Turin is not a destination on many tourists must-see-Italy lists but it is a really awesome city with a lot to offer. According to a couple locals I spoke to tourism has picked up quite a bit since the Turin Olympic games, and it’s easily accessible to Milan and Genoa. We only had a couple things on our must-see list including the Egypt Museum and the Roman Quarter but we mainly wanted to walk around and see the town.
Stop 1- Egyptian Museum
After seeing the wonderful displays at the British National Museum and the Louvre we had to check out this museum as one of the top Egyptology museums in the world. Admission was 15 Euros each and came with an audioguide which we didn’t find necessary since there were English translations on the exhibits. It took us the entire morning to go through all the exhibits which were located on about 3-4 different floors! Our favorite section was the Valley of the Kings which is a two-room display of statues. It’s easy to accidentally go in the wrong direction or skip over something so if visiting make sure to follow signs that say “Tour” or “Tour Direction” with an arrow.
Stop 2: Tomatika Pizza
Our bar was raised- Seriously good pizza! The servers were super friendly as well and the slices seemed like a reasonable price. They had about 20 different kinds of pizza by the slice which we opted for but we did see people pick up personal pizzas to go.
There is nothing like buffalo mozzarella on pizza
Stop 3: Mole Antonelliana
Unfortunately the building was closed the day we went (Tuesday) so we could not get to the top of it, but we did get to catch some pictures and grab some wine at a nearby tapas bar! Another lesson on checking on attractions you really want to see (we could live without this one) and plan your trip accordingly as some may be closed for maintenance, require reservations, or be open only on certain days. Mondays and Tuesdays seemed to be the most common days for closures as well as Sundays for churches.
tallest building in Torino
A great place to have an aperitif outside the building
Stop 4: Quadrilatero Romano and Piazza San Carlo
We took a stroll down the roman quarter, and checked out some of the street architecture. It was also a popular area for cafes, bars, restaurants and street performers and super pretty in the sunshine!
Narrow cobblestone streets
statue of Emmanuel Philibert
Stop 5: Cat Cafe
For all the feline lovers out there, the first “Cat-fe” I’ve been to called MiaGola Cafe ! Six cats were counted that day wandering around and most interacted with us!
Surprised there isn’t one of these in Portland!
If you are in Northern Italy I’d definitely recommend considering a stop in Torino if you are interested in (including but not limited to!)
- Culture
- Food
- Shopping
- Egyptology museums
- Architecture
- Football/Soccer (Juventus stadium is here as well as stadium from the Olympics)