Lake Garda without a car: combining boat, bus and train

The principle: train to the lake, bus along the shore, boat across the water

In summer the lakeside roads on Lake Garda are often at capacity and parking in the town centres is limited, so a car of your own is more burden than help. Public transport follows a simple logic. Trains bring you to the edge of the lake, to Desenzano and Peschiera in the south and to Rovereto in the north. From there buses run along the shores: in the east the transport company ATV from Verona, in the west Arriva from Brescia, in the north Trentino Trasporti. Across the water, the boats of the state-run Navigazione Laghi connect the towns, in season from the south as far as Riva.

The three networks interlock but are not seamless: timetables and tickets are separate for each operator, and the service changes greatly with the season. If you allow for that, you will manage well. All information in this article is current as of October 2026; you will find exact departure times from the operators.

Arriving by train

• Desenzano del Garda and Peschiera del Garda: Both stations lie on the line between Milan and Verona. According to Arriva, in summer the buses from Desenzano are timed to the arrivals of the trains from Milano Centrale and Verona Porta Nuova. Several ATV lines to the east shore stop at Peschiera.
• Verona Porta Nuova: With the Garda Link offer you buy a combined ticket for train and ATV bus from Trenitalia. According to ATV, buses leave Verona every 30 minutes for Lazise, Bardolino, Garda, Torri del Benaco and Malcesine.
• Rovereto: According to Garda Trentino, the station on the Brenner line is served all year round by Trenitalia, ÖBB and DB. Trentino Trasporti buses connect it with Torbole, Riva del Garda and Arco. Buy bus tickets in advance; none are sold on the bus.
• Verona airport: ATV line 482 runs from the airport via Villafranca and Valeggio to Peschiera and San Benedetto, according to ATV hourly until 18 October 2026.

Navigazione Laghi boats

The scheduled boats on Lake Garda are operated by the Gestione Governativa Navigazione Laghi. The main line connects Desenzano, Peschiera and Riva del Garda and stops at almost all lakeside towns in between, from Sirmione, Lazise, Bardolino and Garda via Salò, Gardone, Maderno and Gargnano to Brenzone, Malcesine, Limone and Torbole. Not every sailing stops everywhere; many services run only part of the route. Sailings marked SR in the timetable are fast services, for which a supplement is charged.

The ferry between Maderno on the west shore and Torri del Benaco on the east shore takes passengers and vehicles, also runs in winter (not on 25 December 2026) and takes about half an hour to cross. Places are limited by the capacity of the vessel; whether a sailing takes buses and lorries is governed by the operator's notices.

Practical tips: Tickets are available from the counters at the landing stages. On board they cost one euro extra per person, item of luggage or vehicle, unless the counter on shore is closed. The operator recommends being at the landing stage about 20 minutes before departure. Bicycles are carried only on certain sailings and depending on space, and the captain may limit how many are taken. The free service number 800 551801 can only be reached from within Italy.

Buses along the shores

East shore: ATV Verona

The bus network is densest on the east shore. According to ATV (timetables valid from 10 September 2026), line 483 runs from San Benedetto and Peschiera via Lazise, Bardolino and Garda to Malcesine, and line 484 from Garda via Malcesine to Riva del Garda. Line 164 connects Verona via Peschiera with Lazise, Bardolino and Garda; other lines run from Verona via Bussolengo to Garda.

West shore: Arriva

Arriva serves the Lombard side. The R-link 202 line runs from Brescia via Salò, Gardone Riviera and Maderno to Gargnano, according to Arriva every 30 minutes on weekdays and hourly on public holidays, with some journeys continuing to Limone and Riva. Another line follows the lakeside road daily from Salò via Gargnano and Limone to Riva; the cycle path above the lake begins at the Reamol stop. In summer 2026 a line ran between Desenzano and Salò every 30 minutes from 7:00 to 23:00, with stops at Lido di Lonato, Lido di Padenghe, Moniga, Manerba and Raffa. In Sirmione a shuttle bus runs between Colombare and the old town. You can pay contactless by card or smartphone directly on the bus; hold the card to the reader both when boarding and when getting off.

North: Trentino Trasporti

In Trentino, Trentino Trasporti buses connect the stations of Rovereto and Trento with Torbole, Riva and Arco; from Riva you can also reach the Ledro Valley. The operator publishes the timetable of the connection from Rovereto to the lake as a PDF.

Combined tickets

For the west side, Arriva offers the GardaPass, a day ticket for Arriva buses and the Navigazione Laghi boats, available only in the Arriva MyPay app. With the Girogarda Ovest offer you travel from a railway station in Lombardy by train to Desenzano, by boat to Salò and back by bus; it is sold through Trenord's channels. On the east shore, Garda Link combines train and bus from Verona in a single ticket.

The right base without a car

• Riva del Garda: end point of the boat line, buses to Rovereto and Arco, line 484 to Malcesine and Arriva buses to Limone and Salò.
• Malcesine: boats to Limone and Riva, bus lines 483 and 484 and the valley station of the cable car up Monte Baldo.
• Garda and Bardolino: dense ATV network to Verona and Peschiera, boats in both directions.
• Desenzano and Peschiera: station, boats and buses in one place, good for short stays and the journey home.
• Salò and Gargnano: Arriva buses to Brescia, Desenzano and Riva, plus boat landing stages.

Which side of the lake suits your trip is compared in the article Lake Garda north or south.

A day without a car in the north

An example for the season: in the morning you take the boat from Riva to Limone and walk the cycle and footpath above the lake as far as the border with Trentino and back. Around midday a boat takes you across to Malcesine, where the cable car up Monte Baldo starts. In the late afternoon bus line 484 runs back to Riva. Check the day before which services run that day, because in spring and autumn the service is thinner. You can read more about the cable car and the cycle path under Sailing, hiking, Monte Baldo, and quieter destinations with a landing stage under Lake Garda off the beaten track.

Where to find current timetables

• Boats: website of Navigazione Laghi, Lago di Garda section, with timetables as PDFs and online tickets.
• East shore: website of ATV Verona, Lago di Garda e suo entroterra section, where you will also find the Garda Link offer.
• West shore: website and app of Arriva Italia, Brescia section.
• North: website of Trentino Trasporti; the Garda Trentino tourist board also gives advice on getting there.
• Rail: Trenitalia, and for the journey over the Brenner also ÖBB and DB.

Timetables change several times a year, especially at the start and end of the boat season. If you are travelling in October, in March or in winter, it is best to plan around the buses and treat the boat as a bonus.