garda (about 17 minutes) and 60 km to Sirmione (about 1 hour 18 minutes). If you’re planning a longer road trip around Italy, we’ve covered the route and accommodation in our article Italy by car.
If you’re staying elsewhere on the lake, take a boat trip to Limone. Scheduled boats between Limone and Malcesine on the opposite shore run in the summer season (16 May to 4 October 2026) 17 to 22 times a day depending on direction, and the crossing takes 10-28 minutes depending on the type of boat. The quickest services are the fast boats, which carry a surcharge. These boats are passenger-only. The ferry between Maderno and Torri del Benaco carries cars all year round. A car ferry between Limone and Malcesine ran in past years only in summer (in 2024 only at weekends), so check its current schedule with Navigazione Laghi. Check current fares directly using the Navigazione Laghi calculator.
But the scheduled boat isn’t the only option. In Limone you can hire a boat even without a licence, and both harbours – the old Porto Vecchio and Porto Nuovo by the promenade – have space for smaller boats too. Watch out: if you want to moor at Porto Nuovo, you have to notify the local police in advance and leave them your contact details in case of emergency (source: gardasee.surf).
An Arriva bus (line LN027) also runs from Riva del Garda to Limone. The journey takes 10 to 16 minutes, but there are only a few direct services a day, so check the timetable in advance.
The whole historic centre of Limone is a ZTL – a limited-traffic zone where stopping isn’t allowed. So don’t drive into the lanes in the centre, and if your hotel is right in the centre, ask in advance where to park.
If you’re visiting Limone for just one day, the best choice is the large car park right by the promenade. The municipality runs three paid car parks here with the same price list.
| Car park | Where | Capacity | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Multipiano Lungolago | by the promenade, 6 levels | 608 spaces | €3.50 1st hour, €2.50 each additional hour |
| Parcheggio Lungolago | by the lakeshore, opposite the multi-storey car park | 111 spaces | €3.50 1st hour, €2.50 each additional hour |
| Multipiano via Caldogno | at the entrance to town, by the information centre, also suitable for motorhomes | 266 spaces | €3.50 1st hour, €2.50 each additional hour |
If you spend the whole day here, that is roughly 8 hours, you’ll pay around €21 for parking.
Tip for a day trip: head straight for the Multipiano Lungolago multi-storey car park. It’s the biggest, and within a few minutes you’re on the promenade from there – no climbing required.
We didn’t use the parking in the centre. We stayed about a kilometre from the centre and chose our hotel based on whether it had parking. We only found out about the large car park right by the centre once we were there. If we’d known, we’d have driven over here too. Most hotels outside the centre have parking; in the centre itself it’s trickier.
The good news is that literally everyone can find accommodation in Limone. You’ll find cheap guesthouses and hostels, reasonably priced hotels, and some pretty fancy places too – the kind of resorts with infinity pools and lake views. We stopped outside one such hotel and admired the cars in the car park. An absolute parade of luxury cars!
But the main question is: the centre, or outside it? We compare Limone with the other towns around the lake in our article Where to stay at Lake Garda.
The centre. Pro: everything is within walking distance, and in the evening you can stroll along the promenade. Con: the ZTL, you leave your car at a car park, and you carry your suitcase up the steps.
Outside the centre. Pro: parking right at the hotel, more peace and quiet, pools and views. Con: it’s 10-20 minutes on foot to the centre, and the way back is uphill.
We stayed at the Aria Life hotel, roughly a kilometre from the centre. We drove there, and it turned out that even though it’s a steep climb up to it, the other hotels nearby are even higher up. Hotels outside the centre here simply sit on the hillside.
The hotel offers rooms with a view of the lake (pricier) or the mountains. We had a mountain-view room, but we could just about see the lake from the balcony. Breakfast was excellent – a big breakfast room and a great selection. There’s a pool outside, and the room where breakfast is served in the morning doubles as a restaurant. In the evening, when we didn’t fancy going down and back up the hill again, we ate there. Pizza cost €7-8.
Outdoor parking is right across the road from the hotel and is included in the room price. For an extra charge, you can park in the underground garage right on the hotel grounds. The outdoor spaces can’t be booked in advance, so Daniel booked the garage as a backup and cancelled it for free once we were there. Daniel wrote a more detailed review of the hotel and parking in our article Italy by car.
We picked four hotels right in the centre or a few minutes from the promenade, from an adults-only hotel to a small B&B tucked away in the lanes.
Chosen from our own experience
Here you’ll find pools, views and parking right at the hotel. First up is the hotel where we stayed. Note that EALA only takes guests aged 16 and over.
Chosen from our own experience
Our recommendation: Driving and staying for more than one night? Stay outside the centre with parking at the hotel. Staying just one night and want to enjoy the evening promenade? Choose a hotel in the centre and plan on leaving your car in the multi-storey car park.
Lemons on every corner, fresh lemonade and ice cream served right in a lemon. A lot of it is made in open-front shops right in front of you, so the whole town smells beautifully of lemons.
Locals sell their own products here too. Of course, I had to leave with a canvas lemon-print tote bag… and a bottle of limoncello… and a fridge magnet.
This is the real Limone. Narrow lanes, bougainvillea on the walls, a church tower above the rooftops. The town doesn’t grow outwards, it grows upwards, and of course the prettiest cafés have the steepest steps. I won’t lie, by evening we were dead on our feet.
Above the lanes stands the church of San Benedetto. The current building dates from 1685-1690, and inside hangs a painting of the Deposition from the Cross by the painter Battista d’Angolo, from 1547.
You can see how lemons used to be grown here at Limonaia del Castèl – a traditional terraced lemon garden above the centre. Entry costs €2, children under 10 get in free.
The lakeside promenade is the only genuinely flat part of Limone, and also the liveliest. It’s home to Porto Vecchio, the old harbour with colourful boats, and Piazza Garibaldi with a fountain beneath the rock face.
The promenade and harbour are only free of crowds in the morning.
A combined cycle and footpath runs along Limone: a wooden walkway fixed to the rock face right above the lake. It’s been open since 2018 and runs from the promenade in the centre, past old lemon groves, north to the Capo Reamol headland. The final stretch runs roughly 50 m above the water.
The path is free, has no steps or steep climbs, and is lit in the evening. At a normal walking pace, it takes just under an hour from the centre to the end. After all those steps in the lanes, it’s a nice change.
The path is the reason Limone has bike and e-bike hire shops everywhere, such as Bike Center Limone at Via IV Novembre 29. If you don’t want to set off on your own, you can also ride the path with a guide on an e-bike:
Cycling trip along the suspended path with an olive oil tasting – Limone sul Garda: Guided Bike Tour – 3 hours on an e-bike, price from €199 for a group of up to 6, free cancellation
The town has seven named beaches, most of them with free access. They’re mostly pebbly, so water shoes come in handy.
If you want more history than promenade photos, you can book a private walk with a local guide:
Private walk through the historic centre – Limone sul Garda: Scenic Walk Through History & Lake Views – 2 hours, from €350 for a group of up to 15
| Item | Price | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Parking in the centre, 1st hour | €3.50 | comune.limonesulgarda.bs.it |
| Parking in the centre, each additional hour | €2.50 | comune.limonesulgarda.bs.it |
| Limonaia del Castèl | €2 (children under 10 free) | visitlimonesulgarda.com |
| Monte Baldo cable car from Malcesine, return | €30 (€28 online) | funiviedelbaldo.it |
| Pizza at the Aria Life hotel restaurant | €7–8 | our own experience |
| Accommodation outside the centre | from about €90/night | Booking.com, approximate |
| Accommodation in the centre | from about €95/night | Booking.com, approximate |
Budget for 1 night for two (excluding food and travel to Italy):
| Option | Accommodation | Parking | Activities | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Low-cost | Villa Ersilia, about €90 | free at the hotel | Limonaia 2x €2 | about €94 |
| Standard | Aria Life Hotel, about €113 | free at the hotel | Limonaia + Monte Baldo cable car 2x €28 | about €173 |
| Premium | EALA My Lakeside Dream, about €596 | free at the hotel | Limonaia + Monte Baldo cable car | about €656 |
Accommodation prices are approximate, per night for two in mid-October. They change with the season, occupancy and your level in the Booking Genius loyalty programme, so always check the current price via the link next to each hotel. To reach the cable car from Limone, you take the boat to Malcesine, so add the fare from the current Navigazione Laghi price list.
The main season in Limone follows the boat and attraction schedules. Boats run to the summer timetable from mid-May to early October, Limonaia del Castèl has its longest opening hours from late May to the end of September, and the Monte Baldo cable car runs its summer season from early April to 1 November, then again in winter roughly from mid-December to the end of February.
In summer Limone gets very crowded. If you want some peace, stay overnight and head into the lanes early in the morning.
Driving into the centre. The historic centre is a ZTL and stopping there isn’t allowed. Leave your car at a car park by the promenade or at your hotel.
Underestimating the hills. On the map it looks like a few hundred metres; in reality it’s steps and steep lanes. With a pushchair or limited mobility, you can only reach the promenade and the beaches.
Counting on English. German will often get you further than English here. A few words of Italian or German will save you a lot of gesturing.
Full-day trip around Garda by bus and boat – Full-Day Lake Garda Tour: Bus & Public Boat with Guide – 10 hours with a guide, from €75 per person
Limone from the water on a motorboat – Riva del Garda: Guided tour on a luxury motorboat – 1 hour with a skipper, departing from Riva del Garda, with a route through the bay of Limone
Limone is for you if: you love picturesque lanes, don’t mind walking uphill, want to take a bit of Italy home in a bottle of limoncello and a lemon-print tote bag, and you’re driving and have a hotel with parking.
Limone isn’t for you if: you’re after long sandy beaches, you’re travelling with a pushchair or struggle with steps, or you can’t stand narrow roads with tunnels and scooters.
If you’re driving, we’d recommend staying outside the centre with parking at your hotel – exactly the kind of hotel we chose ourselves. Head to the promenade early in the morning, and expect steps in the lanes. You’ll come home with a lemon-print tote bag either way. 🍋
For us, Limone is one of the most photogenic stops on Garda. You’ll find tips for more places around the lake in our Lake Garda guide.
The most convenient option is the Multipiano Lungolago multi-storey car park by the promenade (608 spaces). Parking costs €3.50 for the first hour and €2.50 for each additional hour.
Only along the promenade and on the beaches. The historic centre is uphill and full of steps.
13.1 km, about 17 minutes by car. An Arriva bus (line LN027) also runs here, but there are only a few services a day.
By boat across the lake; the crossing takes 10-28 minutes, and in the summer season there are 17 to 22 departures a day depending on direction. You can’t take a car on the scheduled boats. A car ferry between Limone and Malcesine ran in past years only in a limited way, so check its schedule with Navigazione Laghi.
€2 for adults; children under 10 get in free.
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