by We can’t think of a better place to stay than Turin in northern Italy. Not only is the city fabulous, but there are tons of great day trips from Turin that you don’t want to miss. Read on for our favourites!
What’s in our guide to day trips from Turin, Italy?
2. Barolo / Langhe Wine Region
3. Chieri & Martini
4. Gran Paradiso
5. Milan
6. Susa Roman Ruins
7. Cycle the Historic Ivrea Canals
When our friends ask us to recommend our favourite places in Italy, Turin is always at the top of the list.
Turin might be less famous than Venice, Rome, and Florence, but that means fewer tourists, too. And that means less hassle, less chance of a run-in with pesky pickpockets or temperamental taxi drivers and more real Italian experiences.
Plus, from Royal Palaces to pristine parks to a world-class Egyptian Museum to a panoramic glass elevator, Turin has plenty of things to do for curious visitors.
Once you’ve seen the best that Turin has to offer, there are plenty of day trips from Turin to get you out and about into the glorious Piemonte countryside.
Read on for our recommendations of…
7 Incredible Day Trips from Turin, Italy
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1. Sacra di San Michele — An Awe-Inspiring Day Trip from Turin
Part of a network of abbeys dedicated to St Michael, Sacra di San Michele is a mountain-top retreat that makes for a perfect day trip from Turin. Even if you aren’t interested in the religious aspects of San Michele, the views from the top of the mountain looking out over the Susa river valley might just make you think you’ve seen God.
At the very least, the ruined abbey perched on a clifftop will get your creative juices flowing, as they did for Umberto Eco, who found inspiration in Sacra di San Michele for his most famous work, The Name of the Rose.
So whether you want architecture, magnificent views, or religious history, a day trip from Turin to Sacra di San Michele should be on your list.
How to Get to Sacra di San Michele from Turin
You can drive up, hike up from the nearest train station, or take a tour. Just make sure to pay close attention to the complex opening hours.
Read our complete guide to visiting Sacra di San Michele for more details.
2. Barolo / Langhe Wine Region — A Day Drinking Trip from Turin
One of the world’s most famous wine regions is just an hour’s drive from Turin. The region encompasses about a dozen charming Italian towns, including Barolo, Monforte d’Alba, Castiglione Falletto, and more.
Even if you’re not a wine lover, this UNESCO region is beyond beautiful, with every inch of steep hillside covered in well-ordered vineyards. If you’re into wine, you’ll be in heaven, with opportunities to taste on every corner and the chance to buy wines you might never get your hands on anywhere else in the world.
If you want to take a souvenir case or two home, there are lots of places that will ship them back for you, too.
(Related: Check out this guide on Wine Folly for everything you need to know about visiting Barolo.)
How to Get to Barolo from Turin
By car. The most convenient way to do a wine region tour is to rent a car and drive from Turin. There are trains that take you to the region but then you are stuck with no way to get from town to town.
Hop-on hop-off bus. From September 1 to November 3 on Saturdays and Sundays, you can buy tickets to the hop-on hop-off Langhe region bus run by Trenitalia. The bus departs from Alba, which you can easily reach by train from Turin Porta Susa. Buy your ticket in advance, or just purchase your ticket on the bus.
Barolo wine tour. There are various tours available online for the Barolo wine region. If you don’t want to drive, or you prefer to have a guide to help you navigate the confusing region, booking a tour like this one might be the best. Note, we haven’t taken this tour and don’t know what it’s like, so do your research before you book!
3. Chieri & Martini Rossi — A Charming Village Day Trip
A small town about a 20-minute train ride from Turin, there’s nothing particularly noteworthy about Chieri. That’s kind of why we love it.
It’s a typical Italian town that houses retirees and families who commute into the city for work.
The pedestrianized main street of Chieri makes for a charming stroll and an excellent place to shop for souvenirs or new clothes. There’s a branch of Eataly in town too, so you can pick up some artisanal local products or have an authentic Italian lunch that even Italians love.
While in town, you can stop by the impressive Santa Maria della Scala to get closer to God.
For those of a less religious nature, Casa Martini might be of more interest. This is the original production house where Martini & Rossi first began making their world-famous Vermouth. You can tour the facility, taste the wares (of course), or learn the fine art of mixology.
How to get to Chieri from Turin
Take the train to Chieri from Porta Susa. It goes around once every hour and takes 28 minutes.
4. Gran Paradiso — A Wild Day Trip from Turin
From Turin, you can see the Alps ring around the city, like mighty guardians, ready to defend and protect. If you’re anything like us, you will hear the mountains calling your name from the city centre.
A trip to Gran Paradiso is your answer. This grand national park on the border with France is a protected area of wilderness and the perfect day trip from Turin for nature lovers.
In summer, you can rock climb or hike or bike the trails in the park, even camping overnight at one of the many shelters and huts. In winter, there is skiing (both downhill and cross country), plus ice climbing and snowshoeing. Once you go, you’ll wish you set aside more time to immerse yourself in this beautiful natural spot.
Check out our guide to visiting Gran Paradiso for details on where to go and how to get there from Turin.
5. City Day Trip from Turin to Milan
While many people base themselves in Milan and take a day trip to Turin, we recommend the opposite. You can easily reach Milan by train from Turin in about an hour. Tour the famous sights and be home in time to share apertivo with Torino natives (instead of fighting for space in overpriced restaurants with all the tourists and expats in Milan).
If you prefer a quieter city with less hassle and no touts or pickpockets to speak of, we highly recommend basing yourself in Turin and just taking a day trip to Milan.
How to get to Milan from Turin
Take the train from Torino Porta Nuova to Milano Centrale. Trains leave around every 20 minutes and take from 1 hour to 2 hours, depending on which train you get.
(Don’t miss: Our guide to doing a day trip from Milan to Turin) →
6. Susa Roman Ruins — Day Tripping with the Ancients
Just 50 km west of Turin, the town of Susa makes the perfect day trip for people who want to indulge in Roman history. Susa became part of the Roman Empire in the 1st Century and was the capital of the small Roman province of Alpes Cottiae.
In Susa, you can visit the well preserved Roman city walls, the city gate Porta Savoia, the remains of the aqueduct and an amphitheatre. The most notable ruin is the well preserved Arch of Augustus, a triumphal arch built to seal the alliance between Emperor Augustus and Marcus Julius Cottius.
How to get to Susa from Turin
A direct train runs hourly from Torino Porta Nuova to Susa, taking 1 hour and 8 minutes.
7. Cycle the Historic Ivrea Canals — A Two-Wheeled Day Trip
Photo by Mirrys – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Rarely visited by tourists, Ivrea is a picturesque town just 50 km northeast of Turin. If you want to do an independent visit, it has a castle, a cathedral, and Roman ruins — most notably the impressive amphitheater of Ivrea — to keep you occupied. It’s also your chance to sample the rich yet simple Canavese regional cuisine.
For active travellers, we suggest an e-bike tour along the agricultural irrigation channels, some of which have been there since the mid-1400s. You’ll cycle through Italy’s rice fields (yes, Italy has rice fields!) and stop for “lunch in a special place that Marco knows”. It doesn’t get more Italian than that.
Find all the details of this tour (and many more) on the Giroola website.
How to Get to Ivrea from Turin
Direct trains leave from Torino Porta Susa about once every hour and the journey takes about an hour.
If you’re visiting northern Italy, don’t miss Torino, where you’ll get to mix and mingle in real Italian culture (rather than the somewhat Disney-fied version you find in the more well known Italian cities). If you have some time to spare, there are plenty of interesting, beautiful, and exciting day trips from Turin to keep you busy.
Whether you want architecture, artisanal tipples, grand expanses of nature or a bit of everything, you can find it in a day trip from Turin.
We hope this guide to day trips from Turin, Italy has been useful! We loved our three months staying in Piemonte and can’t wait to go back!
♥ Happy transformational travels, Jane & Stephen
We’re not going to lie, it takes a LOT of work to create travel guides like this. But it’s easy to help us out! If you book or buy something using one of our personal links in this post, we’ll earn a small fee at no extra cost to you. Of course, we would never recommend anything we didn’t 100% believe in! Huge thanks in advance! –S&J
