Turin City Break from the UK — Weekend Guide & Itinerary

Overview

Why Turin for a city break?

Turin is Italy's most consistently underrated city and the one that most rewards visitors who come without expectations set by Rome or Florence. A baroque capital of broad arcaded boulevards designed for walking in any weather, it gave the world Nutella, the Fiat 500, gianduja chocolate, bicerin coffee, the aperitivo hour and arguably the finest Egyptian museum outside Cairo. The Cinema Museum in the Mole Antonelliana — a 167-metre brick tower that is the tallest in Italy — is the most inventive museum building in the country. And the Alps are visible from the streets on clear days: Sestriere is 90 minutes away, the Val di Susa ski resorts are closer still.

From London and several UK airports it's just over two hours — Ryanair flies to Turin Caselle from Stansted and a handful of regional airports; connections are available via Milan or Rome. The airport is 15km from the centre (Sadem bus, 40 minutes, €8 or GTT bus, 50 minutes, €4). Go from April to June or September to October — the city is at its best in shoulder season, the porticoed streets invite aimless walking and the Alps are often clear. August is quiet (many residents leave) and hot. December brings one of the finest Christmas markets in Italy to Piazza Castello.

Where to stay & explore

Turin's best neighbourhoods

Centro Storico & Piazza Castello

The baroque heart — Piazza Castello, Piazza San Carlo (the finest square in Turin), the Royal Palace, the Egyptian Museum and the cafés of the porticoed Corso Vittorio Emanuele II.

Quadrilatero Romano

The oldest neighbourhood — ancient Roman grid pattern beneath medieval streets, now the most vibrant area for aperitivo culture, independent restaurants and nightlife.

San Salvario & Lingotto

The creative and multicultural south — San Salvario's independent café scene, the Lingotto (Fiat's rooftop test track converted by Renzo Piano), and the Eataly flagship.

Things to do

What to see in Turin

Museo Egizio (Egyptian Museum)

The finest Egyptian museum in the world outside Cairo — the second-largest collection of Egyptian antiquities anywhere, with over 40,000 objects spanning 5,000 years. The collection began when Napoleon's consul in Egypt shipped 5,000 objects to Turin in 1824; it has grown ever since. The Tomb of Kha (a complete New Kingdom burial discovered intact in 1906), the Papyrus of the Book of the Dead and the seated statue of Ramesses II are among the most significant objects. The museum building — with its extraordinary spiral ramp and top-lit galleries — is itself worth seeing. Book online.

Mole Antonelliana & Cinema Museum

Turin's defining monument — a 167-metre brick tower begun as a synagogue in 1863 and never finished as one, now housing the most inventive film museum in Europe. The installation-based permanent collection covers the history of cinema through immersive environments rather than conventional display: a huge circular hall with film projections, a spiral ramp lined with film stills, dark rooms for experimental film. The external panoramic lift (€7 extra) to the 85-metre viewing deck gives the finest view of Turin and the Alps. Book online.

Piazza San Carlo and the porticoes

Turin has 18km of covered porticoes — the longest arcaded street network in Europe — that make the city uniquely walkable in any weather. Piazza San Carlo, ringed by Baroque palaces and famous cafés, is the finest square in Turin: the equestrian statue of Emmanuel Philibert sheathing his sword after the Battle of San Quentin (1557) stands at its centre. The historic cafés under the porticoes — Caffè San Carlo, Baratti & Milano, Caffè Torino — are the finest in Italy: gilded interiors, standing service, a bicerin (espresso, chocolate and cream) by any window.

Palazzo Reale and the Shroud of Turin

The Royal Palace of the House of Savoy — the former residence of Italy's royal family until 1861, now a museum of extraordinary staterooms (the Armeria Reale, one of the finest collections of arms and armour in Europe, is part of the same complex). The Cathedral of San Giovanni Battista alongside houses the Shroud of Turin — the linen cloth bearing the image of a crucified man that has been the most controversial relic in Christianity since the 14th century. The shroud is rarely displayed but the chapel designed by Guarino Guarini to house it is extraordinary regardless.

Food & drink

Where to eat in Turin

Del Cambio

Piedmontese / historic fine dining

Turin's most historic restaurant — in operation since 1757, the dining room where Count Cavour plotted Italian unification, still serving Piedmontese classics of extraordinary quality: vitello tonnato (veal with tuna mayonnaise), tajarin (hand-cut pasta with butter and white truffle), brasato al Barolo. The historic dining room is perfectly preserved. Book ahead.

Pastificio Defilippis

Pasta / historic food shop

The finest pasta shop in Turin and one of the most beautiful food shops in Italy — a 1872 deli with original glass cabinets, wooden shelving and over 150 types of fresh and dried pasta. The small restaurant at the back serves perfect simple Piedmontese pasta dishes at lunch for very little. Queue at the deli counter for gifts: tajarin, agnolotti, truffle pasta.

Eataly Lingotto

Italian food emporium / Lingotto

The original Eataly — the flagship store of Oscar Farinetti's Italian food concept opened in Turin in 2007 in the former Carpano vermouth factory before the brand went global. The Lingotto location is the most interesting: on the ground floor of Renzo Piano's conversion of the Fiat rooftop test track. Pasta, pizza, wine, cheese, charcuterie and excellent coffee. A useful lunch stop if visiting the Lingotto.

Itinerary

3 days in Turin — a suggested itinerary

Day 1

Egyptian Museum, Piazza San Carlo, aperitivo in the Quadrilatero

Bus from Turin Caselle Airport to Porta Nuova station (40 minutes). Walk to the Museo Egizio — allow three hours for the collection. The seated Ramesses II statue and the Tomb of Kha are the unmissable rooms. Walk from the museum along Via Roma to Piazza San Carlo — the finest square in Turin, the equestrian statue, the Baroque palaces. A bicerin at Caffè San Carlo or Caffè Torino (order standing at the bar — it's cheaper and more authentic). The Quadrilatero Romano for aperitivo from 6pm: the streets around Via Santa Giulia and Via Baretti are the most vibrant. Del Cambio for dinner (booked ahead).

Day 2

Mole Antonelliana, Palazzo Reale, Lingotto afternoon

Mole Antonelliana and Cinema Museum at 9am — the spiral ramp, the panoramic lift, the installation cinema exhibition. Walk through Piazza Castello to the Palazzo Reale (the staterooms and the Armeria Reale). Cathedral of San Giovanni to see Guarini's extraordinary chapel interior. The Porta Palazzo market — the largest open-air market in Europe (Tuesday to Saturday mornings) for cheese, charcuterie, produce and the atmosphere of Turin's most multicultural neighbourhood. Tram or taxi to Lingotto in the afternoon: walk the rooftop car test track (free and extraordinary), see the Piano-designed oval meeting room suspended above the track, visit Eataly for lunch or a late coffee.

Day 3

The Alps day trip or Superga Basilica

Sestriere ski resort is 90 minutes by bus in winter; Sacra di San Michele (a Romanesque abbey perched on a rocky spur at the entrance to the Val di Susa, 40km west — bus from Susa, then a 45-minute climb) is the most dramatic day trip year-round. The view from the abbey over the val and towards Turin is one of the finest in Piedmont. Alternatively: the Basilica di Superga (10km east, reached by a historic rack railway from Sassi, 30 minutes) — the royal Savoy mausoleum on a hilltop with extraordinary views over Turin, the Po plain and the Alps. The 1949 Superga air disaster memorial (the entire Grande Torino football team was killed when their plane hit the basilica in fog) is moving. Return to Turin for a final bicerin and tajarin before the airport bus.

Why Turin for a city break?

Turin's best neighbourhoods

What to see in Turin

Where to eat in Turin

3 days in Turin — a suggested itinerary

Cities similar to Turin