Arco

Understand

Arco is in the Alto Garda and Ledro area between the hills behind Riva del Garda, not far from the lake in the final part of the Sarca river valley which flows from here into Lake Garda. It is protected by the mountains and the proximity of Lake Garda, providing this area a particularly mild climate. North of Arco is the Patone cave, a horizontal cave that can be easily visited. Arco overlooks Lake Garda to the south, while to the north it is surrounded by mountains. The city has been known and popular as a place of rest and treatment since the Habsburg period; Archduke Albert of Habsburg wanted Arco as his winter residence, the Villa Arciducale, which boasts a luxuriant park, the Arboretum. The Habsburgs embellished the city with parks and gardens, Art Nouveau villas and palaces, as well as the Castle which is one of the best examples of Trentino. Its municipal territory embraces the towns of Bolognano, Caneve, Ceole, Chiarano, La Grotta, Linfano, Massone, Moletta, Padaro, Pratosaiano, San Giorgio, San Martino, Varignano, Vigne and Vignole.

Getting there

Arco is 4 km northeast of Riva del Garda.

By plane Bolzano-Dolomites Airport (BZO IATA) (6 km from the centre of Bolzano), ☏ +39 0471 255 255. open to the public: 05:30–23:00; ticket office opening: 06:00-19:00. Check-in for flights from Bolzano is only possible from 1 hour to a maximum of 20 minutes before departure. Small regional airport with scheduled flights to and from Lugano and Rome with Etihad Regional (by Darwin Air). On the other hand, charter flights are numerous. Verona Airport (Catullus), Caselle di Sommacampagna, ☏ +39 045 8095666. Brescia Airport (D'Annunzio), Via Aeroporto 34, Montichiari, ☏ +39 045 8095666. Connections with Brescia airport are provided by public transport via the bus/shuttle. The stop in Brescia city ​​is located at the bus station (number 23), while the airport stop is at the front of the terminal. There are also connections to the city of Verona through the bus/shuttle line 1.

By car A22 Rovereto Sud - Lago di Garda Nord motorway exit on the A22 Brennero motorway. Provincial Road 118: The provincial road 118 connects it to Riva del Garda and Dro.

By train Mori railway stop on the Verona - Innsbruck line; railway station in Rovereto; from Rovereto to Arco bus connection.

By bus Connections via the Trentino Trasporti bus lines.

Getting around

Most of the attraction are accessible by foot from the city centre. Public transport connects the municipalities of Arco, Riva del Garda and Nago - Torbole. It is distributed on four lines: the circular lines 1 and 2 that connect Arco and Riva del Garda and their respective hamlets; line 3 which connects Arco, Riva del Garda and Nago-torbole and line 4 inside the town of Riva del Garda. Timetables are available on the Trentino Trasporti website.

See

1 Arco Castle. The city develops on the slopes of a rocky cliff from which the magnificent medieval castle dominates the entire Upper Garda valley. The castle was built as a fortified village defended by mighty walls and a good sighting system thanks to the towers on the various sides of the nucleus. The whole complex consisted of the two Renghera towers in the highest part of the cliff, and Grande as well as several buildings such as the prison rondello, the blacksmith's workshop, the cellar, the mill and three cisterns. According to some sources, its construction originated in the Middle Ages, built by the inhabitants of Arco and only later became the property of the noble Arcense family that dominated these lands. The castle was abandoned during the 18th century also following the siege by French troops in the summer of 1703 commanded by the French general Luigi Giuseppe di Borbone-Vendôme. An accurate restoration in 1986 and others in the following years, commissioned and carried out by the autonomous province of Trento and the Municipality of Arco, allowed the discovery and recovery of some cycles of frescoes depicting knights and court ladies of the medieval era. Arco castle attracts thousands of visitors every year offering an enchanting view of the area and a visit to suggestive ruins. According to some, the houses in the historic center, arranged in an arch around the cliff of the ancient castle, give the town its name, another current of thought says that the name derives from the Latin Arx, arcis la rocca, precisely due to the presence of this important fortification work. It strongly resembles (and possibly influenced) the painting Isle of the Dead by Arnold Böcklin. (updated Sep 2025)

Sanctuary of Santa Maria delle Grazie (via Dante Alighieri 9), ☏ +39 0464 519800. The sanctuary and the adjacent convent were built between 1475 and 1492 at the behest of the local count. In the following centuries the building underwent several renovations, but the lowe

Do

Rock climbing There are many spots:

Placche Zebrate - 14 multi-pitch routes, optimally secured A small climbing guide is sold for €1 at the camp sites.

Hiking A lot of trails with good indication are available here.

Buy

There are lots of shops selling climbing equipment and if you are thinking about completing your equipment before travelling to Arco, don't! Prices are really cheap here.

Eat

1 Ristorante pizzeria Pace, =Via Vergolano, 42, ☏ +39 0464 519495. 2 Pizzeria ristorante Al Fiume, Piazza Italia, 17, ☏ +39 0464 517683. 3 Ristorante alla Lega, Via Vergolano, 8, ☏ +39 0464516205. 4 La Cantinota ristorante pizzeria, Via Linfano, 50, ☏ +39 0464 548230. 5 Trattoria Belvedere, Via Serafini, 2, ☏ +39 0464 516144. 6 Ristorante Il Ritratto, Via Ferrera, 30, ☏ +39 0464 512958.

Sleep

Budget 1 Albergo Cattoi, Viale Rovereto 64 Arco, ☏ +39 0464517070. One star.

Mid-range 2 Albergo Olivo, Viale Roma 2, ☏ +39 0464 516430, [email protected]. 3 Albergo Pace, via Vergolano, 50=, ☏ +39 0464 516398, [email protected]. 4 Albergo San Giorgio, Via S.Giorgio 2, ☏ +39 0464 521056, [email protected]. 5 Hotel Al Sole, Via Foro Boario, 5A, ☏ +39 0464 516676, [email protected]. 6 Hotel Baia Azzurra, Via Gardesana 33, ☏ +39 0464 505168, [email protected]. 7 Hotel Everest, Viale Rovereto 91, ☏ +39 0464 519277, [email protected]. 8 Hotel Villa Franca, Via Lungo Sarca, 8 (a Linfano), ☏ +39 0464 505162, [email protected]. 9 Palace Hotel Città, Via Roma 10, ☏ +39 0464 531100, [email protected].

Camping 10 Campeggio Arco, via Legionari Cecoslovacchi 12 (in località Prabi), ☏ +39 0464 517491, [email protected]. 11 Camping Bellavista, Via Gardesana, 31 (a Linfano), ☏ +39 0464 505644. 12 Camping Lido di Arco, a Linfano, ☏ +39 0464 505077, [email protected]. 13 Camping Maroadi, a Linfano, ☏ +39 0464 505175, [email protected]. 14 Zoo Camping, Via Legionari Cecoslovacchi, 24 (in Prabi), ☏ +39 0464 516232. Check-out: 14:00. Nice camp site near climbing spots. There is a swimming pool and lot of trees for the shade. €9 for a tent pitch + €8 per adult. (updated Jul 2016)