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In “Valleggio sul Mincio,” the river winds through a picturesque valley. Described as one of the “most beautiful villages in Italy” or a “place of romance and love,” the medieval Borghetto near Lake Garda is no exaggeration, as TRAVELBOOK author Alexandra Cavelius discovered on a walk around the village.
Who isn’t familiar with the beauty of Lake Garda? But do you know the village of Borghetto, just a fifteen-minute drive away? In the Valley of the Watermills, you feel as if you’ve stepped back in time, transported to another world.
To get there, follow the blue-green Mincio, the only outflow from Italy’s largest lake, by bus, car, or bike from Peschiera. After about 12 kilometers south, away from artificially created amusement parks like Gardaland, you enter a natural fairy-tale world.
At the northern entrance to the village, the first “eye-catcher” immediately draws visitors in. Next to the river is the famous “Ponte Visconteo.” This 14th-century bridge spans about 650 meters over the Virgilio Canal and several narrower waterways. Visitors learn from the posted signs that this impressive structure was built under the Duke of Milan to control the Mincio’s water flow and to create a connection to the opposite Scaliger Castle.
Today, the brick structure, about 25 meters wide, is used by both cars and pedestrians. You first walk through the remains of an archway, along the parapet, past the ruins of fortifications, toward the “Castello Scaligero,” which majestically overlooks the valley from the hill. The view downward repeatedly captivates you. The scene is as enchanting and almost unreal as a theater set.
The historic mill village resembles a small island. With pastel-colored houses, as if they sprouted from the ground, dotted with flower boxes, surrounded by smaller waterfalls and white foaming rapids in the glittering green river. One restaurant lines up next to another along the shore, with tables and umbrellas, some with terraces that seem to float above the water. Especially in the height of summer, the adjacent park is a pleasant retreat. A green oasis full of ponds, reeds, and tree-shaded meadows.
Borghetto is a Total Work of Art
In the village, the old mill wheels turn over the river between the alleys. Anyone who licks their ice cream on a small bridge over the babbling water and watches the reflections of the Visconti Bridge in the river understands why Borghetto is often called a total work of art.
“People come here for the landscape,” explains one of the restaurant owners, “but they stay for the tortellini.” If that seems puzzling, you should know that the Valeggio Valley is not only considered the birthplace of this dish but also calls them “love knots” (Nodi d’amore). This is linked to a legend about a couple who were forbidden to love each other and ultimately drowned together in the river. An unhappily in love nymph tied a golden knot in a cloth so the beloved knight would not forget her. This, in turn, apparently inspired local chefs to recreate these knots in the form of pasta.
For years, villagers celebrated a tortellini festival with visitors in June on the Visconteo Bridge, which has been canceled for the time being. It was so well-received that the hosts were simply overwhelmed. However, you can still enjoy tortellini in every restaurant in Borghetto. A place that also wins you over through your stomach. Enchanting. Through and through.
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