The south-east corner of Lake Garda, between Peschiera and Lazise, has the biggest cluster of theme parks in Italy: Gardaland, the Caneva water park and Movieland next door to it, and a safari park a few kilometres inland. They are the reason many families choose the lake in the first place. The rest of the shore answers with gardens and nature: an artist’s botanical garden in Gardone Riviera, the enormous landscaped park at Sigurtà a short drive south, a paid beach-park under cypresses at Punta San Vigilio, and free nature reserves on the Rocca di Manerba and in the mountains above the west shore.
We have paid our way into every park on this list, most of them more than once and several with children in tow. The ranking mixes the two kinds deliberately, ordered by how good a day you get for the ticket price and the effort of getting there. Gardaland wins because it is the best of its kind in the country; the gardens and reserves that follow are where we go ourselves when we want a slower day.
Some booking links on this page are affiliate links: if you book through one we may earn a small commission, at no extra cost to you. It never changes what we recommend or the order of the list. How we choose
1Our top pick
Best theme park in Italy
#1 Gardaland
96/100
Castelnuovo del Garda · Castelnuovo del Garda, on the lake road between Peschiera and Lazise
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Italy’s biggest theme park sits on the lake shore at Castelnuovo del Garda, just south of Lazise, with around forty rides from toddler carousels to the Raptor and Oblivion coasters, a Sea Life aquarium next door and two themed hotels. Tickets bought online in advance cost roughly €40–55 for an adult, noticeably less than at the gate, and the park opens daily from late March to early November with weekends and Halloween and Christmas seasons after that. A free shuttle runs from Peschiera railway station. Our guide to Castelnuovo del Garda has the practicalities around the park.
Valeggio sul Mincio, 15 minutes south of Peschiera
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Sixty hectares of landscaped park at Valeggio sul Mincio, 15 minutes south of Peschiera, laid out over a century with lawns, lakes, box mazes, a million tulips in spring and long avenues you can cover on foot, by hired bike or golf cart, or on the little train. Entry is around €15–17 for an adult and the park opens from early March to mid-November. Allow three to four hours, and add lunch in Borghetto, the mill village on the Mincio five minutes away. It is the day out we recommend to anyone who thinks gardens are boring. Our guide to Peschiera del Garda covers the Mincio cycle path that links the two.
What we love
60 hectares, tulips in late March and April
Entry about €15–17, bike and golf cart hire inside
Gardone Riviera · Gardone Riviera, Via Roma, uphill from the lakefront
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A botanical garden planted a century ago by a Swiss dentist and now owned by the Austrian artist André Heller, who has filled its ravines, ponds and bamboo groves with sculptures by Keith Haring, Roy Lichtenstein and others. It is small, an hour and a half at most, and steep in places, but the mix of alpine, Mediterranean and subtropical plants with carp pools and outdoor art is unlike anything else on the lake. Entry is around €12–14 and the garden opens from March to October, mornings being coolest. It is a short walk up from the Gardone lakefront, and our guide to Gardone Riviera pairs it with the Vittoriale.
Lazise · Lazise, on the hill above the lake road, next to Movieland
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Caneva is the lake’s big water park, on the hill above Lazise next to Movieland, with a wave pool, a lazy river, a dozen slides from gentle to vertical and a Caribbean island theme that looks better than it sounds. It opens from late May to mid-September, and an adult ticket costs roughly €30–36 online with combination tickets for Caneva plus Movieland. Arrive at opening to claim a sunbed under a tree, because shade goes early. Cabins, lockers and food outlets are all on site. Read our guide to Lazise for the town at the bottom of the hill.
Bussolengo, 20 minutes inland from Lazise and Bardolino
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A zoological park at Bussolengo, 20 minutes inland from Lazise and Bardolino, split into a walk-through zoo with giraffes, lemurs, tigers and a well-run reptile house, and a drive-through safari section where lions, zebras and rhinos wander around your car. It has a serious conservation programme and enclosures that are larger than most European zoos. Tickets are around €25–28 for an adult, the park opens from March to early November, and a full visit with the safari takes four to five hours. Combine it with an evening back on the shore at Bardolino.
Manerba del Garda · Manerba del Garda, headland between Manerba and San Felice
The headland at Manerba is a protected reserve of cliffs, olive groves and scrub with a ruined castle on top, an archaeological museum at the car park and a network of signed paths that loop the headland in an hour and a half. Below the cliffs are the Pisenze and Sasso coves and the shallow channel to the islet of San Biagio, so it is a park where you walk in the morning and swim in the afternoon. Entry to the reserve is free, the museum a few euros. Spring is best for orchids and wildflowers. See our guide to Manerba del Garda for the rest of the town.
A private park on the headland of Punta San Vigilio between Garda and Torri del Benaco, where lawns run down under olives and cypresses to a pebble cove with clear water and a bar. You pay to get in, roughly €8–15 per adult depending on the season and day, which keeps it calm even in August, and the price includes the lawn; sunbeds are extra. It opens from around May to September. It is a beach park rather than a garden, but as a place to spend a summer day with a book and a swim it beats most of the free beaches. Our guide to Garda has the walk out along the shore.
Movieland is the cinema-themed park beside Caneva at Lazise: stunt shows, a Hollywood-style studio tour, water rides, a ropes course and a couple of decent coasters, aimed squarely at children of about eight to fifteen who have outgrown the gentler side of Gardaland. An adult ticket is around €30–36 online, combination tickets cover both parks, and it opens from late spring to early autumn with a Halloween season. It is smaller than Gardaland and rarely as busy, which counts for a lot in August. Both parks are a short drive or bus ride uphill from Lazise.
Tignale · Mountains behind the west shore, from Salò to Limone
The regional park that covers the mountains behind the west shore from Salò to Limone: the Tremosine and Tignale plateaus, the Valvestino lake and valley, and the peaks above them up to 2,000 m. It is a landscape of hamlets, terraced lemon houses, beech woods and old military roads rather than a fenced park with a ticket booth, and it is free. Good bases are Tignale, with the visitor centre and Montecastello sanctuary, and Valvestino for the quietest walks on the lake. You need a car. Read our guide to Tignale and our guide to Valvestino to plan a day.
A waterfall that drops nearly 100 metres inside a slot gorge in the hills just north of Riva, opened to visitors in the 1870s with walkways into the spray at the bottom and a second gallery higher up, surrounded by a small botanical garden of ferns and Mediterranean plants. Entry is a few euros, a visit takes about 45 minutes, and it opens all year with shorter winter hours. It is loudest and most impressive after rain, which is exactly when the rest of the lake has nothing to offer. The falls are in Tenno municipality, a ten-minute drive or a 40-minute walk from Riva; see our guide to Tenno.
For families with children between about six and sixteen, yes. It is the best theme park in Italy, with enough big coasters for teenagers and enough gentle rides for younger children to fill a full day. Buy online in advance for the lower price, arrive at opening and go to the far end first. Adults without children may find one day enough and the gardens on this list better value.
How many days do I need for the theme parks?
One day for Gardaland, and a second for Caneva and Movieland together if you buy the combination ticket, which is the usual pattern for a family week on the lake. Parco Natura Viva is a half to full day on its own. Spread them out with beach and boat days in between; three theme parks in a row is expensive and exhausting, and the lake is the reason you came.
Can I get to Gardaland without a car?
Yes. Trains from Verona, Milan and Venice stop at Peschiera del Garda, and a free Gardaland shuttle bus runs from the station forecourt to the park gates every half hour or so during opening times. The ATV lake bus also stops on the main road outside the park. Caneva and Movieland are harder without a car; a taxi from Lazise is the simplest option.
Which parks are good for toddlers?
Gardaland has a dedicated young-children area with small rides, and Parco Natura Viva is easy with a pushchair on the walk-through side. Parco Baia delle Sirene, with its lawns and shallow cove, is the best outdoor day for very small children, and Sigurtà with a hired golf cart works well. Caneva and Movieland suit children from about six upwards.
Are there gardens worth visiting on Lake Garda?
Two in particular. The Heller Garden in Gardone Riviera is small, steep and full of surprises, and pairs with the Vittoriale next door for a full day; our guide to Gardone Riviera covers both. Parco Giardino Sigurtà south of Peschiera is on an entirely different scale, sixty hectares of lawns and lakes that need half a day and are at their best in tulip season.
Which parks are free?
The Rocca di Manerba reserve, the Parco Alto Garda Bresciano in the mountains behind the west shore and the lakeside promenades in every town cost nothing. The Varone waterfall and the Rocca museum are a few euros. Everything else on the list charges, from about €8 for Baia delle Sirene to €40–55 for Gardaland. Our pick of the best Lake Garda walks has more free days out.
When are the parks open?
Gardaland, Sigurtà and Parco Natura Viva open from around March to early November, with Gardaland adding Halloween and Christmas seasons. Caneva runs only from late May to mid-September, Movieland a little longer at each end. The Heller Garden opens March to October. The Varone waterfall and the nature reserves are open all year. Check the official sites for exact dates, which shift each season.
Where should I stay to be close to the theme parks?
Lazise, Castelnuovo del Garda or Peschiera. All three are within 15 minutes of Gardaland, Caneva and Movieland, and Peschiera adds the railway station and the free shuttle. The big campsites along this stretch of shore are built for exactly this kind of holiday; our pick of the best Lake Garda camping lists the ones we would choose with children.
Are there discounts or combination tickets?
Yes. Buying online several days ahead is the biggest saving at Gardaland, often €10 or more per ticket, and two-day and Gardaland plus Sea Life tickets cost less than separate entries. Caneva and Movieland sell a combined ticket for both parks. Many hotels and campsites on the east shore sell discounted park tickets at reception, so ask before you buy. Children under a certain height are usually free or reduced.
Our top pick
