Luxury bespoke hotel holidays to Grand Hotel Fasano, Lake Garda
Facts in brief
Official star rating 5 deluxe
Location On the lakeside at Gardone Riviera
Annual opening 4 April to 9 November
Closest airport Verona, Venice, Milan
Distance from airport About an hour from Verona airport by car
Closest railway station Desenzano del Garda
Distance from railway station About 30 minutes by car
Hotel facilities and services
Four restaurants, Gin bar, Terrace bar, Spa, One indoor swimming pool, Two outdoor swimming pools, Saunas, Technogym fitness area, Lift, Room service (07.30am to 9pm), Water sports, Free car parking.
Chargeable watersports
Kayaks (single and double), SUP (stand-up paddles), Masks and fins.
Out and about nearby
Unique experiences such as BMW driving experience, helicopter trip, historic sailing ship, speedboat lake tour and local wine and olive oil discovery in addition to the usual visits and excursions on and near Lake Garda. City tours of Verona and Venice can be arranged. Gardaland is a theme and amusement park, and Sigurta Park is a garden with seasonal blooms. In the Verona opera season, visits to the Arena can be arranged. Monte Baldo can be reached by cable car and Gabriele d’Annunzio’s Il Vittoriale degli Italiani is a short distance away. Open-air theatre and concerts take place here in the summer.
Sports nearby
Golf at Gardagolf Country Club, Golf Club Bogliaco, Arzaga Golf Club and Chervo Golf San Viglio, Water skiing, Canyoning, Tennis at Rimbazello tennis club, Cycle and e-bike hire. There is a scuba diving centre 5 minutes away and 20 minutes away is an international windsurfing school for children and adults.
Thanks for organising what was a wonderful holiday. Apart from a delay because of Gatwick fog coming home, everything ran like clockwork and we had a cracking time. I would be happy to recommend Expressions and hope we will have the opportunity to organise another trip with you in the future.Mrs S, October 2024
Holiday price guide Sample prices are per person based on two people sharing a Standard double room no lake view for 7 nights
From about
£1,550 Low season (e.g. April)
£2,480 High season (e.g. August)
Holiday Code IE152
The prices displayed here are a guide only. Each holiday price will be tailor-made at the time of booking to reflect all actual costs including up-to-date special offers.
Call us on 01392 441245
Luxury bespoke hotel holidays to Grand Hotel Fasano, Lake Garda
This lakeside hotel is an iconic building on the shores of Lake Garda that dates from 1888. Conceived as a hunting and pleasure lodge for the Austrian Imperial family, the building was converted into a grand hotel and was visited prior to the First World War by many Austrian and German dignitaries. Gustav Klimt visited in 1913 and painted two masterpieces whilst staying on Lake Garda, Italienische Gartenlandschaft and Malcesine am Gardasee. The hotel survived the ravages of the Second World War and opened again in 1948 expanding since then to cater for its growing following of appreciative clients. Today the historic ambience of the original building has been preserved yet contemporary amenities of a 5-star hotel are provided. The hotel is renowned for its lush gardens, bursting with colour and tropical plants such as bananas and palms. There are two magnolia trees more than 200 years old. Terracing and grassy lawns provide areas for seating under umbrellas and palm trees. There are two outdoor swimming pools with sun beds and umbrellas set to one end of the gardens overlooking the lake. A private pontoon juts out into the lake, allowing launches and boats to depart for day excursions on the lake. The interior of the hotel resounds with history; dark wood, leather and framed black and white pictures of bygone days conjure up the atmosphere of a late 19th century aristocratic pleasure lodge. Other public areas whilst retaining the window frames, arches and proportions of former times are elegantly modern and light and airy. Between library, lounge and bars there are plenty of places to rest and relax. There is a choice of four restaurants, each with its own style and in a different setting, yet each produces refined, gourmet menus using local ingredients. Il Fagiano offers a choice of three tasting menus with wine pairing, or each dish can be taken à la carte. Ristorante Magnolia is situated in the middle of the hotel’s grounds and is open for lunch with an innovative choice of creating your own dish from a combination of suggested foods as well as light hot and cold dishes. The Ristorante il Pescatore, open for dinner, occupies a terrace with lake view and is decorated in bright, contrasting colours. Its speciality is fresh fish cooked from recipes from the south of Italy. The fourth restaurant, La Darsena, is a short distance from the hotel and is part of a beach club where you can enjoy, for lunch and dinner, aperitifs, cocktails and grilled fish and meat, pasta and pizza. The bedrooms vary in size and aspect and are situated in both the main hotel and the Villa Principe. The palette is pale and creamy, floors are wooden enhanced with rugs and the overall feel is calming and elegant. There are ample spa facilities with a range of treatments available. There are many activities and excursion possibilities in the area but a stay at the Grand Hotel Fasano offers you a luxurious, lakeside base and exquisite dining and leisure options.
Room descriptions
The Grand Hotel Fasano has 79 rooms and suite located in the main building and the Villa Principe, a separate building next to the hotel. All rooms have air-conditioning, safety box, LCD 55'' TV, Wi-Fi, minibar with complimentary water, Acqua di Parma amenities, Espresso coffee machine, beach-bag with flip-flops and towels.
Thanks for organising what was a wonderful holiday. Apart from a delay because of Gatwick fog coming home, everything ran like clockwork and we had a cracking time. I would be happy to recommend Expressions and hope we will have the opportunity to organise another trip with you in the future.Mrs S, October 2024
Holiday price guide Sample prices are per person based on two people sharing a Standard double room no lake view for 7 nights
From about
£1,550 Low season (e.g. April)
£2,480 High season (e.g. August)
Holiday Code IE152
The prices displayed here are a guide only. Each holiday price will be tailor-made at the time of booking to reflect all actual costs including up-to-date special offers.
Call us on 01392 441245
Luxury bespoke hotel holidays to Grand Hotel Fasano, Lake Garda
The journey and how you get there
For a holiday to the Grand Hotel Fasano, our clients fly to Verona, Milan or Venice and then have a pre-booked private car transfer or a hire-car for use during the holiday.
Special offers
Call to make your booking and save an extra £50 per adult Call us instead of emailing us when you are thinking of booking a holiday and save an extra £50 per adult (in addition to any special offers that might be available). We want to talk to you to discuss your requirements and a phone call is usually the best way for you to define what you want enabling us to respond more accurately. We want to talk to you and you save an extra £50 per adult.
Thanks for organising what was a wonderful holiday. Apart from a delay because of Gatwick fog coming home, everything ran like clockwork and we had a cracking time. I would be happy to recommend Expressions and hope we will have the opportunity to organise another trip with you in the future.Mrs S, October 2024
Holiday price guide Sample prices are per person based on two people sharing a Standard double room no lake view for 7 nights
From about
£1,550 Low season (e.g. April)
£2,480 High season (e.g. August)
Holiday Code IE152
The prices displayed here are a guide only. Each holiday price will be tailor-made at the time of booking to reflect all actual costs including up-to-date special offers.
Call us on 01392 441245
Luxury bespoke hotel holidays to Grand Hotel Fasano, Lake Garda
About Italian Lakes
An Expressions tailor-made holiday to the Italian Lakes spans the northern Italian regions of Lombardy, Piemonte and the Veneto. We offer hotels located by the undisputedly beautiful Lake Maggiore, Lake Como and Lake Garda and also the smaller, quieter lakes of Orta and Iseo, both well-worth exploring in their own right. Each lake has its own character and atmosphere, distinctive terrain, architecture and style. Placed as the lakes are to the south of the Alps and to the north of the Po Valley, they naturally possess a charming mixture of the vibrant coolness associated with the Alps but enlivened by the warmth of the South. The landscape around the Italian Lakes is one of deep blue waters surrounded by greenish-blue tinged mountains, often snow-capped. On the shores of the lakes and the lower slopes of the hills you find a profusion of lemons and olives, chestnuts and palms, magnolias and camellias. Pretty villages with rustic stone and wood houses hug the sheltered bays and fishing boats still moor next to sailing boats. Wrought-iron balconies and colourful shutters adorn gaily-painted houses with terracotta roofs. Dining is usually al fresco in the summer months and a magical atmosphere is created with the lapping of the waters and the twinkling of the lights around the lake and in the hills above. The close proximity to Milan and Verona as well as other less well-known but artistically interesting cities means that you can visit the Italian Lakes quite easily for just a weekend or short break as well as a longer holiday. The Italian Lakes can all be visited as part of a rail holiday, and the many beautiful gardens located in the vicinity of Lakes Como and Maggiore are well worth a visit as part of a garden tour holiday. Our favourite four and five star hotels for luxury holidays in the Italian Lakes include Grand Hotel Villa Serbelloni and Villa d'Este on Lake Como, and the Hotel Cannero Lakeside Resort on Lake Maggiore.
Highlights of the Italian Lakes
Historic villas are to be found on every lake from the Grotte di Catullo Roman villa at Sirmione on Lake Garda to Villa Melzi and Villa Olmo on Lake Como and the Palazzo Estense in Varese. Most of these villas also have extraordinarily beautiful gardens (which can be visited as part of an Expressions Garden Tour holiday) such as the Villa Carlotta on Lake Como, the Isola Bella in Lake Maggiore and Villa Taranto at Punta della Castagnola on Lake Maggiore. Monte Mottarone above Stresa on Lake Maggiore and Monte Baldo above Lake Garda can both be reached by cable car and afford spectacular views. At Gargnano on Lake Garda you can see the stone pavilions where lemons were traditionally cultivated. Within the region there are national parks such as the Stelvio National Park north of Orta and the Parco Nazionale della Val Grande above Verbania on Lake Maggiore.
Cultural highlights of the Italian Lakes
Much of the artistic and architectural cultural wealth in the region is concentrated in the great cities such as Milan and Verona but also in the less well-known but culturally-rich centres of Bergamo, Brescia, Pavia, Mantova and Vicenza (not directly on the Lakes but within reach for a day`s excursion). Highlights include the frescoes by Masolino at Castiglione Olona, the Rocca (castle) at Angera, the Flemish tapestries on the Isola Bella Lake Maggiore, the marble cathedral of Santa Maria Maggiore at Como and the works of art in the Galleria dell`Accademia Tadini at Lovere on Lake Iseo. Milan has La Scala, the Museo Poldi Pezzoli, the Brera Gallery (containing Raphael`s `Marriage of the Virgin` and the Montefeltro altarpiece by Piero della Francesca) and its Gothic cathedral. Verona has its annual opera festival from June until the end of August, the Romanesque church of San Zeno, the Renaissance Loggia del Consiglio and the Roman Arena.
Festivals in the Italian Lakes
The Verona Opera Festival takes place in the Roman Arena every year with performances running from June until the end of August. Verona also celebrates Carnival every year culminating on the Friday before Shrove Tuesday. Como holds a flea market, the Fiera di Pasqua, over the Easter weekend. Music festivals take place in Bergamo throughout the year. The Mille Miglia veteran car race starts and ends in Brescia (via Ferrara to Rome in May each year).
Gastronomy in the Italian Lakes
The cuisine of northern Italy tends to contain more meat and butter than further south and rice and polenta compete with pasta. Saffron is used extensively as in Risotto alla Milanese. Bresaola is cured raw beef served as an antipasta (now often with rocket and parmesan). Manzo al Barolo (beef in Barolo wine), Costolette alla Milanese (veal cutlets in breadcrumbs) and Ossobucco (veal in wine and tomatoes) are all popular dishes. Panettone cake and Zabaglione are two regional desserts. This region produces some of Italy's most famous cheeses such as Gorgonzola, Bel Paese, Fontina and Taleggio as well as some of Italy's most exportable wines such as Soave, Bardolino and Valpolicella. Less well known but interesting wines are produced in the Valtellina in the north of Lombardy and in Franciacorta near Lake Iseo.
