PARKS AND GARDENS
Without doubt, the Sigurtà garden park is definitely worth a visit. Following you will find some information on the gardens.
SIGURTÁ GARDEN PARK
The Sigurtà garden park covers an area of 56 hectares and is located at the edge of the morainic hills south of Lake Garda in Valeggio sul Mincio, and only eight kilometres from Peschiera. The park developed from the "brolo cinto de muro", or walled garden (1617), of the Villa Maffei (designed by V. Pellesina, a student of Palladio) and was the headquarters of Napoleon III in 1859.
Thanks to over forty years of loving care, Carlo Sigurtà, benefiting from an ancient right to draw water from the Mincio River, performed the "miracle" of turning scarce hillside vegetation into luxurious greenery. Later, his grandson Enzo designed a prototype for the existing park. After opening its gates to the public (1978) the conservation of this ecological estate has been entrusted to the respect of its visitors, who have defined it as a true Temple of Nature, so much so that the park is today considered one of the five most beautiful gardens in the world.
SIGURTÁ GARDEN PARK
Valeggio sul Mincio (Vr)
Tel. +39.045.6371033
Website: www.sigurta.it
More parks and botanical gardens in the areas surrounding Bardolino.
BOTANICAL GARDEN "André Heller" of GARDONE RIVIERA
The André Heller botanical garden is located in the centre of Gardone Riviera in the Province of Brescia. The sign-post to the park can be found on all access roads to this beautiful medieval town. During your visit to Gardone Riviera you should also visit the national memorial "Vittoriale degli Italiani", the house of writer Gabriele d'Annunzio.
Tel: +39.336.410877
WEBSITE: www.hellergarden.com
The regional Lessinia Nature Park extends over the alpine plateau of the Lessini Mountains, adjacent to Verona and at the border to the Province of Trento.
The park covers more than 100 km² and features typical, high-alpine landscape. The park is characterised by ravines and valleys with fields and meadows, and with forests with white beech, beech and spruce.
Furthermore, the park features some "islands" of various sizes. These islands are protected in order to preserve this valuable nature and landscape. These protected islands are namely the Val Sorda-Progno di Breonio Valley, the Veja bridge, the karst cave Covolo di Camposilvano, the rock town in the Valle delle Sfingi Valley, the Velo grottos, the fish fossils of Bolca, the Monte Purga, the Monte Postale, the fossil sediments in the area of Roncà, and the columnar basalt of San Giovanni Ilarione. The park holds natural history treasures like the alpine plateau Corno D'Aquilio, one of the most renowned karst ravines in Italy, the Spluga della Preta, and some areas of extraordinary environmental interest like the SIC (sites of general interest), which are preserved due to the biological variety and for the protection of the flora and fauna. The areas, which enjoy special protection (ZPS – zones of special protection) like "Ponte di Veja-Vajo della Marcoior" and "Monti Lessini-Pasubio-Piccole Dolomiti Vicentine" (the latter includes the Malera valley and the forests of Folignani and Giazza), have this protection status due to the high number of interesting birds like eagles, peregrine falcons, mountain cocks, alpine pheasants, hazel grouse, boreal owls, black woodpeckers, white-throated dippers, and others. During flying time, these areas are also interesting due to the continuous passing through of chaffinches, birds of prey, and honey buzzards.
www.lessiniapark.it
PARK OF MOLINA WATERFALLS
The park of the Molina waterfalls is located only a few kilometres from Bardolino, and is part of the Lessinia Nature Park. The park is located in a hamlet of Molina, namely in Vaccarole, a typical medieval harbour with a magical atmosphere. The park of the waterfalls extends across more than 8 hectares, and offers its visitors waterfalls and grottos, round tours of different lengths (from half an hour to more than 2 hours), on which they can admire forests, paths, fields and vertical rock walls.
Via Bacilieri 1 - Molina di Fumane
Tel. +39.045.7720185
Website: www.cascatemolina.it
GARDEN GIARDINO GIUSTI OF VERONA (Vr)
The park is not only renowned amongst nature lovers, but also amongst artists and historians. Celebrities like Mozart, Goethe, Cosimo De' Medici, emperor Josef II, Tsar Alexander I, and others admired the garden. The round tour of the garden takes a little more than 1 hour. You will learn to appreciate the beauties of this garden in the centre of Verona: beautiful paths, coloured flowerbeds, mystic statues and creatures, and different terrace constructions from where you have a splendid view of Verona.
Tel. +39 045 8034029
POJEGA GARDEN in NEGRAR di VALPOLICELLA (Vr)
The Pojega Garden is located in Negrar in Valpolicella. This is one of the last true examples of an Italian garden. The garden extends over an area of approx. 5.5 hectares and features a temple, a theatre, wall constructions, viewpoints shaped from trees, hedges and waterways. The botanical garden of Pojega has only recently been opened to the public.
Information can be obtained in the administration office of Pojega Garden:
Tel 045 721 0028 – Fax 045 7210704
Website: www.pojega.it
BOTANICAL GARDEN – MONTE BALDO
This botanical garden is valued due to its extraordinary flora of Baldo. The most typical environments of the "Hortus Europae" (European garden) can be seen.
Loc. Novezzina - Ferrara di Monte Baldo
Tel. +39.045.6247065
Website: www.ortobotanicomontebaldo.org
EDUCATIONAL FAUNA PARK AL BOSCO
Loc. Zerbaro - Romagnano di Grezzana (VR)
Tel: +39.045.8347955 - 3347475415
Website: www.parcoalbosco.it
Thermal parks in and around Bardolino
THERMAL PARK DEL GARDA – VILLA DEI CEDRI
Piazza Di Sopra 4 - Colà di Lazise
Tel. +39.045.7590988
Website: www.villadeicedri.com
THERMAL PARK – TERME DI GIUNONE
Via delle Terme, 1 - Caldiero
Tel. +39.045.7650933 - +39.045.6151288 (open in summer only)
Website: www.termedigiunone.it
