Travel Guides | Turin Travel Guide
Turin Travel Guide
Italian eccentricity
Behind the majestic façades, Piedmont’s capital is home to an oddball collection of treasures. Not least of these are the infamous Turin Shroud and the unexpected Egyptian Museum, the largest of its type outside Cairo. Combined with the city’s mythical winter fog and a number of myths and legends, this has granted Turin status as a centre of black magic. Turin is also the city of the black and white stripes of Juventus football club, a vibrant contemporary arts and music scene and the birthplace of Italian cinema. It is food and drink heaven – even for Italy – as the home of Lavazza coffee, Martini and the best Italian chocolate. And yes, it is the engine of Italy and the city that Fiat built, a city that produced the Cinquecento and other retro favourites still as popular as the Mini Coopers that once roared through the city in the famous car chase of The Italian Job.
Alpine air
Turin stands as a gateway to the Alps, on the cusp of the great rice plain to the east. In one direction stand the vineyards of Barolo, the king of Italian wines, and the magic climate that produces the prized white truffle; in the other, the winter and summer playground of the valley of Aosta culminating in two of the Alps’ most spectacular peaks, the Matterhorn and Mont Blanc. Not before time these assets have put Turin on the. Further north around the freight station are post-industrial warehouses that have become some of Turin’s most original clubs and late lounges. On the far northern outskirts is the Stadio delle Alpi, the main football stadium and to the west the piazza Statuto and the station of Porta Susa, soon to be transformed into Turin’s Eurostar link in time for the 2006 Winter Olympics.
Castles and country retreats
At all points of the compass Turin is surrounded by castles that were once the converted country retreats of the Savoy dukes. To the southwest is the hunting lodge of Stupinigi; to the south the hilltop fortress of Moncalieri, and beyond the hills, the incong- ruously majestic palace in Aglié. To the west stand both Rivoli castle with its modern art museum and the royal lodge at Venaria Reale. Further north is the decadent red-brick palace of Racconigi.
Excursions
Turin provides a good base for a huge variety of daytrips. An hour or so to the northwest, beyond the pretty carnival town of Ivrea, lies the Val d’Aosta. From Aosta itself the road leads towards the Alps passing the famous ski resorts of Cervinia – symbolized by the Matterhorn – and Courmayeur. Savoy castles and fortresses line the route due west to valleys of Susa which will be the playground for the 2006 Olympic Games. Beautiful walks are also to be enjoyed in the Gran Paradiso National Park. To the east lie the rich wine- growing villages of Alba and Barolo. Nearby are the towns of Asti and Alessandria and the thermal waters at Acqui Terme.
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