The patron saint of Riva del Garda is Our Lady of the Assumption, celebrated on 15 August in the parish church dedicated to her; the town's co-patron is Saint Andrew, celebrated on 30 November.
Among the town's most recognisable landmarks are the Torre Apponale, which overlooks the harbour and dominates Piazza III Novembre, and the Rocca di Riva del Garda, a 12th-century fortress once surrounded by a canal with a drawbridge, now home to the MAG Alto Garda Museum, which hosts numerous cultural activities. Near the Trat pass, at the site known as Punta La Rocca, the remains of a small castle built in the Middle Ages by the Rivani to control the passage still stand, the scene in the nearby Valle dei Morti of a fierce battle between the Visconti and the Venetians. From the Renaissance onwards Riva became an important stop on excursions around Lake Garda, perhaps visited even by Andrea Mantegna, before reaching international tourist importance from the mid-19th century together with nearby Arco.
