I’m a frequesnt visitor to Portese due to it being the location of my favourite restaurant Osvaldo’s, but it’s not only the restaurant that Portese has to offer but also the historic little port and the fabulous beach. Admittedly I find it difficult to visit the beach without visiting Osvaldo’s, the smell of the fish cooking over the hot coals is just too much and makes my taste buds tingle. So I always combine the two, a sumptuous lunch washed down with half a caraffe of wine, then an afternoon on the beach.

The beach is a long pebble beach and although popular it is never too packed. The end nearer to the port has a fantastic holiday atmosphere created by customers of Osvaldo’s and the other restaurant, Gran Fausto, which is also very good. Both of the restaurants also have a bar/cafe attached which are open all day and also sell artignale(homemade) ice cream, so refreshments are on hand all day. Portese has a ferry port so you can still get there if you are staying in another part of the lake and don’t fancy the drive.

Like most Lake Garda beaches the beach is pebbled, but there are larger rocks for you to clamber over and jump off of into the clear, fresh, clean water of Lake Garda. There is also the stone jetty which makes up part of the harbour wall which is very popular with those who love diving into the ‘azzurro’.