Lago di Molveno

The Lago di Molveno lies at around 820 m directly beneath the walls of the Brenta Dolomites and is regarded as one of the cleanest mountain lakes in Italy. Its turquoise water, a lido and family offerings make it a popular destination in summer, repeatedly awarded as the most beautiful lake in Italy.

Highlights

• Turquoise-clear water before the Brenta backdrop
• Lido and family-friendly lakeside facilities
• Molveno–Pradel cable car as a hiking starting point
• Quiet setting in the Adamello-Brenta Nature Park

Good to know

Practical info

Background & History

Lake Molveno spreads out at the foot of the Brenta Dolomites in Trentino, where the wild limestone towers of the Brenta group give way to the gentler land of the foothills. Geologists suspect that the lake came into being thousands of years ago through a mighty rockslide that dammed up the valley and let the meltwater swell into a deep-blue basin, whose water shimmers in luminous turquoise in the sun and has been repeatedly awarded for its purity.

The Brenta Dolomites, which tower above the lake, are among the most impressive rock landscapes of the Alps and were one of the cradles of Dolomite climbing, criss-crossed by bold via ferratas such as the legendary Via delle Bocchette, which leads dizzyingly along rock ledges and ladders through the vertical faces. In these mountains lives, moreover, the brown bear, which has been reintroduced here after a long absence and gives the Brenta massif back a rare wilderness. The village of Molveno itself long preserved its farming character, before it became a quiet summer retreat that relies more on the experience of nature than on great bustle. Thus the lake combines the dramatic verticality of the Brenta with the cheerful serenity of a mountain lake, on whose shore forest and water meet in harmony.