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.

The town site was likely inhabited since the Roman age; it developed throughout the centuries, its economy being based mostly on agriculture. It was in the 19th century that tourism began to increase, gradually turning Gardone in the well known location of today. The town is also well known to host the "Vittoriale", the residence of Gabriele D'Annunzio, a major Italian writer and poet of the early 20th century.

This vast and articulated mansion was the last residence of the Italian poet Gabriele D'Annunzio, between 1921 and 1938. It covers an area of approximately nine hectares and is formed by a villa called "Prioria", the actual house of the artist, surrounded by an impressive sequence of spaces: an open air theatre, a lemon garden, a monumental grave, and even a battleship. The massive works were completed only in 1953 with the completion of the theatre, which stands downhill with an astonishing view on the lake.

Founded during the Roman age, the small town was a political protagonist during the late Medieval and Renaissance age, when it lead, together or alternating with the nearby Maderno, a confederation of villages called "Riviera", which depended on the Milanese, Venetian or Veronese authority through the centuries, but often kept a relevant autonomy. During the last years of World War II, Salò was the capital of the so called Italian Social Republic, formally ruled by Benito Mussolini but actually controlled by Nazis.