MORE GUIDES: Abruzzo Amalfi Coast Calabria Campania Emilia Romagna Florence 
Franciacorta Friuli Lazio Liguria Lombardia Marche Molise Paris Piemonte Puglia Rome Sardegna Sicilia Toscana Trentino Umbria Valle d'Aosta Veneto Venice


PIEDMONT
Piedmont is a region with an important past and a geographical position – it is surrounded by France, Switzerland, Northern Italy and the Ligurean Sea nearby – that places it firmly at the centre of European development trends. And the spirit of this rich, dynamic region is equally European, constantly balanced between innovation and tradition.
The many nuances of Piedmont are there to be discovered, with a range of tourist attractions, manufacturing activities, the mountains which will host the Olympics, the great food and wines of the Langhe, pre-eminent textiles, technology and car production, the Savoy palaces, the film industry and art, culture and architecture.

Discovering Piedmont
To really discover Piedmont one should consider the distinctive historical and natural features that the many areas of the region have to offer, each with its own traditions and
characteristics.
There follows a rough guide to some of the many itineraries that this region offers.

The Savoy palaces
The palaces of the Savoy family, who made Turin the first capital of Italy, extend beyond the Turin suburbs, into the Canavese hills (Aglié castle), the Cuneo area (Racconigi castle) and part of the Langhe hills (the Agenzia of Pollenzo).
But the majority are in and around Turin.

Those in Turin should not be missed: Palazzo Reale, Palazzo Madama, Palazzo Carignano
(home of the first Italian Parliament), the Valentino castle on the banks of the Po, and the
Villa della Regina, in the hills.

There are also numerous houses in the hinterland: Venaria, La Mandria, Rivoli Castle (now
the home of an important museum of contemporary art), the splendid Hunting Lodge in
Stupinigi and Moncalieri castle, for example.

Alpine fortresses in the Olympic valleys
The military fortresses, the 'sentinels of the Alps', are an unusual, fascinating historical
heritage extending across the Susa, Pellice and Chisone valleys where the Winter Olympics
will be held in 2006.
Numerous fortresses are open to the public, and the forts of Fenestrelle, Exilles and
Bramafam are particularly interesting.

La 'Via Francigena'
As its name suggests, the 'Via Francigena' started in France and was one of the routes
followed by mediaeval pilgrims whose faith took them to Rome. Today it is possible to travel the other way, finding tangible signs of the mediaeval road, such as the Monastery of
Sant'Antonio di Ranverso, the Sacra di San Michele, perched on Monte Pirchiriano, the
Roman city of Susa and Novalesa abbey.
Piemonte fabbrica di futuro future factory fabrique de futur Zukunftsfabrik fàbrica de futuro

The Canavese
The Canavese hills form a broad amphitheatre at the foothills of the Alps, between the Gran Paradiso National Park, the Dora Baltea valley, the Aosta Valley to the North and the Susa Valley to the South.
Here the high tech industry of Olivetti in Ivrea, the “capital of the Canavese”, coexists with
vineyards of fine wine (Erbaluce di Caluso in particular) and memories of a mediaeval and
Baroque past reflected in the many castles (Aglié, Rivarolo, Masino and San Giorgio).

The Biella area
The Biella area has a character of its own, with large textile mills and large sanctuaries on the
lower slopes of the Biella Alps.
The signs of religious devotion are tangible: from the Sanctuary of San Giovanni d'Andorno
in Campiglia Cervo to the grandiose Sanctuary of Oropa, at the foot of Monte Mucrone,
perhaps the oldest of the Marian Sanctuaries in the West.

Novara and Vercelli
The landscape in these regions is an enormous chessboard, whose colours change as the rice ripens, with the huge form of Monte Rosa in the background.
When the fields are completely submerged in water (120,000 hectares in the provinces of
Vercelli and Novara), the whole plain becomes a huge lake. This is the world of the
Piedmontese rice fields. Vercelli was the home of Piedmont's first university in the Middle
Ages, and Novara is famous for the dome of its cathedral, designed by Antonelli and
unmistakable on account of its similarity with the Mole in Turin.

The great lakes
The lakes – Orta, Mergozzo, and Stresa – are a world apart in the complex reality of
Piedmont.
These large expanses of water at the foot of Monte Rosa are surrounded by parks, churches and villas that have made the area a “small Switzerland” (the border is not far away).
The main attractions are the island of San Giulio at the centre of Lake Orta, Verbania (on the Western banks of Lake Maggiore) and Stresa with its magnificent panoramic position.

The Valsesia
The Sesia Valley is long and complex, and follows the twists and turns of the Sesia river. The first stretch between Borgosesia and Varallo is wide and sunny, and the many industrial plants (paper mills, wool mills, tap plants) coexist with superb examples of religious art; the upper stretch is narrow and tortuous, and there are old Walser villages at the foot of the South-East face of Monte Rosa, which is steep and austere, with cascades of ice and peaks above four thousand metres.

The Monferrato
The Monferrato hills rarely exceed an altitude of five hundred metres, but the landscape is
constantly moving and changing shape. They are covered with gardens, orchards and vines,
which produce excellent wines such as Grignolino, Dolcetto, Barbera, Freisa and Moscato.
Casale Monferrato is a small town with a historical past that is worth a visit, like Asti, the
home of wines and the ancient Palio, that dates back to the town's heyday in the Middle Ages.
The Romanesque Abbey of Vezzolano is another pearl of the area.
Piemonte fabbrica di futuro future factory fabrique de futur Zukunftsfabrik fàbrica de futuro

The Langhe
Even if it were not for the vineyards that cover the slopes, even if they did not produce some of the world's best wines, even if they had not been immortalised in the works of Cesare Pavese and Beppe Fenoglio, the Langhe hills would still be unique, with castles and towns resting on a balcony of hills, looking towards the Alps and open to the South towards the sea.
Panoramic La Morra, Barolo (bearing the name of the Langa's best known wine), Monforte,
Serralunga, Grinzane Cavour (with its characteristic castle) are some of the many picturesque towns in this region which is famous throughout the world.
And Alba above all, the “capital” of the Langhe, of Dolcetto, of hazelnut nougat and the
White Truffle.

The Alessandria area
'Low lands' with a uniform landscape, and a 'halfway house' between the Po Valley and the
Apennines of Liguria, the attractions of the Alessandria area are dotted around the province:
gold in Valenza, the castles of Ovada, the fortress of Gavi, the Abbeys of Rivalta Scrivia and
Bosco Marengo, and the Spa at Acqui.

The Cuneo area
The province of Cuneo is the largest in Piedmont, a fact that has caused it to be called the
“provincia granda”. The towns worth visiting include Cuneo (with its long rows of arcades),
Mondovì (with its old town and the nearby Sanctuary of Vicoforte) and Saluzzo.

FACTS:
leader of the motor vehicle sector for more than 100 years, leader of the textile, food and
houseware sectors
- 190 hectares of natural parks, and Turin is the city with the highest percentage of green
areas per inhabitant
- over 1000 textile firms in the Biella area, which export 70% of their output
- 5,000 producers of rice, 120,000 hectares, 600,000 tonnes a year, 30% of European
output
- Valenza Po produces jewels, 60% of which are exported all over the world
- a place to enjoy life: the Monferrato and Langhe hills are the home of top quality food
and wine, exported all over the world. 46 DOC wines, 8 DOCG wines, 8 DOP cheeses,
chocolate, hazelnuts, truffles, meat and rice.
- Culture and history: over 100 museums, 1000 libraries, thousands of archives and cultural
institutes.

FOOD AND WINE
Food and wine are two of the leading players in the new model of development for tourism in Piedmont. The outstanding quality of Piedmontese local produce and the region’s sumptuous culinary traditions are the living embodiment of the culture of living well, which underlies an industry based on quality and addressed at tourists who are ever more demanding, with keen attention to detail, as well as an extraordinary value which deserves to be promoted.

Over the last twenty years agriculture in Piedmont has cut back on quantity and opted for
specialising in traditional select produce: from the great Piedmontese red wines (Barolo and
Barbaresco, but also the Barbera boom or the reds from Northern Piedmont, to name but a
few) to the whites and spumante of the Asti area; from Razza piemontese beef to the
protection of particular varieties of Vercelli rice; from the asparagus of Santena to the small
productions of traditional Alpine cheeses; from the Tonda Gentile hazelnuts grown in the
Langhe area, to the medicinal herbs.
All this work has enriched an already exceptional
panorama of products, which goes far beyond the usual pairing of Barolo and the White
Truffle of Alba.

This development has been accompanied by a radical evolution in the approach of agriculture, the catering industry and also the public, a genuine “cultural revolution”, which the Slow Food movement has definitely had a hand in. Slow Food is an international association dedicated to promoting local food and wine cultures, which is based in Bra (Cuneo) and has 70,000 members in over 50 countries.
Slow Food organises training courses and tasting sessions, has promoted a more mature model for the food and wine sector, and has set about protecting traditional products, even those which are lesser known, by means of a system of dedicated organisations. And with the University of Gastronomic Sciences in Pollenzo, conceived and set up by Slow Food with the backing of the Piedmont Region, the world of good food will also have a centre for training and culture, the only one of its kind globally.

As a whole, this process has turned Piedmontese food and wine into a great export: the food industry exports goods to the value of 2397 million Euros, against imports of 2227 million Euros, and this positive balance is constantly growing, at a rate of nearly 7%. But the food and wine industry is also of vital importance for tourism. Those who favour the culture of living well have a number of very good reasons to visit Piedmont.

Wines
A couple of figures are enough to reveal the success of wine-making in the region: today
Piedmontese wines include 8 DOCG wines (Asti, Barbaresco, Barolo, Brachetto d’Acqui,
Gattinara, Gavi, Ghemme and Moscato d’Asti) and an impressive total of 46 DOC wines.
This is a priceless heritage that dates back to the period of the Celts and Ligurian peoples, the Etruscans and Romans (Pliny mentions the apianae grapes of Piedmont) and which in the era of globalisation has become a jewel in the crown for Piedmont of international renown.
Piemonte fabbrica di futuro future factory fabrique de futur Zukunftsfabrik fàbrica de futuro
A snapshot of vineyards in Piedmont today shows 52 thousand hectares of vines (after a fall of over twenty thousand hectares in the last twenty years, the trend is starting to turn, with prices for the best land rising steeply), over 30 thousand wineries producing an average of 3 million hectolitres per year, 60% of which merits ‘denomination of origin’ status (one of the highest percentages in Italy, the world’s leading producer of wine).

The areas in the south of Piedmont (Langhe, Monferrato, Acqui, Tortona and Novi Ligure)
account for most of the production, while there are also important wine areas in the north of
the region: Chieri, Pinerolo, Canavese, the Susa Valley, la Serra di Ivrea, and quality areas
between Vercelli and Novara, where the Nebbiolo grape is once more to the fore.

Piedmont has invested considerably in this sector. Some examples should suffice: the system of 10 regional wine centres, the Wine Roads, (tourist itineraries set up in the 1970’s), and the promotion of accommodation in agriturismo farm inns and B&Bs. As well as the Wine Show in the Lingotto Fair Centre in Turin, or the numerous local events which attract thousands of tourists and connoisseurs. All this is also thanks to the development of the producers, who act as genuine ambassadors for Piedmont’s produce throughout the world, from Japan to Australia.

Cheeses
Cheese production boasts a number of outstanding products recognised and protected by 8
‘denominations of protected origin’, such as Gorgonzola, Castelmagno or Toma di
Murazzano, but also a wide variety of speciality products which are the result of a Rediscovery of traditional Alpine techniques. Piedmontese cheeses have made a name for themselves on an international level, and play an important role in the success of the quality food production industry that Piedmont is investing in. Cheese, the international show in Bra (Cuneo) is not only the sector’s leading event in Italy, but also represents an outstanding showcase for the development of the Piedmontese industry: in 2003 the event attracted 155,000 visitors, including many young people, confirming the upwardly-mobile trend of the Piedmontese cheese industry.

Truffles
The king of tubers, the White Truffle of Alba, was first discovered by Count De Borch, Polish
traveller and naturalist. But its scientific name, Tuber Magnatum Pico (tuber gives a deceptive indication of its true nature, while magnatum indicates that it is precious foodstuff) was given by Turin doctor Pico, who first classified it in Turin in 1788.

More than any other product in the region the truffle represents the definitive symbol of the outstanding excellence of Piedmontese food. The international auction of the White Truffle of Alba, held every year in Grinzane Castle, has become a world wide media event.

Over the years the legendary truffle rose to fame thanks above all to Giacomo Morra, leading personality of Alba, who came up with the idea for a truffle fair 73 years ago. He was ahead of his time and was one of the first to realise the importance of the modern “celebrity endorsement”, starting up a tradition of sending the best truffle of the year to a leading figure in politics, sport or show business. Eisenhower, Kennedy, Churchill, Queen Elizabeth, Rita Hayworth, Alfred Hitchcock and Marilyn Monroe are just some of the people who have Piemonte fabbrica di futuro future factory fabrique de futur Zukunftsfabrik fàbrica de futuro enjoyed the precious shavings over the years. The tradition continues to this day, and Reagan, Gorbachev, Pavarotti and the Pope have all received and savoured the White Truffle of Alba.

The truffle area par excellence is the province of Cuneo: the hills of the Roero district around the plains of Turin, the Langhe area around Alba, and the Monregalese area. Alba is the undisputed international capital of the White Truffle. With its fair, dating back to 1929, it has given prestige and world renown to this delicacy and promoted the image of the area and its select produce.

Hazelnuts and chocolate
The art of chocolate-making has flourished in Piedmont for centuries. This is thanks at least in part to the lasting marriage with the ‘Tonda Gentile’ hazelnut used to make Gianduia: these hazelnuts are grown in the Langhe area and protected by the IGP brand. At the end of the eighteenth century in Turin and Piedmont chocolate, the prized local sweet, was used to make many different treats: gianduiotti chocolates, chocolate creams, bonbons, pralines and marron glaçés.
Symbol of outstanding craftsmanship, and the secret of a success story which knows no bounds, are the Turin chocolate companies like Pfatisch and Peyrano, or the historic cafés like Bicerin. And Nutella, the most famous chocolate spread in the world, is also a descendant of this Piedmontese tradition.

hotels in Rome - florence - venice