Walking Lake Garda and the Prosecco Hills — Self-Launched

Fly or take the train into Verona (Verona Porta Nuova is easiest by rail; the airport has a shuttle bus to the station, ~£5). Catch the regional train Verona–Rovereto (~£5, 1h) then local bus 305 or the Trentino 'Bici & Bus' service up to Torbole/Nago (~£2.50). Check into a lakeside hostel or family-run guesthouse in Nago (cheaper than Torbole waterfront). Afternoon: warm-up walk on the Busatte–Tempesta trail from Torbole — about 8 km, 2.5 hrs, ~420 m of up-and-down on stone steps above the lake. Pick up a Trentino Guest Card from your accommodation (often free with your stay, gives free local buses in Trentino). Supermarket picnic dinner or a €12 pizza in Torbole.

🚌Verona Porta Nuova → Rovereto regional train ~£5 + bus to Torbole ~£2.50

🛏Hostel or family-run guesthouse in Nago/Torbole, £18-25/night (double shared)

• →Busatte–Tempesta panoramic trail
• →Torbole lakeside wander
• →Pick up Trentino Guest Card

Self-launch the classic Monte Baldo day: take the local bus (or the Trentino Guest Card shuttle) from Torbole to Malcesine (~£2.50, 30 min). Buy the Funivia Monte Baldo cable car ticket on the day or online in advance (~£24 return, more in high season). Ride up to Tratto Spino (1,760 m) and walk the waymarked ridge path (Sentiero del Ventrar or the easier panoramic loop, 2-4 hrs) with huge views over the lake. Note: the descent from Monte Baldo is genuinely steep and hard on the knees — pick a shorter descent, or ride the cable car down. Return to Malcesine and choose either the bus or the ferry back to Torbole (~£5, 30 min). Evening: lakefront aperitivo (~£5).

🚌Local bus Torbole–Malcesine ~£2.50 each way; ferry option ~£5

🛏Hostel or family-run guesthouse in Nago/Torbole, £18-25/night

• →Funivia Malcesine–Monte Baldo cable car (~£24 return, book direct)
• →Monte Baldo ridge loop walk
• →Malcesine old town and Scaliger castle (exterior, free)

Walk the lakeside trail north from Torbole to Riva del Garda (~7 km, 1.5 hrs, flat and beautiful). From Riva, join the Old Ponale Road Path — the dramatic cliffside route carved into the rock above the lake (2 hrs, free, no ticket needed). Continue via Pregasina and the trail over to Lake Ledro, then walk the shore path to Pieve di Ledro, home of the small but excellent Palafitte (pile-dwelling) museum (~£4). Bus back from Pieve di Ledro via Riva to Torbole using the Trentino Guest Card or a €3 ticket. Packed lunch from a Riva bakery (£6).

🚌Local bus Ledro–Riva–Torbole €3 (free with Trentino Guest Card)

🛏Hostel or family-run guesthouse in Nago/Torbole, £18-25/night

• →Ponale old road path
• →Riva del Garda to Pregasina trail
• →Lake Ledro shoreline walk
• →Palafitte Museum, Pieve di Ledro (~£4)

Check out and take the bus to Rovereto then the regional train to Verona (~£8, 1.5 hrs). Store bags at Verona Porta Nuova (€5) and spend 3-4 hrs exploring on foot for free: Piazza Bra, the Arena, Ponte Pietra and the view from Castel San Pietro. Afternoon: train or bus to Soave (~£3, 30 min) and book a direct winery tasting in Soave Classico country — Cantina di Soave or Suavia, most charge £10-15 for a flight of whites. Then train Soave/San Bonifacio → Vicenza → Bassano del Grappa (~£8, 1.5 hrs). Check into a guesthouse or the Bassano hostel. Rail note: the Verona–Bassano through-train runs a few times a day (~£8, 2 hrs) if you'd rather go direct.

🚌Bus + train Rovereto–Verona ~£8; Verona–Soave ~£3; Soave–Bassano ~£8

🛏Guesthouse or hostel in Bassano del Grappa, £22-30/night

• →Verona old town walk (Arena, Ponte Pietra, Castel San Pietro)
• →Soave Classico winery tasting booked direct (~£12)

Bus from Bassano to Campolungo or Covolo (~£2, 20 min) and walk the Alta Via del Tabacco — a beautifully waymarked 20 km route along the wooded ridge of the Brenta/Valstagna 'canal', through old tobacco-drying villages and hamlets. It's easy-gradient but long: split it and walk the central Covolo–Valstagna section (~12 km, 4 hrs) with a stop for water and a €10 panino lunch. Descend to Valstagna and take the local bus back to Bassano. Bring 2L of water, sun cream and cash — village bars are the only refreshments.

🚌Local bus Bassano–Campolungo ~£2; return from Valstagna ~£2

🛏Guesthouse or hostel in Bassano del Grappa, £22-30/night

• →Alta Via del Tabacco full or central section walk
• →Tobacco-drying village stops at Covolo and Valstagna

Cheap day trip on the Veneto regional rail network: Bassano del Grappa → Castelfranco Veneto → Venezia Mestre/Santa Lucia (~£8 each way, 1.5-2 hrs). In Venice, skip the €20 vaporetto day pass if you're fit — walk the lanes from Santa Lucia to San Marco, Rialto and the northern sestieri and only buy single vaporetto rides (~€9.50 each) when needed. Or buy a 24h ACTV pass (~£20) if you want to add Murano and Burano in the afternoon. Cheap cicchetti lunch standing at a bacaro (~£10). Last trains back to Bassano run until around 21:00 — check times on Trenitalia the day before.

🚌Regional train Bassano–Venice ~£8 each way

🛏Guesthouse or hostel in Bassano del Grappa, £22-30/night

• →Venice walking day (San Marco, Rialto, Cannaregio)
• →Optional Murano/Burano with 24h ACTV vaporetto pass ~£20
• →Cicchetti crawl in a bacaro

Included-in-spirit self-booked highlight of the trip. Bus or train from Bassano toward Valdobbiadene (~£3, 45 min), then walk the waymarked Prosecco vineyard and 'strada del Prosecco' paths between the hill towns of the Valdobbiadene DOCG zone (Cartizze, Santo Stefano, Colbertaldo) — 2-3 hrs of steep-up, gentle-down terrace paths. Book a winery visit and Prosecco Superiore tasting directly in advance (many family cantine charge £12-18, often with cheese and salami). Take in the panoramic viewpoints on the Cartizze hill. Bus back to Bassano in the late afternoon; eat at a Bassano osteria and try the local bigoli or baccalà (£15).

🚌Bus/train Bassano–Valdobbiadene ~£3 each way

🛏Guesthouse or hostel in Bassano del Grappa, £22-30/night

• →Prosecco Superiore vineyard walk (Cartizze & Santo Stefano paths)
• →Direct-booked cantina tasting (~£15)
• →Bassano osteria dinner

Morning walk across Bassano's Ponte degli Alpini and a coffee/grappa in the old town before checking out. Train or bus Bassano → Verona Porta Nuova (~£8, 1.5-2 hrs), then the Aerobus shuttle to Verona Villafranca airport (~£5, 20 min). Allow at least 3 hrs before departure. (Alternatively, if you're flying home from Venice Marco Polo, direct trains/buses to Venice Mestre run frequently.)

🚌Bassano–Verona train/bus ~£8 + Aerobus to airport ~£5

🛏—

• →Ponte degli Alpini and Bassano old town
• →Final espresso and grappa tasting in Bassano