Brescia Travel Guide: Planning Your 3-Day Trip

Day 1

Welcome to Brescia! While I'll cover transportation in Italy farther down, likely you've arrived to the train station. From here, you can hop on the metro, take a bus, or walk to your hotel. If possible, I highly recommend the metro since it's super easy to navigate and connected to the train station.

Check-In

The first thing I recommend doing is checking in to your hotel or vacation rental to drop your bag. Arriving too early? Use Radical Storage to find luggage drop-off points all around the city.

If you don't yet have a place to stay, I highly recommend booking something in the old town, or città antica. This is where you'll likely be spending your time while in Brescia, so you might as well make the most of it.

📍I recommend booking your stay at one these hotels:

• Budget Stay: Appartamento Tiffany: This apartment is just a few blocks from the beautiful Torre della Pallata, so although you're on the edge of the old town, you're still within walking distance to the sights.
• Mid-Tier Stay: Locanda delle Mercanzie: This boutique hotel is in a historic building that has been well-maintained. The hotel offers a variety of rooms to choose from.
• Luxury Stay: L'Altana City House: Want more space and impressive views? The 2-bedroom suite is incredibly comfortable and well-positioned in the city.

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Wander Old Town

Before you do anything else, I recommend you really get to know the old town of Brescia. This is the city center but most of the streets are pedestrian-only, making for the perfect area to walk without pause.

The town is brightly painted and full of charm. Although known as an industrial city, while in the historic part, you'll feel as though that can't be true. The buildings are brightly painted and, although not as ornate as other cities in Italy, still incredibly beautiful.

Although I recommend you roam without much of a destination, at the very least, you shouldn't miss these streets, landmarks, and plazas:

• Torre della Pallata: This tower is home to the most beautiful corner in all of Brescia (in my humble opinion). I recommend seeing it from all sides as each one really is spectacular.
• The University Area: the streets at Via Silvio Pellico to Via Fratelli Bandiera are young and full of graffiti and cocktail bars. If you want to enjoy a more affordable aperitivo, this is a good spot to do so.
• Piazza della Vittoria: Victory Plaza is big, open, and impressive. The architecture is more modern here than in other parts of the old town so worth seeing to compare.
• Piazza della Loggia: Piazza della Loggia is considered the heart of the historic center and is home to a 1500s clock tower. It's also the start of a few small streets bursting with restaurants and charm.
• Piazza Paolo VI: Nearby is yet another plaza, Piazza Paolo VI, you won't want to miss. This one is home to the Duomo Vecchio, or old cathedral. The Duomo Nuovo, or new cathedral, is located right next door in the same square.
• Corso Giuseppe Zanardelli: This is the main shopping street in Brescia. It's pedestrian-only and is much wider than the other streets in the city. While there are plenty of local shops to check out, this street is home to more well-known international brands. Continue on the street as it gets more narrow but stays a nice one to walk down.

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Enjoy a Traditional Meal

After you've walked up an appetite, it's time for dinner. Brescia is known for a few traditional dishes but as a super international city, it's also home to a more diverse collection of authentic restaurants than you can try elsewhere.

So, depending on which way you want to look at it, eating a traditional meal in Brescia could mean dining on Italian cuisine or it could mean digging in at any number of spots owned and operated by the city's immigrant population.

Either way, I have a recommendation for you!

If you want to try local Brescia cuisine, head to I Du Dela Contrada. The staff are incredibly welcoming and passionate about their dishes. Order the casoncelli alla Bresciana if you want to try a traditional pasta from this city. Like all the best pastas in Italy, it's simple yet delectable. I suggest making a reservation, especially if you're here over the weekend.

For international cuisine, head instead to Ristorante I Nazareni. This is a Palestinian restaurant that offers a wide range of dishes from Palestine and other parts of the Middle East. Raf and I ordered a lot of different things and had to practically be rolled out after devouring it all. Let your taste buds guide you but if you ask me, you can't go wrong.

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Day 2

Now, I know you just got to Brescia but for today, I highly recommend you leave the city center and see the surrounding area. Brescia is lucky enough to be square in the middle of two of Italy's most beautiful lakes, Lake Garda and Lake Iseo.

It'll be tough to do both in one day, so I'll share a little bit about each lake to help you make your decision about which you'd rather visit.

Although there aren't many guided tours in Brescia itself, there are a number of day trips as guided tours with Viator and GetYourGuide.

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Take a Day Trip to a Lake

Lake Iseo

Lake Iseo is situated in between Lake Garda and Lake Como and somehow, even though it shares much of the same topography, it has evaded the public eye outside of Italy. Although smaller than its two neighbors, it's just as stunning and worthy of a trip.

Lake Iseo is best for those that prefer to see hidden gems in favor of visiting the most well-known spots. You'll still get the mountainous coastline Lake Garda promises, just with a fraction of the visitors.

From Brescia's train station, you can travel directly to the town of Iseo. Depending on which train you catch, the journey will take between 20-30 minutes. In Iseo, I recommend roaming around the old town, taking in views of the waterfront, and if you visit in the summer, you can hop on a ferry to see more of the lake.

Based on the train schedule, you can also continue up the eastern coastline and visit a different town instead. To visit the western or southern side of the lake, you'll either need to hop on a bus or rent a car. For a day trip, I'd stick with the eastern coast via train.

Lake Garda

Lake Garda, Italy's largest lake, is magical but to be completely transparent, I love the northern end of the lake far more than the southern end. The southern end is far more accessible though, especially coming from Brescia. Because of this accessibility, it's also far more crowded, especially in the summer.

From the Brescia train station, you can get to Desenzano del Garda in just 15 minutes or to Peschiera del Garda in about 25. The most famous place to visit in southern Lake Garda is Sirmione, right in between those two towns. From either of those, you'll either need to take a bus or a ferry to Sirmione.

For the purpose of a day trip, I'd stick with visiting one of these southern towns but if you have the time to extend your trip and stay the night, the northern part of the lake, like in Malcesine, is seriously incredible. It's just far more of a hike and not really doable for the day.

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Day 3

Although it's your last day in Brescia, hopefully you have a little bit more time to explore more of this Roman city. I'll give you two options today based on your interests: see a quaint neighborhood outside of the old town or visit a museum to learn more about Brescia's history.

Visit Borgo Trento

Borgo Trento is a small neighborhood just north of the city center. From the old town, you can either walk to the neighborhood or take the metro up to the Marconi stop.

The neighborhood starts around Megan Bar and follows Via Trento north a few blocks. It's a small neighborhood but a quiet place to spend the day if you'd like to go back in time to see what Brescia probably looked and felt like decades past.

Even though the architecture and overall vibe of the neighborhood is old, they offer some of the city's best restaurants.

Enjoy a meal at:

• Trattoria Porteri: This restaurant has been a Brescia staple since 1875 and has been mentioned a few times in the Michelin Guide.
• BirraLab & Pastrameria: For something far more laidback, opt for a beer and sandwich here instead.

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Alternative: Visit a Museum

Brescia has been inhabited since before it became part of the Roman empire around 200 B.C. The city is full of ancient history at every corner but best learned about at a local museum. While we didn't have the time to pay a visit to a museum while in Brescia, a few of the most recommended are:

• Santa Giulia Museum: The Santa Giulia Museum is housed in a Lombard Benedictine monastery in the city center. It's an archaeological museum that uncovers the city's history, art, and spirituality.
• Brixia Roman archeological area: Don't just want to learn about the history but instead prefer to see it firsthand? This UNESCO World Heritage site is one of the best-preserved archaeological excavations in all of Italy. It's fully accessible to those who visit.
• Luigi Marzoli Arms & Armor Museum: For a unique look at Brescia's past, visit one of Europe's best collections of antique arms and armor. Who hasn't dreamt back to the time of the knights? This museum is part of the Brescia Castle.
• Brescia Castle: At some point while wandering around Brescia, you noticed the castle perched right above the city center. This castle was built during the time it was under Venetian rule and is still in excellent condition today.

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Brescia Travel Tips

Now that you know how to spend your 3-days in Brescia, here are a few additional travel tips that'll ensure your trip goes smoothly.

How to Get to Brescia

When in Italy, I highly recommend you travel by train. Brescia is easily accessible from both Milan and Verona, both about 30 minutes away. To plan your train trip and book tickets, I recommend the app Trainline.

Alternatively, you could rent a car and drive to Brescia. Just know that like many cities in Italy, many streets in the center are pedestrian-only and parking can be hard to come by. I recommend asking your hotel about the best places to find a parking spot near where you're staying. Once you arrive, with the exception of the day trips, you'll do best by exploring Brescia on foot or with public transportation.

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Best Time to Visit

Brescia, like the rest of Northern Italy, gets 4 real seasons so you'll want to plan your trip accordingly.

The summers can be hot and humid but are ideal for days spent at one of the nearby lakes. The fall and spring are both ideal for wandering the city center or enjoying a hike in the surrounding hills. Just know that spring might be a little wet for a hike based on that year's snowfall.

Brescia sits just south of the mountains and ski slopes. Just know that in order to ski from Brescia, you'll need about an hour to get to any slopes and will likely need your own car. If you visit Brescia in the winter, you'll also be able to enjoy the city's Christmas lights and market.

We visited Brescia in October and the temperature was perfect but a little rainy.

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How Many Days to Stay

Honestly, I think 3-days is enough in Brescia. With this amount of time, you'll be able to see the highlights. I would only recommend more than 3-days if you plan on doing a few more day trips and using the city as your base.

It would be possible to visit Brescia as a day trip itself but, if that's the case, I would stick with just wandering the old town and enjoying a local meal.

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How Will You Spend Your Time in Brescia?

With so much to see and do, what will you do when you visit Brescia? Although you could certainly spend your entire trip walking around the city center and eating foods from all over the world, there's also plenty of history to soak up dating back from the Roman empire and heading into the 21st century.

There's no right or wrong way to enjoy this gem, so long as you give it a fair shot and don't let its industrial reputation turn you off from visiting.