Trip Report Dolomites-Lake Garda-Venice
Trip Report: Venice → Dolomites (Sonnwies) → Lake Garda → Venice with 3 Kids (5, 7 & 9)
We just got back from an amazing late June/early July trip and wanted to pay it forward since Reddit helped me plan a lot of it.
TLDR: We’re a well-traveled family of five with kids ages 5, 7, and 9. Loved the trip to all 3 locations and highly recommend. We rented a car, stayed at Sonnwies, Quellenhof Luxury Resort in Lake Garda, and JW Marriott in Venice. All great.
Logistics
We flew in and out of Venice and rented a car from Budget. Pickup and drop-off were surprisingly easy. Google Maps worked perfectly, highways were straightforward, and road signage throughout northern Italy was excellent.
The drive from Venice to Sonnwies took about 3.5 hours and was an easy drive.
Sonnwies Family Resort (4 nights)
This was actually a Reddit recommendation, and I’m so glad we listened.
Honestly, it was even better than Instagram makes it look.
The resort is stunning—beautiful architecture, thoughtful design, spotless, and incredibly family-friendly without feeling cheesy.
Things we loved:
• Childcare/programming was 10/10.
• Food was consistently good.
• Animal feeding every day.
• Endless crafts and activities.
• The picnic excursion was one of our favorite memories.
• Staff genuinely seemed to enjoy kids.
We stayed four and thought it was just right.
The only downside is that it’s fairly remote. We drove over to Orteisi for cable cars up to Seceda ridge and lunch in town which was a nice excursion. We were otherwise perfectly happy staying on property, but if you’re hoping to explore a different town every day, this probably isn’t the best base.
Lake Garda – Quellenhof Luxury Resort Lazise (3 nights)
Another great family hotel.
The resort itself exceeded expectations:
• Excellent food.
• Large pools.
• Very clean.
• Wonderful staff.
A couple thoughts:
The hotel isn’t actually on the lake, which we knew going in. We walked around Lazise and thought it was nice, but not especially memorable. Looking back, Bardolino looked like it may have had a little more charm, although we have zero regrets staying at Quellenhof.
One thing I highly recommend is booking the private boat through the hotel. We spent the day with Oliver on his beautiful Invictus boat, stopped at gorgeous swimming spots, and had lunch by the lake. Definitely one of the highlights of the trip.
We also did Gardaland. Huge hit for our family! We bought the evening-only tickets because it was so hot during the day, and I’d absolutely do that again.
One recommendation: skip the water park. It looked pretty dated and small.
We also drove to Ferrari/Modena/Bologna for an afternoon. Fun, but a lot of driving with kids. If I did it again, I’d probably book a morning Parmigiano Reggiano and balsamic vinegar tour in addition to space out the drive.
If you’re staying around southern Lake Garda, I’d also make time for a morning in Sirmione and/or Peschiera, before they get crowded.
Venice (2 nights)
We absolutely loved ending the trip here.
We mostly wandered, shopped, ate gelato, and found cute restaurants.
My biggest advice is to research restaurants ahead of time. There are some fantastic places, but there are also plenty of mediocre tourist restaurants.
If your kids enjoy tours, I’d also recommend booking a kid-focused walking tour. Ours tend to lose patience pretty quickly, so we skipped it.
We stayed at the JW Marriott because connecting rooms worked well for our family. It was beautiful and gave everyone room to spread out after long sightseeing days. If you’re traveling as a couple or with fewer kids, I’d probably stay right in Venice instead.
Overall
This ended up being one of our favorite family vacations.
The mix of mountains, resort time, Lake Garda, and Venice gave us enough variety that nobody got bored. It felt relaxing without feeling like we missed out on sightseeing.
If I could change anything, I’d probably skip the long Ferrari afternoon and replace it with a food experience around Modena, and I’d spend a morning exploring Sirmione.
Otherwise, I honestly wouldn’t change much.
Happy to answer any questions if anyone is planning something similar—I know I searched Reddit for just about everything before booking.