The 6 Best Karting Tracks in Italy

By Alessio Lorandi, 2013 CIK-FIA World Champion, KF-Junior. Track figures checked on each circuit’s own site on 5 October 2026.

If you ask me, “Alessio, what are the best karting tracks in Italy?”, I’ve got my shortlist ready for you.

There are lots of tracks in Italy, all pretty nice to drive, but only some stand out.

I’ve been driving on most of these since I was a kid, and I believe they’re the real deal. Each one has its own flow, challenges, and tricky sections.

So here is how I see each of them from the seat, and next to it the numbers each circuit publishes on its own site.

What are the best karting tracks in Italy?

My shortlist is five tracks plus one honorable mention. Lonato, Sarno, Viterbo, Cremona and Franciacorta, and then La Conca down in Salento.

Why these? Because if you’re coming to race in Italy, you’ll find yourself racing on these tracks sooner or later.

The lengths, the rental info and the events in this table come from each circuit’s own site. The last column is me.

Why is South Garda Karting in Lonato the most famous kart track in Italy?

Let’s start with the king of all tracks: Lonato, also known as South Garda Karting.

It’s hands down the most famous and busiest kart track in Italy.

I’d even say it’s arguably the most prestigious karting track in the world. Why? Because the manufacturers are all around it. CRG is located literally one minute away. Tony Kart is about 10 minutes away. So the factory teams and the best drivers end up there.

The track’s own site gives 1,200 m of length, 9 to 10 m of width, CIK FIA homologation and a grandstand with 2,000 seats. It has been a kart circuit since 1988.

I live close to it, and I’ve been lapping there since I was six years old. When I was a kid I would finish school around 12:30 and go do about 80 laps in a day. That is why track time is key.

I won there a Bridgestone Cup, 2 Winter Cups, 2 Trofeo Margutti and 3 Italian Championship rounds. The Winter Cup was like a “Winter World Cup” to us, the first race of the season, with more than 100 drivers per category at its peak. I won it in KF3 in 2013 and in KF2 in 2014.

And it’s still packed. The WSK Super Master Series round 3 at Lonato in 2025 had a record of 401 verified drivers from 55 countries.

So if you’re serious about karting, you’ll end up here sooner or later.

How do you drive a lap of Lonato?

Listen, Lonato looks simple on paper. There are only two major braking zones: the mechanics corner and the first of the last three hairpins.

The mechanics corner. Deep, hard braking, slightly downhill. Then the exit goes uphill. Go for a late apex. The only real brake reference is the entry kerb on the left, and you actually brake over it.

The double left. There’s a crest between the two apexes. It’s a minimum speed corner, so it’s about how much speed you can carry in the middle.

The chicane. A lot of entry speed and a lot of exit speed. On the exit you go with all four wheels outside the kerb.

The last three hairpins. We call it the snake. Same radius, two right and one left. In the first one you attack the brakes. In the second one, in mini and junior, you barely brake and you roll the speed. In the third one you focus on the exit, because it launches you onto the main straight. I go deeper on this in my post on tight turns and hairpins.

What about grip? In summer the rental karts run in the evening and they lay down slippery rubber. So in the morning the first session can be about two seconds off, the second about half a second off, and sessions three and four are the fast ones. If you want a lap time, that’s where you put your new tires.

And in the wet it’s slippery. The gap from dry to wet is about 17, 18 seconds, when on other tracks it’s 8 to 10.

By the way, softer axles help at Lonato. At a track like Franciacorta you want more of a stiffer setup.

And if you already have a lap of Lonato on video, send it to me. I go through it corner by corner in an onboard review and I tell you where the time is.

How fast is Circuito Internazionale Napoli in Sarno?

Next up is Sarno, near Naples. “Pizza heaven”.

Circuito Internazionale Napoli is known for its crazy fast layout. Its own site lists a kart track of 1,670 m, 9 to 10 m wide.

There’s a lot of full throttle here, about 75% or so. So being in the slipstream and having a good engine for the top range really matters. At a track like Sarno the slipstream is worth 2 to 3 tenths a lap. And the difference between engines is bigger on tracks with long straights like this one.

It’s not only straights though. Turn five is quite the left hander hairpin, with a lot of banking, and there it works to kiss the apex kerb. There’s a bit of banking at the last corner before the chicane too.

I have good memories there. At the 2011 CIK-FIA World Cup I took pole in my group and I was 3rd overall out of 102 drivers, behind Charles Leclerc and Max Verstappen. In 2013 the first round of the World Championship was at Sarno. I won the prefinal and finished P2 in the final.

If you want to go flat out at high speeds and feel like you’re flying, this is your place.

What is the Viterbo circuit like to drive?

Viterbo is one of the newer and more technical tracks, and I really enjoy it.

It’s twisty, it’s flat in the sense that it’s not bumpy, and it has some nice elevation changes with small banking that are so cool to drive.

The circuit now goes by the name Leopard Circuit Viterbo. Its own site lists 1,294 m of asphalt, 9 to 10 m of width and 16 corners, 10 right and 6 left, with two main straights of 170 m.

Why is it special? It’s a great driver’s track with interesting lines. It forces you to be precise, and it rewards good consistency. And you can use a lot of track on the exits.

It’s getting the big races too. The circuit’s calendar has the FIA Karting World Cup on 11 October 2026 and the third round of the WSK Final Cup on 29 November 2026.

Why is Cremona Circuit worth a test day?

Cremona Circuit is another hidden gem, a short drive from Lonato.

The surface here is one of the best. Super smooth, and the kerbs feel very nice to use.

It’s a great mix of speed and technical sections, and the last sector is really cool. There’s one corner I always think about, turn eight. It’s crazy fast, and you actually turn in quite early, which goes against the conventional wisdom. You can do it because there’s positive banking on the entry.

The vibe? More lowkey than Lonato, but just as rewarding for proper testing and race prep. It’s one of the tracks where I go and drive alone.

One more thing. At Lonato the fast laps come in the middle sessions of the day. At Cremona or Franciacorta you may still set your fastest laps later in the day.

The venue sits in San Martino del Lago, in the province of Cremona. Its site says the work started in 2021 made both the main circuit and the kart track longer. It doesn’t publish a length for the kart track, so I’m not going to give you one.

What is Franciacorta Karting Track like in a KZ?

Franciacorta Karting Track has been getting more and more attention. It’s in Castrezzato, in the Brescia area, and its own site gives a length of 1,300 m.

It’s long, super fast, and really smooth. It’s actually comparable to Sarno in terms of speed, and a bit more modern.

In 2025 it hosted the KZ World Championship, and I raced it. I qualified P2 and I was P2 in the superheat. Then in the final I crashed at the first corner of lap one. That’s racing.

What did I learn about the track? It has three really heavy braking zones. Turn five is a very steep downhill braking where the kart doesn’t want to stop, and then the exit goes uphill. Braking for turn five and for turn 13, the last hairpin, we were pulling 1.8 to 1.9 g.

That last hairpin is really wide, 10 meters. And turns nine and ten are a banked double apex where you only need a tap on the brakes.

And for racing it’s great. It has a lot of overtaking spots because basically there are so many straights. The slipstream counts here like at Sarno.

Good for chassis testing, and good for developing your high speed driving.

Is La Conca still worth the trip?

La Conca is my honorable mention. It used to be one of the best.

In the past you used to smash the kerb at the chicane so much. We used to fly, literally, with four wheels over the kerb. They’ve since changed it, and for me that jump was what made it so iconic.

Still, it has a history of legendary races, and I have a few of my own there. In 2013 I won the WSK Super Master Series round at La Conca with Lando Norris in P2. In 2014 I won round one of the WSK Champions Cup there. You can read more about those years in my rivalry with Lando Norris.

Turn one is a flat out right hander. And it has one of the very few apex kerbs in Italy that you can actually run over.

Kartodromo La Conca is in Muro Leccese, in the province of Lecce, and its site gives a length of 1,250 m. And the surrounding area of Salento is lovely. So yes, go.

Can you go karting in Italy with a rental kart?

Yes. You don’t need your own kart to drive on these tracks. Here is what each circuit’s own site says today.

• Lonato. Rental sessions are 10 minutes, with no booking, kart and helmet included. A 200cc four stroke kart is 15 euros and needs a minimum height of 150 cm. The 400cc sport kart is 25 euros, from 15 years old and 160 cm, for experienced drivers only. There are mini karts and two seaters too. Check the opening calendar before you go, because days and hours change.
• Sarno. Rental runs every day from 17:00 to 23:00, closed on Tuesdays. No rental under 14 years old.
• Viterbo. A 10 minute session is 20 euros on the 270cc kart and 25 euros on the 390cc, plus a one time 5 euro card. Minimum age 12 and minimum height 1.60 m.
• La Conca. Open for rental on Sundays from 16:00 to 21:00. A single kart is 15 euros, from 14 years old.
• Franciacorta. Rental is run by a partner linked from the track’s site.

But be honest with yourself about what you’re getting. A rental kart and a race kart are two different worlds.

At Lonato we normally do a 46, 47 second lap with senior karts. A rental kart is at least 20 seconds slower. Juniors and seniors reach 135 to 140 km/h there. A rental does about 75.

So it’s a great way to feel the track where the champions raced. It’s not the same sport. I explain the gap in rental vs owner karting.

Where should you base yourself to race karts in Italy?

If you’re coming for a season, or even for a month of testing, I’d look at Lake Garda. Desenzano, Sirmione, that area.

Why? Because Lonato, Franciacorta and Cremona are the three major tracks in northern Italy, and they’re all close to each other. Between those three there are something like nine, ten WSK races every year. Lonato alone has at least 25 races a year by my count.

It’s also where you find the highest density of coaches in Italy, because that’s where most of the races are.

And you’ll never be alone on track. On a random weekday at Lonato you can find 20 or more drivers of your category. That’s the level you measure yourself against.

A tip if you want clean track time at Lonato. The factory teams test from Tuesday to Thursday, when there’s no real rental activity.

And if you want to walk the track, you only get two windows: 8 in the morning or the lunch break around 1 p.m.

Which Italian track should you learn first?

Lonato. No doubt.

It’s the one with the most races, the most drivers and the most history. If you race in Italy you’ll end up there, so you might as well master it early.

Then add a fast one, Sarno or Franciacorta, because a fast track teaches you slipstream and heavy braking. And add Viterbo, because it teaches you precision.

At the end of the day, each of these tracks will test a different part of your driving. That’s why they’re on my list.

Just Senndit

Alessio Lorandi

Frequently asked questions

What is the most famous karting track in Italy?

South Garda Karting in Lonato. It’s the most famous and busiest kart track in Italy, and its own site lists 1,200 m of length and a grandstand with 2,000 seats.

How long is the South Garda Karting track in Lonato?

South Garda Karting’s own site gives 1,200 m of length and an average width of 9 to 10 m, with CIK FIA homologation.

Which is the fastest karting track in Italy?

Of the tracks on my list, Sarno. Circuito Internazionale Napoli lists a 1,670 m kart track, and by my estimate you spend about 75% of the lap at full throttle.

Can tourists go karting in Italy without their own kart?

Yes. Lonato, Sarno, Viterbo and La Conca all publish rental kart info on their own sites. At Lonato a 10 minute session on a 200cc kart is 15 euros with kart and helmet included.

Where is Franciacorta Karting Track?

Franciacorta Karting Track is in Castrezzato, in the province of Brescia. Its own site gives a length of 1,300 m and lists the FIA Karting World Championship in 2023 and 2025.