Baia Holiday Gasparina

It's a nice place, though a few things could be better.

“A pleasant holiday. Prices are a bit high for the services offered and there's a poor (but expensive) Wi-Fi connectivity, it's difficult to work with such poor coverage inside the hauses. Anyway the structure and the pools are very clean, the staff are friendly and efficient and the location is strategic for parks and town centers. However, the staff's use of the homes near us for sleeping, recreational purposes during the evening and night (accompanied by a bit of noise) was not very professional.”

Good base with a car - family of 5 with teens

“In summary - would recommend as a good base as long as hiring a car & see for a good price. Try pricing directly through Estivo as the outside space on the Estivo lodges is superb (we found doing for 1 day less in date range search through Estivo saved a huge amount & then booked accom for last night near airport). Factor in when comparing prices to other campsites that the tourist tax that you pay here is much more expensive. Tourist tax at the campsites within Peschiera e.g. Bella Italia is €1.50/pp/night for age 13+ versus Baia Gasparina €2.50/pp/night for age 13+, but the big extra cost is the Baia group then also charge €2.90/pp/night for every person including babies for something they call an 'environment tax' but isn't really a government tax rather something they choose to charge. This is ok but just factor it in when comparing price as for our group of 5 its was €27/day and would have only been €7.50/day at other campsites. Also factor in sunloungers are chargeable at €4/bed or €12 for 2 beds/umbrella; again fine and meant could always get them (no crazy early queues!!) just factor in when comparing prices. Stayed 11 nights at end of August. Booked direct with operator Estivo - 3 bed Premium deluxe mobile. The mobile - Estivo have a street of 20 of these mobile homes & their own reps on-site. The Estivo street is well located a fews mins walk to either the pool or the lake (the site is small so don't think there's any badly located mobile homes). The Estivo mobile was great for us - internally they've crammed a lot in with the second bathroom so the living & kitchen areas are small but it all works & defo worth it for the 2nd bathroom. The mobile felt really new/modern and very clean. Really good showers, comfy beds, air con in living area, mosquito nets on the windows. Kitchen had gas hob (but no oven), dishwasher, microwave, kettle, pod coffee maker, full size fridge/freezer (but freezer only about quarter of it - loads bigger than the typical ice box ones tho) & lots of utensils/pans etc. Bedding & towels are also included in the Estivo lodges - but bring a tea towel & some extra dish washer tablets as only 4 tablets provided. Outside decking area looked to be by far the best on the site - corner sofa, coffee table, table/chairs & electric BBQ. We spent many an evening outside playing cards on the deck (with citronella candle) & used the BBQ twice. Estivo parking was one row away from the mobile home so really close and could park next to mobile when first arrived to drop off bags. After 11pm they close the front barriers so have to park out front - its not far tho. Only minor negatives on the mobile - the Estivo mobiles come with free WiFi but it's really poor - ok for checking emails/whatsapps but not to watch video clips. There's also not a lot of space between the mobiles - less than a meter between homes on each side and the street isnt much wider than a car so because of the big sliding doors neighbour opposite could see into living/kitchen area of home if didnt close curtain as the privacy screen on deck is only on one end - this didnt bother us tho & noticed a couple of homes had hung beach sheets on deck to get round it. The site Pool - much (much) nicer than I was expecting - I thought it was going to be the main compromise of the holiday, but was quite the opposite! No slides etc but a nice big pool that never felt busy. Main pool is about 25m x 10m & they rope off one lane for swimming (depth is chest height so not really suitable for dives or tumble turns but great for doing lengths & often had the swim lane to myself). Main pool also has an offshoot area that's shallower & down a few steps on a lower level there's also a completely separate kids pool. Both pools have lots of available sunlougers throughout the day - as mentioned these are chargeable. Pool opened 10am to 8pm and had lifeguards on the main pool. Swim hats sadly mandatory (the reception sold the comfy soft fabric ones for €3) - big plus is they allowed lilos/inflatables in the pool whilst we were there (very nearly didn't book the site as at time of booking inflatables weren't allowed & without any slides thought it might be a bit boring for kids so a big improvement that I hope is a permanent policy change given how big the pool is). Pool bar - didn't do cocktails which was a bit disappointing and felt a bit pricey for a spirit/mixer. It had the usual beer, slushies & ice lollies tho. The Lake - the campsite is directly on the lake which is stunning & the walk into Peschiera along the lake is c3km and fully paved/lit. Took us 20mins to walk to camping butterfly which is the nearest campsite to Peschiera and then it's a pretty 10min walk around the mariner into Peschiera itself. We did this as an evening walk a couple of times and enjoyed it but we drove in during the day/heat (and its completely free to park on the outskirts at a big parking lot called Via Campo Sportivo). Restaurant - looked ok & had an entertainer playing piano just outside. We didn't use it though as its situated ovelooking the pool and theres a restaurant La Barchetta that's just off site to the RHS of the lakeside gate that has a view of the lake & seemed very slightly cheaper. Entertainment - very low key. Bit of aqua aerobics/yoga and the piano in the evening. This suited us, but there's much better sites for young kids if you want proper entertainment. Supermarket - the onsite one is OK if you're stuck for something & does sweets etc but could be so much better. Loads of stuff they don't sell (e.g. no chocolate, no ice lollies, only ice cream was pistashio & no big botles of pop just single cans for €1.50). What they do sell is hit and miss with pricing e.g. bottle shower gel €4.50. Best thing was lilos for €9 but they dont blow these up for you!! Loads of supermarkets a short drive away including lidl which was 5mins & UK prices though so all good with a car. Also a McDonalds 5mins drive away too which came in very handy for tea on our first night after realising no food options in walking distance after 9pm. Feedback to management - Thankyou for a really good stay. Some suggestions for improvements: Food takeaway service - would be great if you had one. E.g. at breakfast selling fresh pan au chocolate (had no interest in a full buffet breakfast from the restaurant & the mini market bakery was poor). Would have loved to have been able to buy takeaway pizza on-site too - maybe something the restaurant did but if so no signage. Sun loungers - happy to pay for these, but consider a reduced rate after 4pm - as quite often we only managed an hour or so late in the afternoon & at this point it wasn't worth the €12 but with so many empty you could charge say €2/bed payable at the pool bar or maybe do them free after 4pm with a pool bar purchase. Lake beach area - maybe seek the relevant permissions to make the beach area nicer. Its ok but with could be so much nicer at minimal cost. Also what about a cafe hut serving coffee/snacks/ice-creams on the grassy area within the site with tables/chairs and a view of the lake. Book exchange area- you've such a huge reception area with easily space for a couple of book cases for a free book exchange (grab a book/leave a book) - no cost to you & environmentally better than them going in the bin. Similarly an area by the pool to leave behind lilos/inflatables for the next visitor would fit with your environmental ethos. Music by the pool 10am to 10.30am (UK time 9am which is what we were working to) - this was really loud dance style music presumably for aqua aerobics. We were 3 rows away from pool and it was so loud that it woke us on the 2 occassions we wanted a late sleep after a late night (opera in Verona etc). It really shouldn't be that loud. Pool hats - scrap them if you can. None of the hotels ask for them & neither do a lot of the other campsites. €10 deposit for gate key wristbands. The need to pay this had not been communicated in advance and i had no cash on me. I offered to pay on credit card but was refused. I also offered to return the next day with the cash pointing out you were already holding my passport overnight so had that as security but again was refused. I explained it was 8.40pm at night, we'd been travelling for 10hours & all we wanted to do was ditch our bags in the accommodation & seek out food/have a walk to the lake - and that without the gate key this would not be possible. The only suggestion made was to go to the private on-site ATM which came with an arrangement fee of €6 to withdraw the €10 needed for your deposit!! Reluctantly I did this but it showed a complete lack of common sense given you had my passport and gave a really awful first impression.”

We had a great time!

“I wouldn't want people to be put off having read the bad reviews, so here's a positive one! We stayed as a family of four with 2 mid-teens. We were really impressed by the campsite. We had a chalet in the far corner which was further away but as a result - quieter, and had a beautiful view of the lake. The reception staff were warm, friendly and helpful. The campsite felt safe, and we used our wristbands to gain access. The location was perfect, we could have a dip in the lake (access was a bit rocky, so swim shoes advised) and the water was warm and shallow. We could walk to Peschiera in a leisurely 30 mins. Water activities are offered onsite - specifically paddle boards, which were hard work but fun! The pool was clean but I can't understand the need to charge people for sun loungers - we never stayed at the pool long enough to justify paying, so we sat on the floor in the shade, as did many others. You have to wear a swim cap, but we just did it without making a fuss. It would be beneficial if this was stated at the time of booking so that it doesn't come as a surprise! We hired a car so were able to access Milan, Verona and Venice easily. The accommodation was great, air con worked perfectly, it was exactly as expected. The restaurant was simple and effective, the little market had everything you needed including breakfast pastries, and there was night time entertainment - although this could be improved, as there wasn't enough variety. All in all, we had a lovely time and would recommend to others.”