Perhaps not everyone knows that, a few decades ago, in Riva del Garda there was a yellow chairlift which, amidst breathtaking heights and a bit of thrills, led up to the terrace of the Bastione, a splendid 16th century fortress that dominates the city from Monte Rocchetta.
Going up, especially on Sundays with the whole family, was a nice moment of cheerfulness. Today, this tradition lives again and does so with all the comforts and undeniable advantages of modernity.
How? With the brand new inclined lift!
We tried this “vertical emotion”, for you, in order to enjoy an aperitif with a view of the new and very elegant Bastione Lounge and Restaurant.
The ascent to the Bastione
It’s always the right moment to enjoy an aperitif with a view, we have chosen to enjoy a good drink in the cool late afternoon and the wonderful lights and shadows that this moment of the day gives to the lake.
Getting on the elevator is an emotion that stays with you. The cabin, entirely in transparent glass, offers all the beauty of the surrounding landscape. Going up you fly towards the Rocchetta. It’s an excellent idea to take advantage of the lift to get to the Bastione and then from there continue on foot (in a trekking outfit) along the path that leads to the small church of Santa Barbara, built in 1935 by the miners who worked on the pipelines of the Ponale power station.
@walter sestili 
@Isabelle Yrma Pace 
@Isabelle Yrma Pace
The ascent of the elevator only takes just over two minutes. Once you have got out of the cabin, the intense scent of the woods and the green setting all around the restaurant awaits you. From up here, the deep blue of the lake is fabulous and conveys freshness and a wonderful sense of freedom.
The view is breathtaking! Monte Brione in front of us with its “lady’s hat” shape, the Baldo, the Apponale Tower that stands 34 metres high and gives a view all around Riva del Garda, which from up here looks like a harmonious succession of alleys and squares, monuments and churches.
The aperitif with the most glamorous view of Lake Garda
We take a seat at our table in the Bastione Lounge and Restaurant to enjoy an aperitif while pink and gold mix as in a painter’s palette and the fresh air gently caresses the skin. Here we enjoy a cocktail that is a bit the soul of the place and the backbone of the Drink List or the Riva-Torino cocktail (Ri.To.), also prepared with Altolago, a vermouth distilled by Marzadro, and accompanied by a top-level seafood crudité. A sensory experience which, combined with the lift, leaves you truly enchanted.
@Walter Sestili 
@Isabelle Yrma Pace 
@Isabelle Yrma Pace 
@Isabelle Yrma Pace 
@Isabelle Yrma Pace 
@Isabelle Yrma Pace 
@Isabelle Yrma Pace 
@Isabelle Yrma Pace 
@Isabelle Yrma Pace
The return along the path
After having enjoyed delicious delicacies accompanied by our glass of Ri.To. we decide not to use the lift to return, but take the short path that leads from the Bastione back to the centre of Riva del Garda. The path, illuminated in the evening, is easy and undemanding and in less than half an hour you can reach Via Monte Oro, from where the panoramic inclined lift starts.
The walk, surrounded by greenery but comfortably paved, is suitable for everyone (we still recommend hiking shoes) and, for those who are no longer very young and have already visited Riva del Garda in past years, it is a real dip into the memories of a time when Sunday meant an ice cream at the Bastione, a café with a super panoramic view, a walk among the perfumes of Alto Garda. Today, with the modern lift and its “vertical emotion”, and thanks to a quality restaurant, we are perhaps more easily returning to love a symbol of Garda Trentino, the Bastione, which never ceases to make us feel welcome and protected by its mighty walls, even more so today.
