Great location. Poor site.
24 June 2024 at 04:03:39
Peschiera del Garda
Great location, very poor site.
956428335
We’re just home after 12 days in Bella Italia. This is our 2nd time in BI (last time was 8 years ago) and we traveled with in a group of 10. We stayed in the 2 bed luxury mobiles with Human Travel- now called HU open air. These mobiles... are definitely the best onsite. I would say HU Open Air and Gusto are the two best companies to book through if considering holidaying at BI. The other mobiles mostly looked run down, tiny and shabby to be honest.
We had a great holiday, we all adore the location of BI and Lake Garda as a whole but we won’t be returning to Bella Italia again.
The site has gone seriously down hill since we last stayed.
I hate being negative but here is an honest report;
- The landscaping is outrageously poor, to the point I felt embarrassed I’d recommended our group to go here. The mobile homes are all surrounded in thick ugly weeds (tall & small) and dry cracked uneven muck, stones / gravel and moss. It genuinely is a disgrace. Our mobile home had a cardboard box flattened into the muck outside it to host the bbq and the ground was so uneven the clothes line wouldn’t even stand without capsizing. There was also bits of glass beer bottle embedded into the ground alongside the weeds & stones in what should be a grassed area. It really is shocking.
The ‘grass’ is non existent around the site, the grounds in general really needs a complete overhaul.
The entrance outside the main reception area is beautifully done and very well maintained and the landscaping on the road down to the pool isn’t bad but the rest of the site is a disgrace. We stayed in Union Lido in Venice last year and there is absolutely zero comparison to the landscaping & general upkeep and how well UL was maintained overall towards BI.
The children’s entertainment at night was terrible. Every night the entertainment was also cut short to show the Euros football matches which we found frustrating because all the bars onsite also showed the football so it was hugely disappointing for the children and for those that have zero interest in football!
The pool situation and the fight for beds wasn’t an issue for our group of 10. We never queued for pool beds in the morning stampede that is described on this page. We always got at least 4 beds by patiently waiting and walking around the pool looking for beds and then moving beds we got together as they became available. This never took us more than 10 / 15 minutes on arrival at the pool. We usually arrived at the pool at approx 11.30am if we weren’t going to the lake. We found at lunch time beds by the pools became free as people went for lunch elsewhere. We didn’t find the pools overly cold like others describe however if you are traveling with a small baby or child who feels the cold I would recommend a short sleeved & legged wetsuit which will allow them keep warmer in the pool and last longer in it. I brought one for my baby and he enjoyed the pools with no bother.
The beds by the pool were old, plastic and dodgy. We saw a good few beds broken and just left there for guests to potentially injure themselves on or trip over. The attention to detail on site just really isn’t up to scratch. The pool toilets underground were also a disgrace. 2 out of 3 of the female loos had no locks on the doors. They were broken. Floors filthy in the loos and no soap in the soap dispensers either. Just not good enough.
The children’s Bel Park junior is not great at all either. Again, old play toys and smelly bouncy castles in need of a good clean. Ground surface dangerousliy uneven like the rest of the site.
The lake is stunning, calm and clean. Lots of beds available and fab lakeside bars and restaurants. Tip: Bring rock shoes for the lake!
**If going out on the peddle boats PLEASE make sure you all wear life jackets as one of our adult party almost drowned out on one this week**. It was no joke. There are many companies that operate the hire of the peddle boats and stand up paddle boards along the lake outside BI and most do provide life jackets but the company we booked to go with did not provide life jackets, nor did they keep watch on the users of the boats! Life jackets are not compulsory but I think they definitely should be following our very frightening experience.
The staff throughout BI and lake Garda were always friendly and we never encountered one rude or unfriendly Italian the entire trip. The food & wine on Lake Garda is absolutely amazing. We never had a bad meal. Food onsite is grand if you’re too tired to leave the site but Peschiera town is only a 15 minute walk away so it’s well worth making the effort and venturing out as much as you can for lunch / dinner offsite. La Terrazza is the best eatery onsite if you are eating in BI - book a table in advance overlooking the lake!
Our favourite restaurant for lunch and dinner is Vecchio Mulino. It is honestly one of the best Italian restaurants we ate in over there and it’s the closest restaurant to BI! They are so friendly and welcoming to children of all ages. It was as good 8 years ago as it is now & the views are so beautiful from the restaurant. The service as well as the food and wine is exceptional, plus, it’s just 5 minutes stroll outside the gates of BI (turning left when you arrive at the gates to the lake from BI campsite).
For a fancy breakfast / brunch we found a gorgeous patisserie restaurant called PAVÒN in Peschiera. We went there a few times and it never failed to impress. You just have to try their cakes and coffee. Simply fab!
We went to Garda Land and all 10 of us enjoyed it. Well worth the trip. Raging we never got to go to the lego land water park onsite in Garda Land but we just didn’t have the time as it closes at 6pm. Garda land stays open until 11pm and it really does take the full day to get around Garda Land. Buy the tickets at the reception in Bella Italia for €40 each as they’re €59 at the gates of GL! Children under 90cm tall go free
We did a day trip to Sirmione. It’s heavenly! STUNNING place! We went to the ‘Jamaican beach’ there too which was gorgeous. They have a really cool beach bar there which would be amazing to watch the sunset in. Chill out seating and music. We didn’t get to stay for sunset but we enjoyed a few hours there before going back.
Some other tips:
Bring tea towels, beach towels, cloths, detol wipes, dishwasher capsules, laundry detergent, insect repellent plug in & spray, rock shoes.
The hairdresser on site is lovely and gives an amazing head massage with her wash and blowdry. Deffo worth a treat wash & blow dry!
You’ll have a fantastic holiday, the location is what brings people back but for us we won’t be returning to BI. We’re on the look out for other accommodation options on Lake Garda that offers better facilities and better kept. We just can’t justify saving all year to go on a holiday to stay somewhere so rundown. The owners of BI need to reinvest in the site. Absolutely nothing has been upgrade in 8 years. That screams greed.
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28 June 2024 at 05:12:39
25 June 2024 at 08:04:43
24 June 2024 at 04:03:39
