Lake Garda Cable Car: Malcesine to Monte Baldo Prices and Times

There are three stations. The first cabin, for up to 42 people, lifts you from Malcesine to San Michele at about 562 metres. There you change into the larger cabin, for up to 75, which turns on its axis as it climbs to Tratto Spino at 1,760 metres, so the view comes round to everyone. The whole trip takes about 20 minutes each way.

The line dates from the 1960s and was completely rebuilt in 2002. The operator describes it as barrier-free, with lifts from the car park to the ticket office and boarding level, and staff on hand to help with boarding.

Every fare is €2 cheaper online than at the ticket office. Online tickets are for a chosen date and time slot and are valid that day only, with the ascent and descent on the same day. Read the conditions before you pay: the slot does not guarantee departure at that exact time, the date cannot be changed if you pick the wrong one, and there are no refunds for bad weather or delays.

Free tickets for children under 1.20 m are issued only at the station ticket offices, so allow time to collect them. Holders of an ATV 1, 3 or 7-day bus pass and of the Garda promotion card get €3 off an adult return at the Malcesine ticket desk, bringing it to €27. The operator adds extra runs when it is busy, and its own pages mention long lines at peak times.

In the 2026 summer season, from 4 April to 1 November, the first cabin left at 8:15 and departures were guaranteed every 30 minutes from 8:30, weather permitting. The last ascent was at 18:00 and the last descent at 18:45. From 5 October both move two hours earlier, to 16:00 and 16:45. Check the time of the last cabin down before you set off on a walk.

The operator describes the line as open all year except for maintenance in March and in November until mid-December, before the Christmas holidays. In winter the cable car serves a small ski area on natural snow only. Exact winter dates change each year, so check the operator’s timetable page. Our Lake Garda weather pages say what else is open each month.

Bikes travel only on set departures: 8:25, 8:55, 14:15 and 15:15, plus 16:15 and 17:15 until 4 October. The service runs from May to the end of the summer season and not in winter. There are 24 bike places an hour, the ticket covers one ascent, and riders must check in at least ten minutes before the slot. Book ahead. The descent is in our best Lake Garda bike rides.

Paragliders pay a combined fare for wing and pilot, with a cheaper rate early and late in the day. The launch area is about a kilometre from the top station and tandem flights are sold by local schools. Dogs ride for a fee with a lead and muzzle, and the ticket office hands out muzzles. Pushchairs go in the cabin without being folded.

The top station sits on the ridge at Tratto Spino. The easiest walk is the Malcesine Peak loop, which the operator gives as 3.6 km, about two hours and 260 metres of height difference, with viewpoints over both ends of the lake. Longer ridge routes continue from there, and our best Lake Garda walks has more.

For food there is the SkyWalk lounge bar with a terrace inside the top station, and two family-run restaurants a short distance away, Baita dei Forti and La Capannina. The Prà Alpesina chairlift, on the Trentino side of the mountain, is a 30-minute walk from the top station and runs in summer from mid-June to mid-September. The operator’s own advice is the right one: bring warm clothing, proper shoes and water, and check the time of the last cabin down.

The valley station is at Via Navene Vecchia 12, five minutes on foot from Malcesine’s castle. Its underground car park has 170 spaces at €3 an hour up to €24, then a €25 daily rate from eight hours. It is open from 8:00 to 19:30 and you cannot collect a car after it closes until the next morning. There is a small outdoor car park in front of the station and two more along Via Navene Vecchia.

Without a car, the operator lists bus line 483 from Peschiera and Garda to Malcesine and line 484 linking Garda, Malcesine and Riva del Garda. Ferries call at Malcesine from the other shores, including Limone opposite. Our Lake Garda ferry guide has the routes and passes.