Turin packs an outsized cultural punch for a city of 850,000 people. It was Italy’s first capital (1861 to 1865), the seat of the House of Savoy, and the birthplace of Italian cinema, chocolate, and the automobile industry. The city’s attractions divide naturally into three categories: Savoy royal palaces (a UNESCO World Heritage cluster), world-class museums led by the Museo Egizio, and food and drink experiences rooted in Piedmont’s status as Italy’s slow food capital. This guide covers the essential sights with practical visiting information.
Things to Do in Turin: Royal Palaces, Museums, and Food
Museo Egizio (Egyptian Museum)
Housed in the Palazzo dell’Accademia delle Scienze on Via Accademia delle Scienze 6, the Museo Egizio holds the world’s second-largest Egyptian collection after Cairo, with 40,000 artifacts across four floors. Highlights include the intact Tomb of Kha and Merit (a 3,500-year-old tomb discovered with all contents in place), the statue of Ramesses II, and the Gallery of Kings with original sphinxes. The museum underwent a EUR 50 million renovation completed in 2015, adding modern lighting and interactive displays. Open Tuesday to Sunday 9:00am to 6:30pm (closed Monday). Full-price tickets cost EUR 18, reduced EUR 15 for visitors aged 15 to 25. Book online at least 3 days ahead for peak season (May, September, Christmas week); walk-up tickets sell out by 11:00am on busy days. The Torino+Piemonte Card includes entry and lets you skip the main queue. Allow 2.5 to 3 hours minimum. The museum’s cafe serves decent coffee and pastries if you need a mid-visit break.
Mole Antonelliana and Museo Nazionale del Cinema
Turin’s unmistakable landmark at Via Montebello 20 is a 167.5-meter tower originally designed as a synagogue and now housing the National Cinema Museum. The museum spirals upward through five levels, covering pre-cinema optical devices, silent film, animation, and Italian cinema history. The star attraction is the glass panoramic lift that shoots up through the center of the building to an outdoor viewing platform at 85 meters with 360-degree views of Turin and the Alps on clear days. The museum is open Wednesday to Monday 9:00am to 7:00pm (closed Tuesday, extended to 10:00pm on Saturday). Combined museum plus lift ticket: EUR 15 full price, EUR 12 reduced. Lift-only ticket (no museum): EUR 9. The queue for the lift alone can reach 45 minutes on weekends; arrive before 10:00am or after 4:00pm to minimize waiting. The museum feels chaotic and loud on weekends due to families and school groups; weekday afternoons are calmer. Allow 2 hours for the museum, plus 30 minutes for the lift.
Palazzo Reale (Royal Palace of Turin)
The Royal Palace at Piazzetta Reale 1 is the centerpiece of Turin’s UNESCO-listed Savoy Residences. Built in the 16th century and expanded through the 18th, it was the seat of the Savoy dynasty until 1865. The palace contains 30 rooms open to the public including the Throne Room, the Ballroom, the Chinese Cabinet, and the Royal Armory with one of Europe’s finest collections of arms and armor. Behind the palace, the Giardini Reali (Royal Gardens) designed by André Le Nôtre (who designed Versailles) offer free public access and a quiet escape from the city center. Open Tuesday to Sunday 9:00am to 7:00pm (closed Monday). Full ticket EUR 15, includes access to the palace, armory, and the adjacent Galleria Sabauda (Savoy art gallery with works by Van Eyck, Rembrandt, and Botticelli). The combined ticket is good value: individually they’d cost EUR 22. Allow 3 hours for the palace and gallery. The palace cafe in the courtyard is overpriced (EUR 5 for an espresso); walk 3 minutes to Caffè Reale on Via Roma instead.
Cappella della Sacra Sindone (Chapel of the Holy Shroud)
Attached to the Cathedral of San Giovanni Battista (the Duomo) at Piazza San Giovanni, this Baroque chapel by Guarino Guarini was built to house the Turin Shroud. The chapel was severely damaged by a fire in 1997 and reopened in 2018 after a 21-year, EUR 30 million restoration. The shroud itself is stored in a climate-controlled case and is only publicly displayed on rare papal-decreed occasions (the last was 2015). The chapel’s architecture is the real draw: Guarini’s dome creates an optical illusion of overlapping hexagons that appears to float. Entry is free and the chapel is open daily 9:00am to 12:30pm and 3:00pm to 7:00pm. You enter through the Duomo’s left side door. The Museo della Sindone (Shroud Museum) at Via San Domenico 28 (EUR 8, open daily 9:00am to 12:00pm and 3:00pm to 7:00pm) explains the shroud’s history and forensic studies with a more scientific approach. Allow 30 minutes for the chapel, plus 1 hour if you visit the museum.
Parco del Valentino and Borgo Medievale
Turin’s main public park stretches for 1.5 km along the west bank of the Po River. At its northern end sits the Borgo Medievale, a replica 15th-century Piedmontese village built for the 1884 Italian General Exhibition. The village includes a castle (Rocca, guided tours only, EUR 6, 45 minutes), artisan workshops, and a courtyard that’s free to enter. The park itself has bike paths, riverside benches, and the Fontana dei Dodici Mesi (Fountain of the Twelve Months), a grand Rococo fountain. The park is open 24/7 and free. It’s a 15-minute walk from Porta Nuova station or a 5-minute tram ride (lines 9 and 16). The nearby Murazzi, the arched riverbank arcades, are lined with bars and clubs that come alive from 6:00pm onward. Allow 2 hours for a relaxed park visit including the Borgo Medievale.
Quadrilatero Romano and Porta Palazzo Market
The Quadrilatero Romano is Turin’s oldest district, a grid of narrow streets dating to the Roman colony of Augusta Taurinorum. It’s now the city’s food and nightlife hub, packed with wine bars, delis, artisan chocolate shops, and trattorias. Via Barbaroux, Via dei Mercanti, and Via Porta Palatina form the core. At its northern edge, Porta Palazzo (Piazza della Repubblica) hosts Europe’s largest open-air market, operating Monday to Friday 7:00am to 2:00pm and Saturday 7:00am to 7:00pm (closed Sunday). The market has 800 stalls selling produce, cheese, meat, fish, clothing, and household goods. The covered Mercato Centrale Torino opened in 2019 in a renovated building on the piazza’s north side and houses 20 food stalls and restaurants open daily 8:00am to midnight. Visit the market before 10:00am for the best produce and the fewest crowds. For neighborhood guides covering this area and others, see our dedicated article.
Superga Basilica and the Superga Train Crash Memorial
The Basilica di Superga sits atop a 672-meter hill 10 km east of Turin, offering the city’s best panoramic view: on clear days you can see the entire city, the Po River winding through it, and the Alps spanning the horizon. The Baroque basilica by Filippo Juvarra (built 1717 to 1731) contains the tombs of the Savoy royal family. Behind the basilica, a memorial marks the 1949 Superga air disaster that killed the entire Grande Torino football team, still a pilgrimage site for Italian football fans. Reach it via the Sassi-Superga rack railway from Stazione Sassi (tram line 15 or bus 61 to the station), running hourly from 9:00am (EUR 6 return, EUR 4 one-way, 20 minutes). The basilica is open daily 9:30am to 7:00pm (closes 6:00pm in winter). Basilica entry is free; the royal tombs cost EUR 5. The dome climb (131 steps) costs EUR 3 and is worth it for the uninterrupted view. Check the weather before going: if Turin is foggy, the hill is likely above the fog line and you’ll get clear views overlooking a sea of clouds.
Museo dell’Automobile (National Automobile Museum)
Turin is the birthplace of Fiat (founded 1899), Lancia (1906), and Alfa Romeo’s early design center. The automobile museum at Corso Unità d’Italia 40 occupies a striking modern building and traces automotive history from the 1769 Cugnot steam cart through to Formula 1 and concept cars. The collection includes over 200 vehicles with particular strength in Italian marques: early Fiats, Lancias, Ferraris, and the original 1957 Fiat 500. Open Monday 10:00am to 2:00pm, Tuesday to Sunday 10:00am to 7:00pm. Tickets: EUR 15 full, EUR 12 reduced. It’s a 15-minute metro ride from the center (Metro Line 1 to Lingotto, then a 10-minute walk). The museum is inside the former Fiat Lingotto factory complex, whose rooftop test track (famously featured in the 1969 film The Italian Job) is accessible from the adjacent shopping center (8th floor). Allow 2 to 2.5 hours for the museum.
Turin’s Historic Cafes and Chocolate Culture
Turin is Italy’s chocolate capital, producing 85,000 tons annually (roughly 40% of Italian chocolate production), and the birthplace of gianduja (chocolate-hazelnut paste, ancestor of Nutella). The city’s historic cafes are attractions in themselves. Caffè al Bicerin (Piazza della Consolata 5) has served its namesake bicerin (layered espresso, chocolate, and cream) since 1763 in unchanged wood-paneled rooms. Open Thursday to Tuesday 8:30am to 8:00pm, a bicerin costs EUR 8. Caffè Torino (Piazza San Carlo 204) dates to 1903 with gilt mirrors and chandeliers; a standing espresso at the bar costs EUR 1.20, seated service EUR 5. Caffè Mulassano (Piazza Castello 15), opened 1907, claims to have invented the tramezzino (Italian tea sandwich) and has the smallest bar counter of any historic cafe in Italy. For chocolate shopping, Guido Gobino (Via Lagrange 1) is Turin’s premier artisan chocolatier (gianduiotti EUR 35/kg), and Peyrano (Corso Moncalieri 47) has produced chocolate since 1915. For more on Turin’s food scene, see the San Salvario and Quadrilatero sections of our Turin neighborhoods guide.
Things to Do in Turin: Practical Planning Tips
The Torino+Piemonte Card (available for 1 day at EUR 27, 2 days at EUR 35, 3 days at EUR 42) covers entry to all major museums plus unlimited public transport on GTT buses, trams, and metro. If you plan to visit the Egyptian Museum (EUR 18) and the Royal Palace with Galleria Sabauda (EUR 15), a 2-day card already saves you money before adding transport or other museums. Book museum tickets online even with the card, as timed entry slots still apply at the Egyptian Museum. For seasonal events that may overlap with your visit, check our festival calendar. For advice on getting around, see the transport section in our Turin travel tips and FAQ.
