The small, charming village stands in an iconic position, on a peninsula extending for four kilometers from the southern coast of lake Garda. The town centre is guarded by the Rocca Scaligera, a majestic fortress built during the Veronese domination of Sirmione, in the 13th and 14th century. Nowadays, Sirmione is a popular tourist site due to its thermal barths and archeological remains, dating back to the Roman age.

Built between the 13th and 14th century by the Veronese family Della Scala, the fortress stood as a defensive hub for Sirmione, which was exposed to frequent aggressions due to its border position, and may have taken advantage of the site of a pristine Roman stronghold. A fortified basin was built shorty after, to offer a shelter to battleships.

The impressive remains of a Roman villa, built between the 1st century B.C. and the 1st century A.D. have been named after the well known Latin poet since the 14th century, when his composition were brought back to life. He often told about his stay in Sirmione, thus the ruins, already visible on the northern edge of Sirmione peninsula, were associated to his name. The excavations, effected since the 18th century, have brought out a massive complex of 167 x 105 metres, severely damaged for being used as a building materials quarry throughout ages.