nessundorma

goingtoitaly`

Just try a google search for "extra torino" and you'll get links to it.

Gosh. How many times have I been to Italy? I'm losing count. But I do massive amounts of research before I go and tend to cover a lot of ground. And I pay attention! Or at least I remember the good stuff.

There are huge parts of Italy I haven't seen -- like where most of the tourists go! You just happen to be asking about places I've been. If you wanted to know about most of Tuscany, couldn't help you out at all.

I've never been to the countryside in Piemonte, so I'm looking forward to your trip report.

goingtoitalia

I'll consider myself lucky if someday I can say I'm losing count of how many times I've been to Italy! This is my first time, hopefully the first of many!

I did find the Extra Torino link, thank you!

bellacqui

Other day trip ideas from Nizza MOnferrato:

One day for Saluzzo/Cherasco/Bra. Saluzzo is a beautiful mountain town in the Lanhge, Cherasco is famous for its chocolate, and Bra is the center of Slow Food. You can drive back to NM by way of Bubbio, Monestero Bormida and Acqui TErme.

One day for Acqui, Ricaldone, Mombaruzzo, Fontinile, Castel Rocchero. If your B&B has mountain bikes, you can do this challenging terrain by bicycle. It would be a fabulous tour, many of our guests do it and come back to us so filled with wonder of the beauty of the Monferrato.

Do a couple of wineries: visit Marenco in Strevi, visit La Guardia in Morsasco, and be sure .... BE SURE to save one evening for the casual enoteca in Nizza Monferrato called La Signora in Rosso. It is a great place.

You will not have enough time in the Monferrato for all the wonderful, beautiufl things there are to to, and as Sampaguita says, it is the PALIO in Asti as well!!

I have not read all the posts but here are some suggestions for the coast:

Instead of staying in the Cinque Terre, I would go for Lerici or Portovenere on the Gulf of Poets, directly south of the CT. The CT is lovely, and you will be able to do some great hiking there, but Portovenere is preferable to me in terms of a place to stay. Megan at www.bellavitaitalia.com is my expert fo that area, she helps plan my guests' further vacations if they want to do the coast. Personally, my favorite town on the coast is Camogli. I prefer it to Portofino, which is a yacht harbor. Portofino is beautiful, don't get me wrong, but Camogli is a fishing village, very authentic, very beautiful,and not quite so chic and expensive as Portofino. People are often surprised how small Portofino is. It is worth seeing, but Camogli is where my heart is.

Hope this helps.

Diana

Maire

great information, thanks ...bookmarking

MaureenB

A friend visited Alba last weekend and said it was incredibly pretty, with the clearest water. Good hiking, and beautiful scenery. Her Italian friends advised it, saying it doesn't get overloaded with tourists.

bellacqui

We do not have the hoards of tourists here in Piemonte which Tuscany has. In addition to that, the Piemonte wine region is the largest in Italy. THat makes for great touring because no place is packed in, the locals are genuinely HAPPY and gracious and feel fortunate to have visitors come. Piemontese people tend to be quite shy by nature, but want people to enjoy themselves. The vast natural beauty of Piemonte, along with its hundreds of castles and antique towns and wineries and its very interesting history make it a wonderful destination.

goingtoitalia

Wow, so much more information! I was a little surprised to see my thread reappear, but am very happy it did!

Bellacqui, tell me more about Piemonte! I have relatives in Tortona and we may stay with them for a couple of days. Would we be able to make a good day trip to the coast from there? We also plan on visiting the town where my grandmother was born, it is a little town by the name of VillalVernia.

It's going to be difficult trying to decide what to not see on this trip!

bellacqui

Yes, to get to the Ligurian coast you can hop right on the A7 and go straight down from Tortona. From Tortona to Genoa it would be about an hour. To Camogli about an hour and fifteen. Not a problem. On the way in fact, or on the way back, you can stop in the beautiful vineyards surrounding Gavi (of Gavi di Gavi DOCG fame) and absorb the majestic countryside. You can also easily get from Nizza Monferrato to Tortona in about 45 minutes to an hour as well.

I like Tortona alot. It is not a tourist hot spot or anything, just a lovely small italian city with nice architecture and friendly people. You will enjoy yourself immensely, I predict. Remember to take time to stop and look around... for me, the beauty of Piemonte is in the subtile beauty of the countryside and towns.

Diana

goingtoitalia

Diana, that is exactly what this trip is about, we don't plan on doing any major cities, with the possible exception of Torino, we just want to experience the beauty of the country and the towns and villages and especially the people!

I see from other threads on the board that you are the woman to go to for Piemonte information. I will keep that in mind as our trip gets closer. I hope you don't mind!

bellacqui

I am happy to help in any way I can!!

Keren

Diana,

Would you say it's possible to get around Piemonte by train & bus? I travel solo and never hire a car in Europe - I don't own one at home either.
I'm not a wine drinker and not interested in touring wineries. I love good food but don't consider myself a foodie. Would you say a trip to Piemonte is a good idea? I spent a wonderful week in Mondovì and Torino in March 97.

I have the opportunity to go to Torino on Saturday, June 10th, taking a direct bus from Grenoble. Weather.co.uk says average temperature is about 24 degrees, would you say that's about correct, as far as you can recall? I remember Torino had quite a few arcades under which one could walk and hide in the shade in case of warm weather.
Although I experienced only cold weather.

All in all, it's a marvellous city and I'm dying to go back even for just 1 day to see how it looks these days after 9 years I haven't seen it.
I'll probably go back for a longer stay sometime in the next few years and your Piemonte ideas certainly look attractive.

bellacqui

Keren,

It is possible to see much of Piemonte by train. From Torino to Asti, for example is about a 30 minute ride. From there you can easily go to Alessandria, Acqui, Genoa, etc. What you will miss is the chance to stop at tiny country distinations in between. But using the regional train system is easy and might suit you very well. Many of the cities on the train line are lovely and make for very enjoyable day trips. Some nicer B&B's offer transportation and tours to small producers (not only of wine, but also cheese, chocolate, sweets, etc).

It is my experience that June can be a bit warmer than 24 degrees, going into the high twenties and low thirties during the day, and still cooling off a bit at night.

Torino got the face lift of its life for the Olympics, and you will not be disappointed. I love love love Torino, it is a proud city, with history, depth, industry, culture, art, and great food and chocolate.

The beauty of Piemontese cuisine is its purity of ingredients--you actually can taste the main ingredients. You don't have to be a foodie--just a person who enjoys well prepared quality ingredients.

Diana

Keren

Thanks, Diana, for your reply. It makes me think there is much more to Piemonte than I'd ever thought. I had thought many times of going back to Torino and then heading straight away to Lago di Como, but now I think that when I go back for a longer stay, I'll take the time to explore the region. I'm actually more of a city person, so I don't mind that much not being able to experience the countryside. Thanks for the idea of a tour organized by a B&B, I'll use that information when the time comes to plan my trip.

I'm not a big fan of hot weather, since I have it here in Israel, which can be pretty bad in July-August. But I'll take my chance. I hope to get a ticket for that bus and go to Torino for the day. Back then I had lunch in Torino at Brek, since normal restaurants were too intimidating to enter on my own, but in Mondovì I had some fabulous food, when I dined with others. Still, Brek was very good and my first dining experience in Italy.

This thread has been a real eye opener for me. Great information!

goingtoitalia

Keren, thanks for giving my thread new life!!
It's been so much great information, I can't believe there could be more!

nessundorma

Diana,

Is there any good train connection between either Genova and Nice or Torino and Nice? Or better yet, it there anybody who'll do a car rental cross the border that doesn't cost an arm and a leg?

bellacqui

Nessundorma, it isn't a question of bringing the car accross the border. You can bring the car across the border from france to italy without incurring extra charges. The question is always about where the drop off point is going to be. If you rent in Nice and do Piemonte and drop off back in Nice, your rental car will be reasonable. The charges incurr if you don't īgo back to your pick up point. Before we moved here we often flew into Nice to get here because the difference in the cost of the rental car in France (always cheaper than Italy) was significant enough to make a difference.

Nice is about two hours from Genoa, two and a half to three from Torino. It is really not so bad.

Diana

bellacqui

Ok, I just checked out the Trenitalia site, and it looks to be at least 3.5 hours from Nice to Genoa and over four to Torino. HOWEVER, I think that Nice -Genoa ride would be nice enough to do in pieces....getting out maybe in Menton, San Remo, or Alassio, etc.

The train connections are not that fast but are a nice way to enjoy the beautiful countryside. Going up from Nice to Torino is beautiful countryside.

If you have a car, another beautiful way from Nice to Torino is to up the French Border through Colle di Tenda and then down thru Limone Piemonte. It takes you high, high, high into the edge of the french Alps through some very gorgeous countryside, and then drops you off again near Cuneo. A fanatastic drive.

Diana

nessundorma

Thanks, Diana. I'm sorry my abbreviated question wasn't clear. I was asking if there was any rental company that doesn't have 2nd country drop off charges. It appears not!

I've driven along the Italian coast to the French border, and then on to Nice, and agree there are many pleasant train stops. I was just hoping I'd overlooked some fast train.

That drive through Colle di Tenda sounds fantastic! Unfortunately, apart from Tornio, I've not been further north in that area than Pieve di Teco, but I understand the stone villages continue quite far north, and I hope to see them sometime. I'm considering spending some time in Piemonte next November, when I'm visting Genova. Truffle season?

Keren

Nessundorma and Diana, what is your opinion of Genova?

bellacqui

Truffle season!!! Yes, you will hit it in November, it extends from October to January. The Piemontese white truffles are of course the belle of the ball at the Alba Tartufo festival every October.
Our neighbor's farm was loaded with them last year, so we were able to prepare them with homemade tagliatelle for our guests ----a divine treat.

Genoa:

Genoa was the cultural capital of Europe for 2004. It has the largest ancient city in Europe. It is the largest port city in Italy, and has the largest acquarium in Europe.

That being said, Genoa is a wonderful, diverse,colorful city which deserves far more attention than it actually gets. Fabulous food, colorful neighborhoods. My only comment is that it is NOT like Florence or Siena where you can drive into the center and find all the hot spots in an afternoon. YOu need time to discover Genoa's beautiful corners, promenades, diverse cultural areas. Port cities tend to be more spread out and scrambled than inland cities, and Genoa is no exception. But it is a place worthy of a several day visit/discovery tour....together with the outlying coastal areas of Nervi and Camogli, it is a lovely distination and something totally different for the discerning traveler.

Diana