Day Trips from Turin

Day Trips from Turin

The best excursions and trips you can do in a day

Turin works like a compass rose: spin the dial and glacier-cut valleys, baroque wine towns, Roman aqueducts all swing within reach. In sixty minutes you can swirl aged Barolo in a vaulted medieval cellar, follow a larch-scented trail, or stand beneath arches whose shadows still stripe the cobbles. Regional trains shoot out from Porta Susa and Porta Nuova like spokes; I once caught the 8:03 to Ivrea on impulse and was sipping espresso beside a 12th-century castle at 9:15. Day trips don't just add value, they lace the city's polished grid with Alpine air and vineyard dust on your soles. Choose the right dawn and you'll depart under river fog, glide past mirror-still rice paddies, then rise into hills where the sun strips mist from south-facing vines. Each cardinal point writes its own chapter: west to the Frejus valleys where French and Italian blur, south to the Langhe hills that birth Italy's brainiest reds, east to lakes ringed by chestnut forest. By nightfall you're back in Turin, pockets full of hazelnut sweets or jacket still smelling of woodsmoke.

Full-Day Trips

Worth dedicating a whole day to explore.

Langhe Wine Country - Barolo & La Morra

$45-60 (train + tastings)

Late afternoon turns the vine-stitched hills amber, and the breeze carries the sweet, yeasty perfume drifting from propped-open cantina doors.

Distance
60 km south
Travel Time
1h 20min by car, 2h by train to Alba + local bus
Total Duration
9-10 hours
Transport
Regional train from Porta Susa to Alba, then Satti bus to Barolo
Morning tasting at Ceretto's glass-walled winery overlooking La Morra Lunch of Tajarin pasta and porcini in a family-run osteria Climb the Barolo castle ramparts for 360-degree vineyard views
Best for: Wine enthusiasts and photographers chasing golden-hour vines
Lock in the 7:20 train, later runs pack in commuters and you'll spend the ride on your feet.

Sacro Monte di Varallo

$30-40

Forty-five chapels carved into a wooded slope stage biblical scenes with life-sized terracotta figures that seem to breathe in the filtered light.

Distance
95 km northeast
Travel Time
1h 40min by train to Varallo, then funicular up
Total Duration
8-9 hours
Transport
Regional train from Porta Nuova to Varallo Sesia + local funicular
The Last Supper tableau where you can walk between apostles Chestnut forest trails linking chapels scented with resin Funicular ride that drops you straight into 16th-century devotion
Best for: Art historians and hikers who like their trails with a side of baroque drama
Tuck a flashlight in your pocket, some chapels stay dim even at noon and the caretaker's lamp battery is a gamble.

Lake Orta & San Giulio Island

$35-50

The lake's modest size distills its beauty: pastel villages mirrored in glassy water, church bells crossing to the tiny island monastery.

Distance
120 km northeast
Travel Time
1h 30min by car, 2h by train to Orta-Miasino
Total Duration
9 hours
Transport
Train from Porta Susa to Orta-Miasino, then local bus to Orta San Giulio
Rowboat across to Isola San Giulio where monks once exorcised the lake Lunch of lake trout grilled over juniper branches at Orta's waterfront Medieval lanes where laundry still hangs between ochre walls
Best for: Couples and solitude seekers needing water and silence
Bypass the 10:00 ferry crush from Orta, stroll 15 minutes to Pella pier for half-price tickets and an empty bench.

Ivrea & the Castle Route

$20-30

Orange battlements loom above the Dora Baltea, and the old town's arcades shelter cafés where the scent of bicerin lingers past the morning rush.

Distance
55 km north
Travel Time
55 min by train
Total Duration
7-8 hours
Transport
Regional train from Porta Susa to Ivrea
Climb Ivrea Castle's red-brick keep for Alpine views Walk the medieval Ponte Vecchio where water rushes beneath stone arches Try canoeing on the Dora, gentle current, mountain backdrop
Best for: History fans and families wanting manageable castle ruins
Snag pastries from Pasticceria Boella opposite the station, they unlock at 6:30 and the cream-filled krumiri vanish in minutes.

Bard Fortress & Aosta Valley

$40-55

A cliff-top fortress guards the valley mouth; inside, ramparts echo with Alpine wind and tunnels smell of damp stone and centuries-old woodsmoke.

Distance
100 km northwest
Travel Time
1h 30min by car, 1h 45min by train to Bard + short walk
Total Duration
9-10 hours
Transport
Train from Porta Susa to Bard, then path up to fortress
Ride the glass elevator through rock to reach fortress museums Roman milestone markers along the old Via Francigena trail Views down the Dora Baltea gorge where glaciers once carved the valley
Best for: Military history buffs and photographers chasing dramatic Alpine settings
The fortress café shutters early, pack a sandwich or face vending-machine crackers and a €4 bottle of water.

Gran Paradiso National Park - Ceresole Reale

$25-35

Pine and larch fade into granite peaks where ibex thread across scree and the lake reflects snowfields like black glass.

Distance
80 km northwest
Travel Time
1h 45min by bus from Turin to Ceresole Reale
Total Duration
8-9 hours
Transport
Sadem bus from Corso Vittorio Emanuele II to Ceresole Reale
Short hike to Lillet Lakes where tadpoles scatter from your shadow Cheese tasting at an alpine dairy where cows graze above 2000m Gran Paradiso peak views from dam wall picnic spots
Best for: Hikers and wildlife photographers chasing Alpine silence
Claim the right side of the bus for cliff-edge drama. The left stares at rock wall.

Asti & Monferrato Hills

$30-45

Medieval towers spike a terracotta skyline, and autumn air carries the fermenting-grape sweetness drifting from cantina courtyards.

Distance
55 km southeast
Travel Time
40 min by train to Asti, then local bus
Total Duration
8-9 hours
Transport
Regional train from Porta Nuova to Asti
Climb Torre Troyana for 360-degree views over Monferrato vineyards Sample Asti Spumante straight from the tank at a family winery Walk the Roman grid of backstreets where laundry flaps above trattoria doorways
Best for: Wine novices wanting bubbly education and hill-town charm
Wednesday market clogs the station forecourt, slip out the south exit and slice through Piazza Roma for quieter lanes.

Half-Day Options

Shorter excursions when time is limited.

Rivoli Castle & Contemporary Art

$15-20

A baroque castle reborn as a contemporary museum where marble corridors bounce video art and the café surveys Turin's western sprawl.

Duration
3-4 hours
Transport
Bus 36 from Corso Vittorio Emanuele II
Manica Lunga gallery where contemporary pieces hang beneath frescoed ceilings

Superga Basilica Hill

$10-15

Tram 15 rattles through forest switchbacks to a hilltop basilica that drops city and Alps into one sweeping panorama.

Duration
3 hours
Transport
Tram 15 from Piazza Vittorio Emanuele II + rack railway
Panoramic terrace where you can spot Turin's Mole Antonelliana pin

Venaria Reale Palace Gardens

$20-25

Behind a palace that rivals Versailles, formal gardens unroll, fountains hiss in geometric arcs, and peacocks shriek from boxwood mazes.

Duration
3-4 hours
Transport
Venaria Express shuttle from Piazza Castello
Reflection pool that mirrors the palace facade in perfect symmetry

Stupinigi Hunting Lodge

$12-18

A rococo palace in the woods where the scent of old hearth smoke drifts through gilded halls and deer graze beyond the gates.

Duration
3 hours
Transport
Bus 41 from Corso Vittorio Emanuele II
Central hall where crystal chandeliers catch low afternoon light

Day Trip Tips

Make the most of your excursions.

  • Buy regional tickets at the green kiosks inside Porta Susa, machines swallow cards but cash queues move faster at rush hour.
  • Sunday trains to wine country are skeletal, target Saturday or you'll be stranded in Asti until dusk.
  • Pack layers: morning fog in Turin can turn to 25°C sun in the Langhe by noon.
  • Install the Trenord app for live delays. Regional lines around Turin love last-minute platform swaps.
  • Carry a reusable bottle, Alpine trails have potable fountains but shops are scarce.
  • Small wineries shut for lunch 12:30-14:30 sharp; schedule tastings before noon or after 3pm.
  • If you drive, remember ZTL zones in Ivrea, Asti, Alba trigger automatic fines, leave the car at station lots and walk.
  • Bus tickets to Gran Paradiso are sold at the tobacco shop beside the Sadem stop, drivers never handle cash.

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