If you love modern and elegant cities at the same time, you should really organize a weekend in beautiful Turin: 10 truly unmissable places that we recommend in the post.
Torino, a Savoyard city, elegant and modern at the same time, fascinates many tourists every day. Turin is a city strongly linked to its roots and its history, but at the same time it is a city in step with the times. The city can be visited very well on foot or by public transport, if you are looking for ideas to spend a weekend in Italy, Turin is an excellent destination. But what to see in Turin?
For those who go to Turin for the first time, there are 10 things not to be missed.
What to see in Turin: the squares
1. Piazza San Carlo
The main squares of Turin are surrounded by palaces, most of them of Baroque origin. One of the most beautiful squares in Turin is Piazza San Carlo, also called the “living room of the city”. Some of the oldest and most important bars in the city overlook this square. What immediately catches the eye in this square are the two twin churches.
2. Piazza Castello
From Piazza San Carlo, along Via Roma, you arrive at the central square, the "hub" of the city: Piazza Castello. This square represents the union and coexistence of different historical periods in the city of Turin. In the center of the square is the Acaja Castle on the right, a symbol of Savoy power up to the XNUMXth century, and on the left Palazzo Madama, whose eighteenth-century facade was designed by Filippo Juvarra.
3. Piazza Vittorio Veneto
From Piazza Castello, along Via Po, you reach another important square in the city: Piazza Vittorio Veneto. This square has the shape of an embrace, it is surrounded by important buildings and arcades. The square closes on the Po and from here you have a beautiful view of the Gran Madre, one of the city's churches with a shape very similar to the Pantheon.
What to see in Turin: the museums
The historic center of Turin is located right around these three squares and in this area there are two of the main and most beautiful museums in the city: the Cinema Museum and the Egyptian Museum.
4. The Cinema Museum
The Cinema Museum is located inside the Mole Antonelliana and is very nice. In the initial part the history of cinema is retraced, while in the central part of the Mole, small themed cinemas are set up, where you can sit and see some pieces of film as if you were inside the film itself. In one room, the “armchairs” of the cinema are actually toilets, another room is set up as a living room. The museum is not huge, but it is worth a visit, after finishing the visit, take the elevator that takes you to the top of the Mole, from here you can see a beautiful view.
5. The Egyptian Museum
Another “gem” of the city is the Egyptian Museum, considered the most important in the world after the one in Cairo. The Turin museum boasts another primacy, it is the oldest museum in the world, entirely dedicated to the Egyptian civilization. Here lies the whole history of this fascinating civilization.
The Valentino Park
Slightly outside the historic center, immersed in the Valentino park, are the Valentino Castle, the medieval Borgo and Rocca.
6. The Valentino Castle
The Valentino Castle is one of the most beautiful buildings in the city. It is part of the UNESCO heritage of Savoy Residences and today hosts the degree courses in Architecture of the Turin Polytechnic.
7. Medieval Borgo and Rocca
Continuing the walk inside the Valentino Park, you reach the medieval village and the Rocca. This museum complex is truly special, it is a faithful reproduction of a medieval village. La Rocca is a copy of several Piedmontese castles and consists of several floors, in each of them there is a room decorated with a faithful copy of the furniture.
The shopping streets
Turin is not only culture and history, but also shopping or window shopping. There are some very nice streets in the center not only for the period buildings, but also for shopping.
8. Via Garibaldi
This famous shopping street starts from Piazza Castello, here you can find everything. The street ends in Piazza Statuto.
9. Via Lagrange
In via Lagrange, in addition to finding beautiful buildings, there are high fashion shops and the Rinascente. At the end of via Lagrange there is the Egyptian Museum and immediately after Piazza Castello.
10. Via Roma
The street that connects the Porta Nuova railway station to Piazza Castello is full of shops of all kinds, it is difficult to resist the temptation.
As you may have understood, the things to see in Turin they are very many. This list is an inspiration and a useful guide for your first weekend in the magical city.
