Hello everyone and welcome to our first blog post! Yay! We’re so excited to share this wonderful adventure we recently had the pleasure of experiencing!

Today we take you to Monte Isola, a mountain island sitting right in the middle of Lago d’Iseo, in Northern Italy. For those of you who don’t know, Monte Isola is the largest lake island in Italy and one of the largest in Europe! Pretty crazy, isn’t it? To give you a better idea of how the island look like, think of it as a 600m tall mountain coming straight out of the lake, covered with tiny villages, olive trees and (very) narrow roads.

What is Monte Isola actually famous for (which we were surprised about)?

• No cars are allowed – despite the fact that there’re asphalted roads, only few service vehicles and scooters are allowed on the island. We haven’t seen any cars at all which makes the location pretty much entirely pedestrian;
• Fishing nets and sardines – historically the island has been known for net-making and dried lake fish (typically sardines);
• Stunning hiking and biking views – one could rent a bike and travel all around the island or hike all the way to the top to admire one-of-a-kind view of the lake (more on this below).

The population of Monte Isola sits at roughly 1700 habitants so yeah, it’s small but not empty lol! It’s divided in to several villages (like Peschiera Maraglio and Siviano), local businesses in fishing, tourism, shops, restaurants and also schools.

If you’re planning on visiting Monte Isola, we’ve listed below few hints and tips to help you out in your future adventure!

How to Visit Monte Isola

Where to Park?

You can only reach the island by ferry boat. Therefore, you’ll need to park your vehicle on the mainland. In our case, we ended up parking the car at the Gerolo parking lot, located in the town of Sulzano, right in front of Monte Isola.

It’s a very convenient parking lot which is equipped both for cars and campers. They don’t offer hourly rates. Instead, their policy is that only daily rates are available which go for €10/day (or €7 if you arrive after 5:00pm).

We recommend you to reserve your spot before arriving there (our spot was already pre-booked by the hotel we stayed at) as you might risk the chance of not finding a stall for your vehicle. We noticed that during the week the number of parked cars was fair but it dramatically increased during the weekend – so keep that in mind when planning for your trip.

You can either pay in full your parking stay upon arrival or pay the total amount at the end of your trip (we paid the whole balance in full so we could just leave at the end). Also, restrooms are available on site.

Once you’re ready and all packed up, the next step is to get to the peer and hop on the ferry to Monte Isola!

How to get the Boat?

The distance between the Gerolo parking lot and the peer (Pontile 1 in Italian) is about 550m (or 8min walk). It is all downhill. We’ve conveniently pasted the Google maps for your reference below.

Once you’ve made your way to the peer, you’ll need to buy the ferry tickets. The ticket office is few meters away from the peer, so you can’t miss it. We paid €13.40 for 2 back-and-forth tickets. Since kids under 6 years of age are free, we only paid standard, adult-only tickets.

If you’re interested in exploring different ticketing options or different destinations than Monte Isola around Lago d’Iseo, the official ferry website is the following: https://www.navigazionelagoiseo.it/en/ticket-and-season-ticket-prices/

Honestly, we didn’t wait too long before getting on the ferry. The waiting times vary but generally there’re short (10-15min). Before boarding, tickets need to be validated in a ticket validator by means of a QR code located on the ticket itself. Once again, there are restrooms beside the ticket office and a beautiful playground for children (great option while waiting for the boat with your kids).

Fun fact: scooters (engine off) are allowed on the ferry and we were surprised to see how the mail gets delivered to the island! lol

Where to Stay?

Our accommodation for the trip was the beautiful and historic Castello Oldofredi. Priscilla found this accommodation on Booking.com and the total cost was €83/night with breakfast included. Honestly, after reading the reviews and looking at some pictures of it, it would have been tough to let this great deal go.

The castle can be reached from the peer through a 300m walk (or 5min) directly from the peer. It’s a mix between a flat walk and a bit of an uphill hike – but just for 50m. The view from the top is spectacular and absolutely stunning.

Castello Oldofredi was built by the once powerful Oldofredi family, a noble family that controlled parts of the Lago d’Iseo during the Middle Ages. It likely dates back to the 1200s-1300s when conflicts and clashes between powers like Brescia and Bergamo were in full swing.

After its decline, the castle has been repurposed and renovated in recent years and it is now a fantastic residence, hotel and restaurant offering a charming swimming pool immersed in a beautiful courtyard. Take a look at some of the pictures below and judge for yourself. What a remarkable place!

The Breakfast

As said, the breakfast in our reservation was included. Personally, it is something we always look for when scouting for an accommodation as it frees you from searching for a place to eat after waking up. It’s always nice to find food ready! lol

The breakfast at Castello Oldofredi was just amazing. It’s a continental-style breakfast with plenty of food available: lots of cakes, pies, cupcakes, scrambled eggs, bacon, cold cuts, vegetables, pancakes, croissants, focaccia, jams, fruit salad, lots of tea types, American coffee, cafeteria, cereals, and much more.

The cool thing? You can either eat indoor in a beautiful dining hall or decide to eat outdoor in a fantastic terrace overlooking the lake!

Things to do with Kids

We stayed at Monte Isola for a total of three nights (which we personally deem the right time one would need to explore it really well). During our stay, we would recommend few beautiful, kids-friendly activities which are worth doing:

• Rent a bike a tour the island – about 100m from the peer where you get off the ferry, there’s a small mom-and-pop store selling food and newspapers. However, it also offers bikes rental. We rented two bikes with integrated backseats for kids. The first hour costs €4 which decreases to €3.50 for the subsequent hours. We ended up paying €15 for 1.5hours of bike rental which we thought was totally fair. They hold your ID card with them (returned to you upon return) and you pay once you give back the bikes. The tour of the island was just amazing. After a first flat part, the street goes uphill between Carzano and Siviano but then it’s back being flat or downhill thereafter. The total lap is about 9km and it can easily be completed in 1.5hours. If you want to explore the island thoroughly, this is a great outdoor activity to do with your kids!
• Hike to Santuario della Madonna di Ceriola – on the very top of Monte Isola, there is a popular sanctuary which is also considered the main landmark of the island. It’s a place that goes beyond religious beliefs as it is one of the best viewpoints in Northern Italy. We took the (only) bus that from Peschiera Maraglio takes you to the beginning of the hike, precisely in the town of Cure. The bus tickets cost €2 each and are free for kids under 6 years of age. The hike goes for about 25min and it is constantly uphill (so bring lots of water with you as it gets a bit intense in some points – 25-30% slope!). However, you you’ll be insanely rewarded once you get to the top as the view of the whole lake is priceless;
• Swim in the lake – if weather permits, we’d highly recommend taking a dive in the beautiful Lago d’Iseo. There are few beaches and picnic areas around the shore which offer ideal locations for a family moment!