Many people choose to extend their walking tours in Italy by visiting Turin.    This could be easily done if you have booked Hedonistic Hiking's The Jewels of Piedmont or The Italian Alps.

Sometimes referred to as the "Capital of the Alps" Turin is Italy's fourth largest city.  The River Po glides through its centre and the mountains tower over its skyline.   Famous for its Fiat factories as much as the mystery of the Holy Shroud, Turin has a thriving cafe culture,  a fine gastronomic heritage and some wonderful museums.   In 2006 it played host to the Winter Olympics.

Highlights:

Palazzo dell'Accademia delle Scienze

This enormous palace houses two of Turin's best museums:   the Egyptian Museum (Museo Egizio) which has some of the best Egyptian treasures to be found in Europe and the Galleria Sabauda, which houses the former private art collection of the House of Savoy and includes many European masters.     One ticket can be purchased for entrance to both museums.

Mole Antonelliana

This 167 m tower has, for the last ten years, been home to the Museo Nazionale del Cinema.    The tour through the history of cinema is highly recommended in its own right, but a visit to the tower which is the symbol of Turin is essential - you can ride up in the glass elevator and enjoy spectacular views across the city from its outside viewing deck.

Duomo di San Giovanni

Turin's cathedral is the home of its famous "Holy Shroud" or " Sindone di Torino"- and you can see a copy of the cloth on display in front of the altar.

Eataly

For all food lovers, a trip to Eataly whilst you are in Turin is a must.    It is the Slow Food Movement Supermarket and holds the biggest choice imaginable of cured meats, cheeses, fresh produce, chocolates and bread to name but a few.    It is in the Lingotto district, which is easily reachable by bus from the Stazione Porta Nuova.    Go at lunchtime and taste at many of the different food stations.

If you plan to stay a few days, it is worth buying the Torino & Piemonte card from the tourist office which gives you admission to most museums and monuments and free public transport.      For a personal and entertaining guided tour of the city we recommend Elena Fermi who speaks perfect English.    Contact her at elena.fermi@dialogoplus.com.

Where to stay:

Some of the hotels listed here are known to Hedonistic Hiking, others are recommendations from people who have extended their walking tour in Italy in Turin.

Hotel Victoria
An elegant four star very centrally located, excellent breakfast and spa facilities.
It also has a pretty internal garden courtyard.

Principi di Piemonte
A 5 star hotel in the centre and not far from the station.   Good breakfast buffet, wellness centre and restaurant.

Ai Savoia
This B&B is in the heart of the old town and the rooms are spread across four different 18th century buildings.    It is in a restricted traffic area, so phone ahead with your registration number if arriving by car.

Hotel Dogana Vecchia
This hotel claims to be the oldest in Turin and it certainly has an excellent location in the centre of the city.   According to its website, Mozart, Verdi and Napoleon Bonaparte have all been guests here.

Atahotel Concord
A modern four star very close to the main station at Porta Nuova.   Well-equipped and very convenient if using the train to reach Turin.

The NH Lingotto
This modern hotel in the congress centre 3 km to the south of the city is converted from Fiat's former car factory.   The area now is home to galleries and exhibition space and next door is the vast Slow Food movement's supermarket where you can browse for everything from breads to cheeses, pasta to chocolate.   There is a regular bus service between  Lingotto and the Stazione Porta Nuova.   This NH Group in fact has four hotels in the Turin area - click here for full details.

Jet Hotel
A very comfortable 4 star next to Turin airport.

Where to eat:

€€€ Restaurant del Cambio
For a real treat, this Baroque institution dates back to the 1750s.    It has historic and lavish decor and offers  typically Piedmontese dishes.    Reservations are definitely recommended.    Piazza Carignano 2, Turin  Tel + 39 011 54 66 90

€€ Tre Galline
One of Turin's most enduring restaurants, this place has been trading for centuries and is in the centre of the Quadrilatero Romano district.  Via Bellezia, 37  Tel +39 011 436 6553

€€ Ristorante Consorzio
Good value with simple but excellent food, with good central location.   Menu changes frequently.   Via Monte di Pieta 23            Tel + 39 011 276 7661.

€€ L'Acino
A small but cosy restaurant run by friendly husband and wife team.    The menu is not vast but the food is very fresh and well cooked.   Via San Domenico 2A.   Tel +39 011 521 7077

€€ La Via del Sale
Offering a mix of dishes from Piedmont and Liguria, this true trattoria is well placed in the centre of town.    Via San Francesco da Paola 2    Tel +39 011 888389

€ Al Bicerin
Also dating back to the mid 1700s, this cafe is best known for a hot chocolate, coffee and cream drink which bears the same name.   Piazza della Consolata Tel +39 011 436 9235

Turin is a great city for an aperitivo - many bars will serve drinks with an astonishing array of antipasti, cured meats, grissini and bruschette, so you can eat for the price of the drink!    Head for the Quadrilatero Romano area of town.

What to order:

Turin is famous for its chocolate and there are many shops and cafes where you can taste.  Also try risotto dishes made with arborio rice from the Po valley, and the famous white truffles from Alba.    The thin breadsticks known as grissini are another staple of the city.

If you love the idea of hunting for truffles take a look at our Jewels of Piedmont tour.

Piedmont is one of the most prolific wine-producing areas in the whole of Italy.  For top quality red wines, look for Barolo and Barbaresco , and for white, Asti or Gavi.

Transport:

Turin has an airport with good domestic and European connections, but international flights would go via Milan.    The main station in Turin is Stazione Porta Nuova.  There is a regular bus service from the airport into the centre of Turin which does also make a stop at Stazione Porta Nuova.  There are hourly direct trains from Milano Centrale to Turin Porta Nuova which take approximately 2 hours.    From Malpensa airport the service is not direct to Turin and involves changing in the centre of Milan.    There is a shuttle bus running every 20 minutes between Malpensa airport and Milano Centrale.

For all train information visit www.trenitalia.com which has an English version.
Train travel in Italy is inexpensive and comfortable.    Major cities are served by non-stop fast trains known as the Eurostar.

If you are making plans for wider Europe then www.raileurope-world.com is a useful site.