My Piedmont Guide

Piedmont is perhaps Italy’s most varied region and arguably the most beautiful.

Let my wife and I take you on a journey of exploration through this enchanting Italian Region. The variety is striking and the diversity of landscape, ranging from the snow capped alps with their famous ski resorts through to rice paddies, is incredible and matched only by the variety of cultures and traditions.

Piedmont has also become a lot more accessible in recent years with cheap flights now a reality.

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Turin/Torino

The city, once the royal capital of Savoy, is still regal in appearance with wide piazze, arcaded avenues and many magnificent palaces and royal residences.

The cuisine of Turin is perhaps the best in Italy - a delightful combination of the best of France and Italy. Perhaps the original fusion cuisine!

Life in the mountain towns of Piemonte in years gone by was a lot harsher than in the royal capital of Turin and this led to a simpler genuine cuisine based entirely on what the seasons and nature offered.

In Turin the fashions of the Royal Court dictated the menu of the day. Hence some of the most sophisticated Italian recipes originate in Turin and the elaborate pastries, chocolates and antipasti recipes bear this out.

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The cuisine is in many ways unlike other Italian food and Italian recipes and has a strong French influence from neighboring France.

The sophistication of this royal Turin is also seen in the aperitif tradition. In Turin drinks before dinner is not a quick tot before getting on with dinner, it is an art form like nowhere else. It is no secret that vermouth was invented here and that Turin is the home of Martini and Cinzano.

The whole antipasti tradition is also taken to dizzy heights – a veritable delight for gourmands. Besides the great food Turin is an elegant city, located in a beautiful setting, and should not be missed.

My Piedmont Region Love Affair

Piedmont still remains largely undiscovered and even amongst Italians is little known, although this is rapidly changing. With Ryan Air offering cheap flights to Turin from London and Dublin and many other cheap flights from other parts of Europe there is no excuse not to visit .

I have lived with my wife and son (a born and bred seven year old Piemontese) in Piedmonte for eight of my ten years in Italy and with each passing day my love for the region has grown.

It has taken me all these years to explore this region and I am still learning things everyday. I would assume though that you, unfortunately, don’t have eight years to spare. What I will try to do then is outline some of the highlights of Piedmonte that must be seen.

Best Place to Stay in Piedmont

If you would prefer to rent a holiday home in Piedmont then these are the homes we recommend. All are ideal as a base to explore the rest of the region. Most are near Alba - in the Langhe wine and truffle route , near Turin or around Lago/Lake Orta.

The Piedmont Alps

I suppose any travel guide to this region would need to start in the mountains that dominate the landscape and can be seen from nearly all the towns of the region.

Dominated by impressive soaring peaks the mountains are in many ways, thanks to skiing, the best known area of the Piedmont region. Places like Sestirere and Bardonecchia are well known names to keen skiers. Piedmont's mountains, however, are not given over entirely to skiing.

One of Italy’s largest nature reserves Gran Paradiso is found in these mountains. Gran Paradiso is a perfect retreat for anyone wanting to escape from the rat-race for a while.

The silence and uncontaminated beauty, towered over by snow capped peaks, takes one back in time to what the Alps must have been like thousands of years ago before human habitation.

This is truly a great paradise and the name Gran Paradiso in fact means just this. No better place in Italy exists to hike, horse-ride and to just enjoy the silence.

The other mountain regions that are firm favourites of mine are the Val di Susa (home of ice wine) and the Valli di Lanzo. The Val di Susa is my preferred choice. One of the great attractions of this area is the famous castle which housed the man in the iron mask - the Castle of Exiles . Another splendid place is a monastery, very like that of the famous novel - In the Name of the Rose. The monastery is the Sacra di San Michele .

Well worth a visit too are the Chisone and Germanasca valleys. Besides spectacular natural beauty, lovely little towns and a unique culture these valleys are also home to The Great Wall of Europe - the greatest defensive structure ever built in Europe and second only to the Great Wall of China in terms of length (view article).

The Piedmont Lakes

The Piemonte region is also blessed with magnificent lakes.

Lake Maggiore is the better known of these lakes but my favourite, and the favourite of most Piemontese, is Lake Orta. It may not be as big as the other Italian lakes but the lovely atmosphere and natural beauty more than make up for this and it is by far the most picturesque. This to me is one of the most romantic places in all of Italy and my wife agrees completely. It’s perfect for that romantic long weekend!!

Carnivals and festa abound in Piedmont. The Palio of Asti and the Carnival of Ivrea are two of the best traditional festivals. Beware of the Ivrea Carnival though – you need to love oranges in a big way and it gets very very wild!!!

Piedmont Wine Route

The Piemonte wine route is perhaps the best of all Italy's wine routes. This area is known as the Langhe. It is a place I love and I have spent a lot of time exploring and sampling the wines. This is also the home of the famous Alba truffle and you will find a veritable feast of good food, cheese and the best Italian wines from the most famous of Italian wine grape varieties.

The hills and towns of this area are every bit as picturesque as the better known Tuscan ones. In fact there are more hills per square mile here than in Tuscany and set amongst these hills are two of my most favourite villages - Barolo and la Morra.

Autumn is the time to visit this region, this is the season when the vineyards are a blaze of colour and every small town has a local truffle, mushroom or wine festival. There is nothing better than wondering around the historic centre of an old town savouring local delicacies and great cheeses.

Talking of old towns don’t miss Saluzzo, a little to the west of Le Langhe, this wonderful and as yet undiscovered old Piemonte town perched on a glorious hilltop is just superb. Saluzzo, like many Piemont towns, is as good, if not better than the best that Tuscany can offer and not overrun with tourists either. Montiglio is yet another undiscovered gem. One of the loveliest hill towns in Piemonte and indeed Italy it should not be missed.

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