Welcoming visitors with the simple elegance of its porticoes, its salon-lined squares and historic cafés renowned for their delicious chocolate and tiny, fancy cakes ...
Turin, the first capital of the Kingdom of Italy, boasting extraordinary royal palaces and villas (in Turin, Venaria, Stupinigi, Racconigi and Aglié), museums (the Egyptian Museum, the Sabauda Gallery, the Armoury, the Royal Library and so on), beautiful churches (such as the Superga), sanctuaries and holy mountains in the surrounding areas (at Varallo, Crea and Orta).
The city's cathedral is the home of the Holy Shroud, the ancient linen winding-sheet which, according to tradition, was used to wrap the body of Christ when he was taken from the Cross.
Piedmont is a totally unique region, offering natural parks (the Gran Paradiso and Val Grande), vineyards famous for their production of well-known wines such as Barolo, alpine valleys and mountains which are immensely popular with skiers and sportspeople, mountain passes which present a gruelling challenge to cyclists, permanent glaciers and much more besides.
The region is also famous for its beautiful lakes, historic gardens and botanical gardens abounding in rare plant species.
Man has also done much to enhance the beauties of the natural landscape, with churches and abbeys, impregnable hermitages (such as Saint Michael's Abbey which provided inspiration for Umberto Eco's "The Name of the Rose"), medieval castles, patrician villas and residences of the House of Savoy ...