Turin One day Guide/ How to Love the City/ Must do, see & eat
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In this post you’ll find the perfect itinerary for your One Day trip in Turin. You will be guided through the best attractions of the city with tips on the where to stop for breaks along the way. If you follow this route, you’ll see the best Piazzas, Museum, Views of the city while enjoying tasty local food and the #1 gelato in town! All content is written by a local.
Quick Links
- Is One Day enough to visit Turin?
- My One Day Itinerary: Quick glance
- Organized Tours: Walking, e-Bike & Underground
- Start your day right with Breakfast at Al Bicerin
- The ancient Quadrilatero district
- The Duomo of Turin & its views from the top
- Piazza Castello: The Heart of Turin
- Stunning spots: Galleria Subalpina & Piazza Carignano
- Piazza San Carlo: The Elegant “Salotto”
- Galleria San Federico: the classy vibes of Milan
- Quick & Quality Lunch: Best spots
- The Best Gelato in Town!
- Parco del Valentino: The “Central Park” of Turin
- Molte Antonelliana: The Symbol of Turin
- The perfect Aperitivo break
- Monte dei Cappuccini: the best city views
- Piazza Vittorio & its charme
- Dinner that will blow you away
- Best cocktails spot
- Great Spots outside the itinerary (Piazzas, Cafes, Museums, Restaurants)
To complement this trip with other amazing experiences nearby, you may want to check my other posts:
- If you want to relax and enjoy great wine here is the Unforgettable Barolo wine tour on a Vespa
- if you fancy the beach, you may want to read The Best Beach Weekend from Turin
If you are a foodie, make sure you learn the Top 15 delicious local dishes to die for.
Hope you’ll find this content useful!
1. Is One day for visiting Turin enough?
The short answer is yes one day is enough. The city-center is not huge so Turin could be a perfect one-day stop to add to your Italian road trip.
Having said that, my suggestion is to spend a full weekend and spend the 2nd day visiting the outskirts: the stunning UNESCO landmarks outside (~15 mins away) or the beautiful Langhe vineyards (~1h away).
You can read more about how to spend your second day in my other post two-day itinerary.
If you’re up for a relaxing day in the countryside wondering through the vineyards and tasting some of the Best Italian wines, you may want to visit the Perfect Barolo Wine Tour.
If you want to go to the beach like a local, check out the best beach nearby Turin.
Now let’s focus on how to make the most out of your One-day in the Turin city-center!
2. My One Day itinerary: Quick Glance
The itinerary consists of a total 1h 40 minutes and 8 KM walking distance.
It will allow you to visit the most important landmarks of the city and suggest you the best spots to stop along the way for lunch, ice-cream, aperitivo and dinner.
You will be seeing the main Piazzas of Turin (Castello, San Carlo, Vittorio) and it will point you out to the hidden architectural gems along the way (Chiesa di San Lorenzo, two Gallerias, Piazza Carignano).
You will see the most famous landmarks such as the Mole Antonelliana and the Duomo as well as the best park of the city (Parco del Valentino) and one of the best museums (Cinema Museum).
All coupled with some nice tips on the best places to eat, drink and snack along the way.
If you don’t want to visit the suggested Museum or stop to the proposed places for lunch don’t worry, there is plenty of other suggestions for you to enjoy the city at the bottom of the post.
3. Organized Tours
If you feel my itinerary is too complex and you’d rather opt for organized Tours here is a short selection.
You can opt for a small group walking tours, moving around via e-bike or discovering the city while tasting some local food (Bicerin, Gianduiotto chocolates, Focaccia and wine-tasting).
I have personally tried the Turin Guided Food Tour with chocolate and wine tasting and I felt it was a good option. The tour was 2 hours, we were given: 1x Bicerin, 2x small chocolate tastings, some tasty Focaccia & Farinata and a nice Aperitivo with 2x different wines. The guide was nice and shared some interesting anectodes at each stop. Here’s some pictures that I took during the tour so you have a better idea of what to expect.
See below few experiences that might be of interest as well as the one I mentioned above. Let me point out that if you click and make a purchase, I will receive a commission at no extra cost for you.
4. Start your day: Typical Breakfast
4.1 Breakast at Al Bicerin
Al Bicerin is a Historic 1763 Café located in Piazza della Consolata, a beautiful square in the “quadrilatero” district of Turin. The perfect place to start your day.
The name of the Café comes from the traditional drink of Turin called “Bicerin”, which is made of espresso coffee, hot chocolate and milk. You can order also the tasty “Torta di Nocciola” (a soft hazelnut cake topped with hot dark chocolate and whip cream) or the traditional Piedmontese “Meliga” biscuits.
The interior decoration will take you back in time. Famous guests such as Alexandre Dumas and Friedrich Nietzsche used to visit this place and enjoy the pleasant atmosphere.
Even if it has become quite popular, I still recommend this place as it’s the best place in town for Bicerin.
4.2 Breakast at Al Pastarell
As “Al Bicerin” can be quite crowded, my favorite spot for breakfast in the area is by far Pastarell.
It is a really really tasty pastry shop and also very affordable!
Pastarell is a pastry shop from Napoli which focuses on Napoletan pastries, the most famous of which is the iconic “sfogliatella”.
At Pastarell they make the pastries in-house and on the spot, you can tell as the sfogliatelle are still warm and most importantly the outer part is crunchy.
Each sfogliatella,costs only 1,10 euros! We were two people, we took 2x espresso coffees, 3x sfogliatellas and a small bottle of water and we paid only 6,7 euros!
TIP: Don’t miss Chiesa della Consolata
Just in front Al Bicerin , there is the stunning Chiesa della Consolata. It is a Baroque masterpeice and furthermore you can visit it free of charge.
From the outside it doesn’t look like anything special, but the interior is truly incredible.
Don’t miss this!
5. The Quadrilatero neighbourhood
The Quadrilatero district is the oldest part of the city center, it was built by the Romans during the 1st century A.C, and it resembles the shape of a square.
It refers to the area within: Piazza Castello, Porta Palatina, Via della Consolata, Via santa Teresa.
It is a charming collection of narrow streets, trendy restaurants & boutiques, Baroque churches and antique bookstores. It is truly entertaining to walk through it. If you wanna have an idea of what it looks, click here to see 1 minute walking tour video.
In addition to that it offers some nice remnants from the Roman period including the Roman gates (Porta Palatina) and few excavations around.
This area is great also in the evening, it get very busy for dinner & cocktails. Highly recommended!
6. The Duomo & its view from the top
From Quadrilatero, if you walk south through Via Santa Chiara, Via IV Marzo or Via Garibaldi (all three streets are worth walking through) you’ll get to the Duomo of Turin.
The Duomo, also known as the Cathedral of Saint John the Baptiste, is well known worldwide as it where the Holy Shroud of Christ has been guarded for centuries up to today.
The Church from the outside may not be as opulent as some other cathedrals from the outside. Here is a 5 seconds video of how the Duomo of Turin looks like.
Its interior is worth a visit and it is free of charge. There is plenty of artworks, paintings and sculptures inside. Inside the Duomo you’ll see a copy of the Shroud through a glass window. If you want to learn about Holy Shroud, don’t miss the Holy Shroud Museum.
I highly recommend to go-up the Bell Tower of the Duomo, with its 242 steps and 62 meters of height it will allow for some stunning views! And it costs only 3€!!
TIP: Go eat at Piola da cianci
In this square you have on of the best restaurants offering local food at reasonable prices. The place is called Piola da Cianci, I spent 33€ for 2x dishes of mixed starters, 2x pasta, 1xcoke 1x glass of wine.
As you can imagine there is always a long queue, so if you want to try this restaurant I suggest you go there for lunch around 12:00 (before Italian lunch rush hour). They don’t take reservation.
7. Piazza Castello: The Heart of Turin
Turin is a Baroque architectural gem.
One of the most interesting characteristics of the city are its marvelous Piazzas. The most famous ones are Piazza Castello, Piazza San Carlo and Piazza Vittorio Veneto which are absolutely no miss.
The turning point for Turin was in 1572 when it became the Capital of the Duchy of Savoy and as such the residence of the King, who appointed the best architects of the time to make it a royal city.
Piazza Castello is the 2nd biggest square of Turin, it owes its name to its beautiful Castle . It is a the very heart of the city center as Turin’s main streets (Via Roma, Via Po & Via Garibaldi) all start from here.
MUSEUMS
Piazza Castello holds several museums: Palazzo Madama & Royal Palace (which is where the king of Italy was living) together with the Royal armour which is the King’s collections of weapons and armours.
Not to be missed are also the Royal Gardens, just behind the royal Palace which you can visit for free,.
I’ve added a few guided tour below in case of interest. Thought it might be handy. Let me point out that if you click and make a purchase, I will receive a commission at no extra cost for you.
Lastly, Piazza Castello host also the Teatro Regio, which is the most important Theather of the city and one of the oldest Opera theatres in the World.
TIP: Chiesa di San Lorenzo – can’t be missed
Piazza Castello hosts a beautiful Baroque Church called “Chiesa di San Lorenzo”. The interior of this church is stunning, it was designed by Guarino Guarini in 1666.
It is not easy to spot, at first sight. You really need to look for it (see below), don’t miss it!
8. Stunning: Galleria & Carignano
Before heading to Piazza San Carlo, there are two stops: Galleria Subalpina and Piazza Carignano.
8.1 GALLERIA SUBALPINA
Galleria Subalpina, is a stylish marble, glass and iron gallery with charming balconies decorated with plants & flowers. Here is a quick 6-seconds video to grasp how the galleria looks like.
It hosts one of the most Historic Cafés of Turin (Baratti & Milano), a very classy restaurant (Arcadia) as well as the oldest cinema of the city (Cinema Romano).
I highly recommend to get a a hot chocolate & pastries at Baratti & Milano. It is to die for!
8.2 PIAZZA CARIGNANO
Another beautiful square which definitely deserves a visit is Piazza Carignano.
Many people ignore that Turin was the first capital of Italy, Piazza Carignano hosted the first Parliament. The brick façade of the parliament with its curved shape is a fantastic example of skilled workmanship.
The lovely cafés & shops and the fact that there often is live music provide a fantastic vibe.
9. The Elegant Piazza San Carlo
Piazza San Carlo is referred to by the locals as the “Salotto di Torino”, the classy “living room” of Turin.
The nickname comes from its stunning architecture and by the fact that it is surrounded porticoes hosting a number of posh shops, cafés and boutiques which make it very lively.
In the middle of the Piazza there is an equestrian statue of Emanuele Filiberto, the Duke of Savoy.
At one end of the square you’ll see the two beautiful Baroque “twin” Churches, Chiesa di San Carlo Borromeo and Chiesa di Santa Cristina, with lovely façade, frescos and wood carved piece of arts inside.
On one end of Piazza San Carlo you have Piazza Castello, on the other end you’ll see an interesting looking glass & iron building which is the Porta Nuova train station.
10. The classy Galleria San Federico
Before heading for lunch, walk through the beautiful Galleria San Federico nearby Piazza San Carlo.
The Galleria hosts some nice shops, bars & restaurants and even a high-end grocery store called “Fior-Food” which is a selection of high-quality food from the territory from the Coop Super Market chain.
The three branches of the Galleria meet in front of the iconic movie theater “Cinema Lux”.
11. Quick Lunch: best spots
At this stage of the day it is fair to assume that you may want to grab something to eat. As there still is a lot to see I suggest to take something to eat “on the go” and rather have a nice sitting down dinner.
On the go doesn’t mean bad quality meal. You are in Turin, the capital of SlowFood! For a good “on the go lunch” near Piazza San Carlo I suggest few options:
- Tipica Focceria Ligure for nice & freshly made slice of Pizza at- Via Giolitti 4
- Trapizzino for warm pocket sandwich or fried “suppli’ ” – Piazza Carlo Emanuele II,
- Mollica Piccoli Produttori –gourmet sandwich shop with local fresh fillings – Piazza Madama Cristina
BEST PLACES TO SIT DOWN FOR LUNCH
If you want to sit down for lunch, the best places offering good food and nice view at affordable prices are:
- Piola da Cianci – traditional local food at affordable prices – 9 mins away
- Vitel Etonne’ – great food in a cosy little restarurant – 7 mins away
- Sfashion Cafe’ – good Pasta or Pizza in a nice square. – 5 mins away
The best of the three in terms of food is definetely Vitel Etonne, though slightly pricier.
The remaining two still offer good food and in addition to that they are in a stunning & sunny little square which makes it perfect for an outdoor lunch.
The most popular one is “Piola da Cianci”, which offers good food at very affordable prices. Here I took 2x mixed starters, 2x Main Course, 1x glass of red win, 1x Coca Cola, 1x Water and 2x coffees for 33 Euros! I talked more about this restaurant in section 5 of this post (above).
12. The best Gelato in town!
After lunch you should try one of the local ice-cream shops as dessert. The ones I recommend the most in order of priority are: GROM, Fiorio, La Romana, Alberto Marchetti Gelateria.
In Via Po, at 5 minutes walking distance from Trapizzino you’ll find a Fiorio and an Alberto Marchetti.
My favorite one is GROM I truly recommend to try their signature flavor “Crema di Grom” together with their Stracciatella which has pieces of high-quality dark chocolate .
13. Relax at Parco Del Valentino
Now that you have a full stomach you must be ready for a nice stroll!
I suggest to walk towards the Parco del Valentino, the “Central Park” of Italy. It is an immense park by the Po river where you can easily spend one hour or two as there is plenty to do and see.
I personally don’t suggest to have lunch or dinner but it is perfect for drinks & chill-out.
The park contains a few interesting attractions that you should definitely check-out:
- Giardino Roccioso – the marvelous garden within the park
- Castello del Valentino – built in 1564, with its two façades looking extremely from one another
- The Borgo Medievale – a representation of a Medieval Village built in the 1884
- Fontana dei dodici Mesi – A beautiful fountain resembling the one of Trevi in Rome
Below you’ll find some pictures and quick 10 seconds videos to show how they look like.
In addition to that, you’ll find some bars by the Po river to relax and have a few drinks like l’Imbarchino and some food kiosks.
14. The Iconic Mole Antonelliana
After relaxing at Parco del Valentino you are now ready for some culture, I suggest to visit one museum.
I suggest Museo Del Cinema as it is inside the Mole Antonelliana, the tower representing the symbol of Turin. This way you get to see the Museum and the iconic landmark at the same time!
The Mole is 25 mins walking distance from the Park, I suggest to walk by the Po river to enjoy a nice view on the hills.
The ticket for the museum is 11€ for Adults/ 9€ for 6-18 years old/ free of charge up to 5 years old. You can take the elevator to the top of the tower and enjoy a nice panoramic view for +5€ more.
My favorite museum is actually the Museum of Automobile but as it is a bit far from the city center I don’t suggest it for one day itinerary. You can learn more on other Turin Museums.
15. The Perfect Aperitivo break
After the Museum I suggest to sit down grab a drink & eat some quick with an Aperitivo.
15.1 APERITIVO AT DROGHERIA
One of the most famous place for aperitivo is Drogheria, right in the stunning Piazza Vittorio. You can either take a drink and they will serve you an aperitivo platter or simply order some Italian tapas.
15.2 APERITIVO AT “FARMACIA DEL CAMBIO”
If you want something more classy, there is “Farmacia del Cambio“,12 minutes away in the beautiful Piazza Carignano.
Many people forget that Vermouth was invented in Turin (Cinzano) in 1776 and that it’s the city where the Martini & Rossi company was founded (in 1863).
Vermouth is the key ingredient of several world-wide popular cocktails such as Negroni, Americano and Manhattan. However, in Turin we also like to drink it straight, try the “Vermouth Antica Ricetta”.
The next stop is Monte dei Cappuccini which is 20 mins walking distance. Be ready!
16. Monte dei Capuccini: the best view
Monte dei Cappuccini is the place with the best view overlooking the city .
To get to Monte dei Cappuccini you’ll walk through Piazza Vittorio which I’ll describe better in the next section.
From Piazza Vittorio you’ll need to walk up-hill a bit but you will be rewarded. I suggest this walk just before sunset so you can enjoy the beautiful colors of the sky, the Po river and the Mole lights.
17. Charming Piazza Vittorio
Piazza Vittorio is the largest Piazza in Turin and the largest square with porticos in Europe.
The scenery is stunning: it is right next to the Po river, surrounded by buildings of beautiful architecture and with an awesome view of the Gran Madre Church right across the river.
The atmosphere is enchanting, it is a very lively square with lots of shops, cafes, Aperitivo bars, restaurants and historical trams running by it.
At night, with all the lights and the square overlooking the beautiful hill is truly magic.
The name of the Piazza comes from the 1918 battle of Vittorio Veneto where Italy defeated the Austro-Hungarian empire, winning WWI.
18. The Dinner that will blow you away
For dinner, personally I think there is no better place than Porto di Savona: the location is perfect you are right in Piazza Vittorio so the views is stunning, the food is great and local, the price is reasonable!
I suggest to try their Vitello Tonnato which is really good and portion is generous. I also love their Tajarin pasta as it is home-made and really tasty (see video below). Lastly their breaded Pork Milanese is huge and tender.
19. Best Cocktail spots
After a long day of strolling around and a good dinner you deserve to relax a bit and have drinks!
My favorite place is the Mad Dog Social Club for three simple reasons: cocktails are great, it is not overly crowded and the atmosphere is truly excellent.
It is a special place that not many people know about as it is true to its “Speakeasy” concept, the spots in which alcohol was illegally sold in the 1920s back during in prohibition time.
It is purposely not very advertised and in fact there is no sign outside. The place is underground but the décor is very well thought of and premium.
20. Other Piazzas, Cafes, Museums
While writing this post I focused on the best spots in a way that optimizes time & effort. However, there are loads of other places to see if you have time or if you simply want to follow a different path.
Below you’ll find some more recommendations on alternative things to do, see, eat during your stay.
Historic Cafes
- Baratti & Milano – Piazza Castello, 27,
- Caffe San Carlo – Piazza San Carlo
- Caffe Mulassano – Piazza Castello, 15,
- Caffee Torino – Piazza San Carlo
- Platti – Corso Vittorio Emanuele II, 72
Top-three places for Lunch:
- Tipica Focacceria Ligure– Via Giolitti 4; Piazza Castello; Via Po 10/ Via Sant’Agostino 6
- Sfashion Café – Via Cesare Battisti, 13
- Porto di Savona– Piazza Vittorio Veneto, 2
Top-three places for dinner:
- Porto di Savona– Piazza Vittorio Veneto, 2
- L ’Arcadia – Galleria Subalpina, 16
- Ristorante Mare Nostrum – Via Matteo Pescatore, 16 if you are up for for seafood you should try
Other Stunning Squares not to miss:
- Piazza Carlo Alberto
- Piazza Carlo Emanuele
- Piazza Carlo Felice
- Piazza Bodoni
Top-five Museums in the city center:
- The National Museum of Cinema – Via Montebello, 20
- Egyptian Museum- ia Accademia delle Scienze, 6
- Museum of the Holy Shroud (Museo Sindone) – Via San Domenico, 28
- Museo of the Risorgimento – P.za Carlo Alberto, 8
- Museum Pietro Micca – Via Francesco Guicciardini, 7
- To learn more about the museums visit my other post Top 4 museums
Top-three ice-cream shops:
- Grom – 100% no miss
- Fiorio
- La Romana
Top-three places for Italian Aperitivo:
- Farmacia del Cambio- Piazza Carignano
- Hotel NH collection – Piazza Carlina
- Turet – Via Santa Teresa
Top-three Cocktail bars:
- Smile Tree
- Mad Dog House (Speakesy : not easy to find, check the password first!)
- Bar Cavour (superb but expensive)
