What does this town represent?
The city with the castles of the Savoy dynasty, the Pado River and the delicious food materials. Journey: There is no direct flight from Athens to Turin, while for flights with stopovers, the solutions are few, relatively awkward, and rather expensive. However, Milan with the airports of Bergamo and Malpensa makes the transition more economical. From Malpensa Airport (also from 2 terminals) there are direct buses for Torino (itineraries and rates at http://www.sadem.it/upload/orari/estivi/000020.pdf. If you do not want to go directly from the airport but want to stay a little in Milano, then the train's solution is probably good. Italian railways have frequent ferry connections from Milano Centrale station, which takes about 2 hours with local trains , and about 1.5 hours with Eurocity).
Why you must visit Torino?
A) Modern art.
The city is the capital of modern art for Italy, and perhaps one of the most important cities in Europe in this field. With at least 5 world-class art museums (Castello di Rivoli, Fondazione Sandretto Re Reaudengo, Pinacoteca Giovanni e Marella Agnelli, Galleria Civica d 'Arte Moderna e Contemporanea, Palazzo Bricherasio), the city is a magnet for lovers.
B) Museums.
The Egyptian Museum of Turin is the third largest and most important museum for ancient Egypt in the world, after the British and Cairo. Also in the same building is the Sabauda Gallery (you need to buy an additional ticket), with an important medieval & Renaissance collection (and not only).
The faithful Catholics owe a visit to the Duomo (cathedral) of the city, where one of the most important (but at the same time most controversial) heirlooms of the universal faith is kept: the sacred shroud, the fabric with which (supposedly)was covered the body of Jesus when they brought him down from the Cross.
The city's largest landmark, the very high Mole Antonelliana Tower, hosts, apart from the observation tower that each tall building has to possess, the unique Italian cinema museum. A very good museum with a flawlessly designed sequence, interactive exhibits, bilingual explanations in Italian and English, and rare collectable exhibits. It takes care of introducing the visitor to the technical and non-secrets of the Cinema, his history, with great emphasis on the achievements of the Italian Cinema. Also, the elevator that goes up to the observatory, which moves in the area without a vertical gallery, is admirable.
The city also has palaces - monuments, which today house museums. Like the Palazzo Reale, the Palazzo Madama, the Palazzo Cavour, the Palazzina Di Caccia Di Stupinigi (a faux chateuax all-Italian), Castello Di Rivoli, and the Museo Nazionale Del Risorgimento.
Superga, a huge impressive church which imposes over the hill in Torino, invites you to visit it in any case and under any weather conditions.
Finally, the area near the Duomo is also rich in Roman antiquities. C) Architecture
Italian fascism passed by, and left behind magnificent squares and boulevards. Despite their black history, they have been regenerated and preserved, and today many of the city's large squares and boulevards are surrounded by beautiful neo-Baroque buildings with wide, covered pavements (like galleries under the buildings as in Bern), while scattered in The city is also a number of Art Nouveau buildings and arcades. There is so much that most are not even mentioned in the - very few - travel guides. The palaces of the house of Savoy, which had their headquarters here, as well as the royal gardens, designed by the same man who made it and the gardens of Versailles, of course give a distinct image in the city center.
Finally, the city is crossed by the River Pados, which, with its bridges and shaped banks, gives it a distinct picture.
D) Porta Palazzo Market
A huge morning outdoor market, the largest in Europe they say, fills every morning a huge square with around 700 vendors. There is a chaos both by sellers and by buyers, and after midday the square is empty and nothing reminds of the chaos that prevailed earlier. Incidentally, this square is the only place in the city, outside the hotel, which I heard a language other than Italian (Chinese, spoken by Chinese clothe sellers). E) Food
It is the capital of slow food. You will find mostly open-air markets on weekends with all the delicacies produced in the Italian North. The aperitivo bars have a good-food buffet for those who wish to drink something after work,as well as to eat something light.
There are restaurants with plenty of Michelin stars, but also traditional taverns ... Other products of the local cuisine are Panakota and Kritsini, but also Martini, Cinzano, Nutella and of course Lavazza.
