Isola del Garda is located about 200 meters from Capo San Fermo, San Felice del Benaco, near the town Salò.
It is an about one km long island, currently owned by the Borghese Cavazza family, but which boasts ancient origins dating back to Roman times, as evidenced by the 130 Gallic-Roman tombstones found on the spot.

Following the decline of the Roman Empire, it fell into ruin, becoming a hunting reserve until the year 879.  Over the centuries, it has seen the passage of famous people such as San Francesco d'Assisi, Sant'Antonio da Padova, Dante Alighieri and San Bernardino da Siena. The latter in 1429 transformed the island into an important religious centre of meditation.

Subsequently there were several other changes of ownership up to the Borghese family, who opened it to tourists since 2002, allowing a visit to the exterior and three rooms of the villa.
This island is private and there is no public transport, but to reach it, you can use motorboats or small boats departing from the most touristic towns of the Lake, such as Bardolino, Sirmione, Lazise and Salò.
 

What you can visit

You can visit it on certain days and times during the summer period, so it is advisable to inquire about the periods in which it is possible to access. The visit is obligatorily guided (in Italian, English and German) and is conducted by qualified personnel provided by the owners. 
The route takes about 2 hours and allows you to admire the English and Italian gardens, as well as the wonderful secular park. The former show local and exotic plants, hedge mazes and ancient rose gardens, while the latter are rich in swamp cypresses, cedars, deciduous oaks, laurels, palm trees from the Canaries and other trees and shrubs.
On the lower terrace, closer to the water, there are fruit trees and some particular blooms such as Lady Hillingdon and Banksia Gialla roses.

The family also allows a visit to three rooms of the house, designed in Venetian Neo-Gothic style in the early 1900s by the architect Luigi Rovelli.
The architect built the villa on the ruins of an old monastery, referring to the structure of the Doge's Palace in Venice.

The visit ends in the loggia of the Venetian Tower, from which you can admire a truly enchanting panorama: the view rests on the fortress of Manerba, on Sirmione and on Punta San Vigilio, while the reflections of the water create a fairy tale atmosphere.
In this same loggia is served a small refreshment to refresh the visitors, under the splendid canvas painted by Carlo Carloni.