Turin
Some 21km west of Turin, the Castello di Rivoli Museum of Contemporary Art is a giant of modern art in Piedmont. Its ambition and reach, not to mention…
Must-see attractions in Northwestern Italy
Turin
OK, it may not enjoy the weighty publicity of its French counterpart, but this is one of the largest royal residences in the world, rescued from ruin by a…
Turin
Opened in 1824 and housed in the austere Palazzo dell'Accademia delle Scienze, this Turin institution houses the most important collection of Egyptian…
Valle d'Aosta
A fort has existed here for millennia and the current 1830s Savoy edifice is an imposing one, set high up upon a rocky escarpment at the jaws of the Valle…
Piedmont
This Gothic-Romanesque abbey, brooding above the road 14km from Turin, has kept sentry atop Monte Pirchiriano (962m) since the 10th century. It housed a…
Genoa
Skirting the northern edge of the old city limits, pedestrianised Via Garibaldi (formerly Strada Nuova) was planned by Galeazzo Alessi in the 16th century…
Porto Venere
At the end of the quay, a Cinque Terre panorama unfolds from the rocky terraces of a cave formerly known as Grotta Arpaia. Lord Byron once swam across the…
Museo Nazionale dell'Automobile
Turin
As the historic birthplace of one of the world's leading car manufacturers – the ‘T’ in Fiat stands for Torino – Turin is the obvious place for a car…
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Turin
Statues of the mythical twins Castor and Pollux guard the entrance to this eye-catching palace and, according to local hearsay, also watch over the…
Langhe, Roero & Monferrato
Alba's winemaking-restaurateuring Ceretti family has commissioned a number of site-specific artworks in the region and this never-consecrated chapel is…
Genoa
If you only get the chance to visit one of the Palazzi dei Rolli (group of palaces belonging to the city's most eminent families), make it this one. A…
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Turin
Architect-designer-artist Carlo Mollino is perhaps Turin's most intriguing son and a quintessentially 20th-century Torinese. The little-known Museo Casa…
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Langhe, Roero & Monferrato
Some 28km south of Asti, the Cantine Bosca is one of several historic wineries that produce the famed sparkling wine of the area (the DOCG Asti Spumante,…
Turin
Vittorio Amedeo II's 1706 promise, to build a basilica to honour the Virgin Mary if Turin was saved from besieging French and Spanish armies, resulted in…
Genoa
The heart of medieval Genoa – bounded by ancient city gates Porta dei Vacca and Porta Soprana, and the streets of Via Cairoli, Via Garibaldi and Via XXV…
Cattedrale di San Giovanni Battista
Turin
Turin's cathedral was built between 1491 and 1498 on the site of three 14th-century basilicas and, before that, a Roman theatre. Plain interior aside, as…
Genoa
When the sun is shining, do as the Genovese do and decamp for a passeggiata (late afternoon stroll) along the oceanside promenade, Corso Italia, which…
Ventimiglia
Established in 1867 by English businessman Sir Thomas Hanbury, the 18-hectare Villa Hanbury estate is planted with 5800 botanical species from five…
San Remo
Seven kilometres northeast of San Remo lies an intriguing artists' colony. On Ash Wednesday 1887, an earthquake destroyed the village of Bussana Vecchia…
Manarola
This small piazza is dominated by a bell tower that was once used as a defensive lookout. Opposite, the Chiesa di San Lorenzo dates from 1338 and houses a…
Porto Venere
This stunning wind- and wave-lashed church, built in 1198 in Gothic style, stands on the ruins of a 5th-century palaeo-Christian church, with its extant…
Genoa
Flemish, Spanish and Italian artists feature at Palazzo Bianco, the second of the triumvirate of palazzi that are together known as the Musei di Strada…
Santa Margherita Ligure
This exquisitely turned-out mansion and gardens, part of a 16th-century castle complex, overlooks the sea. In the lavish Italian gardens, you can take an…
Piedmont
The pristine and impressive triumphal Arch of Augustus, dating to 9BC, sits just outside the centre of town. It marks the transition of power between the…
Savona
Dating from the 1480s, Savona's Sistine Chapel (like the one in Rome) was created by Pope Sixtus IV. Though far less famous than its Roman counterpoint,…
Vernazza
This castle, the oldest surviving fortification in the Cinque Terre, commands superb views. Dating to around 1000, it's now largely a ruin except for the…
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Genoa
Genoa's zebra-striped Gothic–Romanesque cathedral owes its continued existence to the poor quality of a British WWII bomb that failed to ignite here in…
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Genoa
Genoa's much-vaunted aquarium is one of the largest in Europe, with more than 600 species of sea creatures, including sharks. Moored at the end of a…
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Genoa
Lavishly frescoed rooms in Palazzo Rosso, part of the Musei di Strada Nuova, provide the backdrop for several portraits by Van Dyck of the local Brignole…
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Porto Venere
The largest island of the Italian Riviera is largely undeveloped (it's home to around 50 residents) and lies just a short ferry ride from Porto Venere…
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Portofino
A flight of stairs signposted 'Salita San Giorgio' leads from the harbour and past the Chiesa di San Giorgio to Portofino's unusual castle, a 10-minute…
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Piedmont
Situated 66km northwest of Vercelli in northern Piedmont, Varallo guards the Sacro Monte di Varallo, the oldest of Italy's nine Sacri Monti (Sacred…
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Centro Visito Batterie Silvio Sommazzi
Camogli
This free visitor centre provides insight into the military installations scattered in the surrounding hillside. The 202nd Batteria Chiappa guarded the…
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Genoa
Dating from the late 19th century, this neo-Gothic beauty does indeed resemble a castle, and houses an astonishing array of ethnographic artefacts from…
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Genoa
Genoa was rivalled only by Barcelona and Venice as a medieval and Renaissance maritime power, so its 'museum of the sea' is, not surprisingly, one of its…
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Genoa
One of the most famous monuments on Genoa's waterfront is this mural-covered building constructed in 1260. St George is one of Genoa's patron saints, and…
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La Spezia
An assortment of local archaeological artefacts from prehistoric to medieval times are displayed at the city's hilltop fortifications. You'll see finely…
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Genoa
This palace, one of three that together make up the Musei di Strada Nuova, features a small but absorbing collection of legendary violinist Niccolò…
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Turin
Set in the architecturally striking new headquarters of the famed coffee chain, the Museo Lavazza takes you deep into the world of the heady caffeine…
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Museo Tecnico Navale della Spezia
La Spezia
Maritime lovers shouldn't miss the world's oldest naval museum, which is reached via a narrow bridge a few blocks southwest of Parco Salvador Allende. The…
