Turin in 1 day

It is a very evocative building, both for the construction itself and for its position, as well as for the meanings attributed to it by those who consider Turin the centre of a strong energetic power.

With its more than 38,000 square metres of surface, Piazza Vittorio is one of the largest squares in Europe and a very important meeting place for the Torinesi. On the square and under its arcades there are many cafés and bars where you can stop for a break while admiring the majesty of this square a stone's throw from the Po

It was laid out on a non-parallel line to link the city centre with the bridge over the Po.

Its arcades, together with those of piazza Castello, via Roma and via Pietro Micca, form the longest system of arcades in the city.

The particular thing is that the left side of the street has roof terraces over the pedestrian crossings, which are missing on the right side.

In practice, only the left side guarantees the continuity of the arcades all the way to piazza Vittorio Veneto.

So via Po in Turin is a street that visitors absolutely must see, perhaps also to enjoy a good bicerin in one of the historic cafés found here.

The Mole, 167.5 metres high, today houses the Museo Nazionale del Cinema and is one of the symbols of Turin. Alessandro Antonelli designed it in 1862 as a future synagogue, but the continual changes, the growing height and the costs led to disputes with the Jewish community, which gave up completing it. The people of Turin, who had watched it rise for years, asked for it to be finished. The City took over the site and completed the work in 1889.

The layout of the square began in 1587, when Ascanio Vitozzi, by ducal order, started a project that would continue over the following centuries. In the centre stands Palazzo Madama; on the northern side, the Piazzetta Reale leads to the residence of the Savoy family. The porticoes and buildings surrounding the square belong to different periods, yet they form a surprisingly harmonious whole.

If you arrive by train, from Porta Nuova you can walk along via Roma; from Porta Susa, via Cernaia and then via Pietro Micca.

For over two centuries this was the main residence of the Savoy court in Turin, and the sovereigns lived here until 1865. The palace took shape in the seventeenth century, partly through the work of Amedeo di Castellamonte, begun in 1646.

State rooms, throne rooms, reception halls, tapestries, frescoes and precious furnishings tell of the official life of a court that received sovereigns, nobles, political representatives and foreign delegations. The interiors also preserve the transformations of later centuries.

Today the palace is part of the Musei Reali.

Among the shop windows, at number 25, you will find the Cappella della Congregazione dei Banchieri e Mercanti. Built in 1692, it preserves rich Baroque decorations: a detour that changes, for a few minutes, the tone of the walk.

The church was commissioned by the Savoy family and entrusted to the Theatines. Guarino Guarini developed the design from 1668; the dome was built mainly in the 1670s and the church was inaugurated in 1680.

The interior has a central plan, with chapels and cladding in marbles of different colours. But the most interesting thing happens above your head: eight large arches intertwine to form a star, while light enters through openings arranged on several levels. It is one of those domes you can look at for a long time, discovering a different relationship between the forms each time.

The story begins much earlier. The palace incorporates the remains of a gate of the Roman city, later turned into a medieval fortification. Between the twelfth and fourteenth centuries the complex gradually became a castle, linked first to the marquises of Monferrato and then to the princes of Savoy-Acaia.

In the seventeenth century it was home to the Madame Reali, Marie Christine of France and Marie Jeanne Baptiste of Savoy-Nemours. The western side bears Juvarra's signature, the eastern one retains its medieval appearance.

Today Palazzo Madama houses the Museo Civico d'Arte Antica.

The façades do not all speak the same language, even though the street was completely rebuilt between 1931 and 1937. Between piazza Castello and piazza San Carlo they take up the forms of eighteenth-century architecture; between piazza San Carlo and piazza Carlo Felice the Novecento and Rationalist styles prevail, with broad marble cladding. The plan was coordinated by Marcello Piacentini. Designer boutiques, clothing shops, accessories and other businesses accompany the walk.

It was designed by Pietro Carrera in 1873 and opened in 1874, modelled on the Parisian passages. The balconies, the inner shopfronts and the eclectic decorations mix Renaissance and Baroque references, in keeping with nineteenth-century taste.

The gallery has a long commercial tradition, above all tied to books: here you will find antiquarian bookshops such as La Casa del Libro and Gilibert. There are also the confectioner Baratti & Milano, which moved here in 1875, and the Cinema Romano.