Earlier this month, I got the chance to spend a short break in Turin/Torino.  There tend to be two reactions when one says they’re going here – either “oh, the Shroud”, or “what’s there, and why are you going?”  It’s not easy to find an up-to-date guidebook in English, but we knew from our visit to Milan when we had contemplated a side trip, there were things that we wanted to see here – including the National Automobile Museum, and the royal palaces.  This was, after all, the first capital of a united Italy, and home city of the Dukes of Savoy/Kings of Sardinia who would go on to lead Italy before it became a republic.  Royal palaces aren’t hard to find.

So much more than 5 days could be filled here, and upcoming posts will explore a few of the sites that we had the chance to visit, armed with the great value 72-hour Torino & Piemonte card.

The city is known for its baroque splendour, long covered streets (with a grid plan nodding to the city’s Roman era heritage), and the spectacular Mole Antonelliana, home to the National Cinema museum.

Have you been to Torino – what was your favourite place to visit there?