Trentino-Alto Adige · Trento
Bondone
A two-village commune above Lake Idro at the Lombard border, with a Lodron castle on the cliff between them.
Picked by Peter Benei
Letter to come
Why Bondone is on our list
It holds Borghi più belli d'Italia and Bandiera Blu.
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Visiting
- Best time
- Apr–Oct
- By car
- 1 h 17 min from Brescia
- Population
- 647
- J7°
- F9°
- M10°
- A13°
- M17°
- J22°
- J24°
- A24°
- S20°
- O16°
- N10°
- D7°
- Best
- Hot or crowded
- Quiet
- Mostly closed
Daytime air temperature, averages for 2020–2024. Weather data by Open-Meteo.com.
Going to the sea? How to find the free beaches in Italy.
Why come
Fifty kilometers southwest of Trento, on the border with Lombardy, the commune sits in the Valle del Chiese and is made of two settlements at very different heights. The paese occupies a ridge at 720 meters; the frazione of Baitoni lies at 371 meters on the shore below. A rock cliff between the two carries the castle, built by the Lodron counts who controlled the valley from a string of similar fortresses, and who held this one for centuries after it was first recorded as the castrum de summo lacu.
The upper village and the lakeside frazione are administratively one commune but functionally two economies: stone houses and a ridge line above, swimming and sailing on the water below, joined by the fortress that once watched over both. The distance between 720 meters and 371 meters, covered inside a single commune, is what gives Bondone its character: a hill settlement and a lake shore sharing one name and one history, with the old military architecture still standing at the point where they meet.
How to get there
From Milan Bergamo (BGY), about 1 h 45 min by car.
Verona (VRN) is about 1 h 49 min away.
By car from the center of Brescia 1 h 17 min or Trento 1 h 30 min.
Coming by train into Brescia? Bondone is about 1 h 17 min away by road.
Every town within reach of Milan Bergamo airport.
First time driving in Italy? Read our complete manual.
What to see
Castello di San Giovanni
Drawbridge approach and a semicircular courtyard opening south over the water, on the cliff between the two settlements.
Lago d'Idro
Glacial prealpine lake with the Baitoni shoreline carrying the Bandiera Blu, the water the commune's summer draw.
Bondone paese
Upper village on a ridge, the stone-house core looking south over the Valle del Chiese.
Baitoni
Lakeside frazione on the northern shore, the commune's swimming, windsurfing and sailing point in summer.
Vista sui Dolomiti di Brenta
From the castle terraces the view opens across the Chiese valley to the Brenta Dolomites group, visible on clear days to the north.
Living here
Could you live here?
Bondone is at the end of the road.
- A village of 647. The nearest town of 5,000 people, Ledro, is 34 min away: past our 15-minute rule, which makes this the end of the road.
- Brescia, a city of 199,853, is 1 h 17 min by car. Further than our 30 to 60 minutes, a long way for the hospital visit or the monthly shopping.
The rules come from our series Where to Move in Italy, written from the places we have lived: Part 1, The End of the Road · Part 2, The Small Town · Part 3, The City · Part 4, The Postcard · Part 5, The Other Half. The towns we would pick are in Part 6, The Best Towns.
- Population 647, down 4.3% since 2015
- Nearest city Brescia, 1 h 17 min drive
- Nearest national health service hospital Esine, 25 km as the crow flies · how healthcare works in Italy
- Homes in the center: €1,200 to €1,500 per m² to buy, €2.80 to €3.00 per m² a month to rent
All the numbers Common questions, designations, lists and sources.
More about living here
- Very remote
- Pharmacy: none mapped
- No primary school in the comune's register
- Earthquake zone 3, low hazard
- Milan Bergamo airport (BGY), 1 h 45 min drive, the nearest with scheduled flights
- Market day Saturday
- Regional capital Trento, 1 h 30 min drive
If you are moving here
Who lives here
3% of residents are foreign citizens, most often from Morocco, against 9% across Italy. There are 285 people over 65 for every 100 children under 15, against 216 across Italy. 49% of homes have no resident, holiday homes and empty ones counted together, against 27% across Italy. Trento province ranks 1st of 107 in Il Sole 24 Ore's quality of life ranking for 2025.
Health and schools
The nearest emergency room is in Malcesine, 22 km as the crow flies. The nearest major one is in Brescia, 40 km away. The nearest children's emergency room is in Brescia, 40 km away. The nearest IB school is International School Brescia, 34 km as the crow flies.
Information, not medical advice. Confirm with a professional.
Taxes
Trento has its own property tax, IMIS, in place of IMU. 7% pensioner tax: this town is not in a qualifying area.
Information, not tax advice. Confirm with a professional.
What it costs
The average household in Trentino-Alto Adige spends about €2,620 a month, €500 of it on food, against about €2,170 across Italy. A family of three pays about €302 a year for water, on the Trentino-Alto Adige average. In Trento, the provincial capital, in September 2026, an espresso cost €1.41, a meal in a pizzeria €13.90 and a man's haircut €24.84.
Climate and risk
It is in climate zone F, the coldest of Italy's six, with no national limit on when the heating runs. 53% of residents live in a zone the national maps rate medium for floods. 4% live in a zone rated high or very high for landslides.
These shares cover the whole comune, not any one street. Check an address on IdroGEO.
Moving from abroad? Which visa you need. Sources: ISTAT, the Ministry of Health, ISPRA, the Finance Ministry, the Ministry of Enterprise, Poste Italiane, the comuni, the IB, International Schools Database, Il Sole 24 Ore, Cittadinanzattiva.
Known for
CASTELLO SAN GIOVANNI
Lodron fortress on the cliff between Bondone and Baitoni, documented in 1086 and held by the same family until the twentieth century.
LAGO D'IDRO
Highest prealpine lake of Lombardy at 368 meters, with the Baitoni shoreline awarded Bandiera Blu for water cleanliness.
BORGHI PIÙ BELLI
Bondone paese sits at 720 meters in the stone-house tradition of the Giudicarie, recognized by the national network of historic villages.
Common questions
- What is Bondone known for?
- Bondone is a two-village commune above Lake Idro at the Lombard border, with a Lodron castle on the cliff between them.
- Where is Bondone?
- Bondone is a comune in the province of Trento, in Trentino-Alto Adige, at 720 meters above sea level.
- What is the nearest airport to Bondone?
- The nearest airport with scheduled flights is Milan Bergamo (BGY), about 1 h 45 min by car.
- How long is the drive from Brescia to Bondone?
- About 1 h 17 min by car.
- When is the best time to visit Bondone?
- Best in Apr–Oct. August is the warmest month, averaging 24 degrees, and May the wettest, with about 22 rain days.
- Which other towns are like Bondone?
- Cimbergo, Varenna and Cannero Riviera.
- How many people live in Bondone?
- 647 residents, by ISTAT's count on 1 January 2025.
- Is Bondone a good place to live?
- By the rules in our Where to Move in Italy series, Bondone is at the end of the road: the nearest town of 5,000 people, Ledro, is 34 min away. The nearest city, Brescia, is 1 h 17 min away by car. The nearest national health service hospital is in Esine, 25 km as the crow flies.
Tags & data designations · numbers · sources
Recognized as
Landscape
The numbers
- Elevation: 720 m
- Population: 647
- Surface area: 19.19 km²
These figures were compiled from public directories: ISTAT, OpenStreetMap and Wikidata, and from the official listings of the guides named on this page. Town details change; verify with official sources before you travel.
The ranked lists
Lists Bondone appears in
Similar
Towns like Bondone
Cimbergo
Province: Brescia
both under 1,000 people · both high up, between 600 and 1,000 metres
Varenna
Province: Lecco
both lake towns · both under 1,000 people
Cannero Riviera
Province: Verbano-Cusio-Ossola
both lake towns · both under 1,000 people
Belgirate
Province: Verbano-Cusio-Ossola
both lake towns · both under 1,000 people
Glurns
Province: Bolzano
both under 1,000 people · both high up, between 600 and 1,000 metres
Monte Isola
Province: Brescia
both lake towns · both high up, between 600 and 1,000 metres
The letter
Bondone is on our list. Its letter is still to come.
We are writing about all 1,000 of these towns, one at a time, in a free letter: the photo, what is worth eating, and when to turn up. That is our mission. Sign up and you will be there when Bondone comes up. By Peter & Sophia, from Turin.
The nearest town we have written up is Chioggia, 150 km away. Read its letter →
Paid plans, the moving year and the books are on the membership page.