Gasparina Village

Just back from a lovely week away. The apartment are basic but was spotless and the air conditioning worked really well to keep it cool. The surrounding facilities are so well maintained and there were 2 playparks and a mini disco on every night which my children loved. We booked self catering but did eat at the restaurant on-site a several times which we really enjoyed. Prices were so reasonable and pizza was probably the best that we had all week! Staff helpful and friendly. The best thing about it for me was the pool, it is fantastic for small children, shallow water beside the shoots so felt so safe for my little ones. A bit cold when you first go in but fine once you get moving. Worth packing a packed fleece lined costume if you have a baby. We walked to the lake (5 mins), Gardaland (10 mins), Aquarium (15mins) and Peschiera del Garda 30/40 mins). Took buggies for my children and made sure they were shaded from the sun, much easier than worrying about carseats etc. Personally felt that this was an excellent location if you want to go to the Lake and Gardaland! Would love to go back again!

We stayed at Gasparina Village for 1 week self catering and can't fault it...at all. I have read some of the reviews on here and think you should take them with a pinch of salt. We cant wait to come back and didnt see any of the things that some of the people are saying. You cant please some people. Id say im quite a picky person and was quite nervous to arrive after reading some of the reviews but i couldnt fault a thing. My husband and I travelled with our 2 sons and stayed in a ground floor apartment, after reading some of the reviews I was a little apprehensive about the cleanliness but it was spotless, very roomy for the 4 of us. No sign of any creepy crawlies and bedding etc was very clean. Obviously with the heat etc you have to be very careful to clean up after yourself in the apartment or your bound to get the odd ant. My youngest son dropped some food, I didn't notice and we had a couple of ants. I tidied it away and the ants disappeared. No biggie. There is air conditioning in the main living room/kitchen area. We left it on and left the bedroom doors open and it was so nice to walk back in to the apartment when we had been out in the heat and it kept us nice and cool at night too. The pool is amazing. My children loved it, it was hard to get them out of it so we could explore the lake. It's very clean, there is a lifeguard who was always on it ensuring people followed the rules and spends a good half an hour or longer cleaning it in the morning and again in the evening. Once he leaves the gates are closed to the pool ensuring no run away children can gain access to the pool area when they shouldn't. There are 2 parks and a small arcade. There is a kids club but we didn't use it. We went self catering so can't comment too much on the food for half board people etc. But we did eat in the restaurant once and found it slightly expensive purely because it's just so cheap to eat out around the lake. But we got takeaways from there and that seemed to be the cheaper option so maybe the drinks are the expensive part?! However the food we got, pizzas, pasta etc was beautiful, we loved it and the staff are all just lovely. The supermarket on site is expensive so I do recommend finding alternative supermarkets if you are able to. The staff are all so kind. Really helpful if you need advice or taxis etc. We were a bit stuck in Peschiera struggling to get a taxi, we phoned them and they helped to get one out to us. They have bikes you can hire which is a fun little experience. The location is great, but we will probably hire a car next time now that we are a bit more familiar with the area. We will definitely be returning as my children loved Gasparina Village and my husband and I really enjoyed our stay there too. The apartment has all the essentials that you need, and the air conditioning which was just heavenly during our holiday and we can't wait to come back and will definitely be staying for longer next time!

Just coming to the end of our stay at gasparina village and thought I'd do a review: Pros: - friendly, helpful staff. We had some issues (ants in the apartment, new bedding needed) and they sorted them almost immediately. They also called taxis for us. - apartment was a decent size for the 4 of us (2 adults and 2 young children). We had a private balcony which was so nice as a lot of thr apartments have to share a balcony with their neighbour, so try and ask for an apartment with a shared balcony. There was also a clothes airer in the apartment which was so helpful. Kitchen doesn't have toaster or kettle but we knew this before we went so it was no surprise to us. - a short walk to part of the lake where there were restaurants, play areas, a small pebble beach. - swimming pool was perfect for the kids - slides and very clean. We were always able to get a sun lounger. - although the on site shop was small, there was gasparina campsite a 2 min walk away that had a shop with much more choice and was cheaper too. - bedrooms had lots of storage space. - kids club and play area for kids was good. - the office sold discounted gardaland tickets. - aircon was a god send! It was only in the living area space but we just left the bedroom doors open at night and aircon on which flowed into the rooms. - we were self catered so only went to the restaurant a couple of times. Food wasn't outstanding but it wasn't bad really. Cons: - even though the staff helped us when we had ants in the apartment, they still came back. If we didn't sweep up any food that our kids dropped on the floor IMMEDIATELY, we would have ants back. - clothes rails in wardrobes are so high I can't reach them and my husband barely can either. - kitchen feels very claustrophobic. There is also not enough storage space for food that we bought so we had to pop food into any cupboards that had a tiny bit of space. Also the bin is so small I was having to empty it at least once a day, maybe more. - location: when i booked this accommodation, on Google maps it says a 15-17min walk to the nearest bus stop, from there can get thr bus into nearby towns. However, the walk to the bus stop is slightly uphill and has no shade, so in 30-35 degree heat and pushing a stroller, it's near impossible. So if you're coming in the summer, please bare this in mind. We spent a LOT of money on taxis. There are two decent taxi services we used (one for pre booking, one for on demand/when required) and costs approx €15 into peschiera or to gardaland. - even the campsite shop is limited in terms of fruit so we had to go to the nearest big supermarket which was a 24min walk with no shade in the heat which was awful. Ended up spending more money again on a taxi back. - wasps everywhere around the pool. My almost 2yo got stung, the lifeguard administered first aid and said he got the sting out but 2 days later her thumb still looked sore so we ended up going to a tourist GP miles away and could only get an uber there a

The staff were mostly very courteous and helpful. Most spoke some English which was helpful when my Italian faltered, including the delightful waitress originally from Argentina (I didn't learn her name). Also, the blonde waitress was also very helpful when we needed to make sure the food had no allergens that would cause anaphylaxis. The hotel itself was tidy and clean at all times. It felt very safe for my family, although the front gate was always open and we weren't challenged once entering or leaving. The apartment was kitted-out well with a shower and even a moka pot! It had a gas hob and a microwave. The master bedroom had a small safe, big enough to stick passports and mobile phones in but nothing bigger. We were given the key on check-in without asking, a nice addition. The room had air conditioning that was a nice treat in the afternoon. The kids' room with the two single beds had a large window which they could have easily opened wide enough to climb out of then fall from the first floor. This could easily be remedied with a chain and bolt or some other kind of lock to prevent curious smaller children jumping out and doing themselves a mischief! The on-site restaurant was well-staffed and offered a wide range of foods. We treated ourself to the bistecca alla fiorentina on the last day which was worth every penny. On other days, I enjoyed the bigoli all'amatriciana which was really tasty. There was a huge supermarket about 1 mile away named Migross in which we bought everything to cook at the apartment, which we did most days. We spent a lot of time in the pool and the kids made many new friends, despite the language barrier between English and Dutch, we even made friends with the parents and are planning to meet again one day soon. We made the mistake of not renting a car, thinking we'd stick to the site most of the time or walk to the nearest bus or train station. We ended up calling taxis a bit as the kids (3 & 5) couldn't walk anymore in the ~35-degree sun.