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Lake Garda and the Gardesana

Both Gardesana roads round Lake Garda: from Riva through the cliff tunnels to Limone and Salò, across the flat southern shore at Desenzano and Peschiera, and up the eastern shore past Bardolino and Malcesine.

Distance
93 miles (150 km)
Type
Loop
Where
Lake Garda

Plotted by us, not yet ridden

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Book this tripCrossing ferries and the tunnelBeds from Riva del GardaCover insurance and breakdownSee it all

Click a dot for details. White dots are the stops, each with a bed search. Yellow dots are places to see.

Main roads

SS240SS45bisSR249SR249GardesanaOrientale

From the map

Longest gap between fuel
8 miles
Fuel stations near the line
59
Curvature
140 ° a mile
Campsites within 2 km
141
  • The longest stretch with no fuel station within 1 km of the line runs from mile 81 to mile 90. Check it against your range with the fuel range calculator.
  • The twistiest 20 miles run from mile 23 to mile 43, at 190 degrees of turning a mile.
  • Countries: Italy.
  • 7 motorcycle shops are within 3 km of the line.

Measured on the route line from OpenStreetMap data, which can be missing or out of date. Curvature is degrees of turning a mile, measured every 100 metres. On our routes they run from 6 on the E19 to 701 on the SP638.

Before you go

  • The western Gardesana runs through many short tunnels. Use dipped lights and watch for cyclists inside them.
  • Summer traffic round the lake is heavy, especially at weekends.

On the way

  1. Riva del Garda
  2. Limone sul Garda
  3. Gargnano
  4. Salò
  5. Desenzano
  6. Peschiera
  7. Bardolino
  8. Garda
  9. Malcesine
  10. Torbole
  11. Riva del Garda
Ready to ride it?

Book this trip

Plan it with dates in the tour planner

1Getting there

Most riders cross to Calais by Le Shuttle or a Dover ferry, or take a longer ferry nearer the route.

Compare every crossing

2Places to stay

Search beds in Riva del Garda

3Cover

Check your bike insurance covers riding abroad, get travel insurance that covers motorcycling at your engine size, and breakdown cover that recovers a motorcycle in every country on the route.

What to check before you buy cover

The country on this route

What GOV.UK says riders need for it, checked 05/11/2026. Rules change, so read the official page before you go.

Italy

Money
Euro
Ride on the
Right
  • Riding into Milan or Rome? Milan has a congestion charge and Rome sometimes restricts traffic in its green band

On every trip abroad: your licence, insurance that covers riding abroad, the V5C and travel insurance with medical cover. The tour planner turns all of this into a checklist each rider in your group can tick off.

Places to see on the way

Castles, passes, viewpoints and more within easy reach of the line, in the order you reach them. Yellow dots on the map.

Castello di Puegnago del Garda
Castle · 1 km off the route

Castello di Puegnago del Garda

Castle in Puegnago sul Garda, Italy.

Photo: Massimo Telò, CC BY-SA 3.0
Abbazia di Maguzzano
Monastery · 1.0 km off the route

Abbazia di Maguzzano

Church building in Maguzzano, Italy.

Photo: LINO CORRADI, CC BY-SA 4.0
Castel of Lazise
Castle · 0.3 km off the route

Castel of Lazise

Castle in Lazise, Italy.

Photo: Unknown, CC BY-SA 3.0
Castello Scaligero in Torri del Benaco
Castle · On the route

Castello Scaligero in Torri del Benaco

Castle in Torri del Benaco, Italy.

Photo: Pierre Bona, CC BY-SA 3.0

Place details from Wikidata. Photos from Wikimedia Commons, credited on each card.

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