From Wikitravel

For other places with the same name, see Piedmont (disambiguation).

Piedmont (Italian: Piemonte) is a region in the north west of Italy, next to the border with France. The main city is Turin (Italian: Torino), which was host to the 2006 Winter Olympic Games.

Piedmont is surrounded on three sides by the Alps, including the Monviso, where the Po River rises, and the Monte Rosa. It borders with France, Switzerland and the Italian regions of Lombardy, Liguria, Emilia-Romagna and Aosta Valley.

The area is justly famous for its wines, which include some of the best produced from Italy such as Barolo, Barbaresco, Nebbiolo and Moscato D'Asti, and its local cuisine.

[edit] Cities

• Turin (Torino) was the first capital of modern Italy
• Alba - the “City of 100 Towers”, is the entrance to the Langhe. Founded by the Romans, its historical centre still remains inside ancient Roman walls. Alba is best known for its elegant wines and exotic truffles. The precious truffles of this region have been compared to gold because of their cost and delicacy.
• Acqui Terme [1] - a beautiful Roman town famous for its hot sulphur springs and ancient baths.
• Asti - center of the Piedmont wine area
• Bardonecchia - mountain town with main focus of skiing, also the Italian entrance to the Frejus Tunnel which connects to France.
• Barolo - a small town south of Alba, world famous for its red wine
• Biella - a small town with a strong tradition in wool and clothes production
• Bra - city situated midway between Cuneo and Turin, on the edge of the Langhe near the Tanaro river. It is one of the main centres of the Piedmontese Baroque style with its many churches and palaces of the 17th and 18th century. Bra is also in the heart of the so-called food valley, and the seat of a University of Gastronomic Science.
• Verbania

[edit] Other destinations

• The Langhe [2] - a hilly area to the south and west of the river Tanaro famous for its wines, and for its truffles, particularly the white truffles of Alba. The hills of the Langhe contain Piedmont's finest vineyards. The grapes grown in this region are primarily nebbiolo, dolcetto and barbera. The nebbiolo grape is used to make the renowned Piedmontese red wines Barolo and Barbaresco. Within the Langhe are famous wine towns such as Barolo, La Morra, Monforte and Serralunga d'Alba.

• Monferrato - is a large Piedmontese wine area, extending from Turin to the eastern border of Alessandria.

• Pinerolo

• Roero - the hills situated north of Alba.

• Saluzzo

• Susa

• Colletto Fava - the hill with the giant pink bunny.

[edit] Understand

Piedmont people are probably the most shy in Italy. Their understatement and lack of emotional behavior is often something that other Italians laugh at. This region has been the industrial heart of Italy since 1800, even though nowadays it's experiencing some economic difficulty connected with deindustrialization.

The Monarchy has left strong heritage across the region, particularly in wide natural parks (former king's hunting reserves) and in XVIII and XIX century buildings.

[edit] Talk

Piedmontese is spoken by about 2-3 million people throughout Piedmont. However, Italian dominates everyday communication.

In 2004, Piedmontese was recognised as Piedmont's regional language by the regional parliament, although the Italian government does not recognise it. It has, however, been recognized as a separate language by the European Union. It is supposed to be taught to children in school, but this is happening only in a limited way.

[edit] Get in

[edit] By plane

Piedmont is well served by airports.

Caselle airport (TRN) [3] in Turin is the main airport of Piedmont. It has regular flights with main European hubs and Italian cities operated by major airlines as well as low fares companies.

Milan has three airports; Malpensa, Linate and Orio al Serio:

• The international hub is Malpensa (MXP)[4] which is the top Italian airport in terms of international traffic. It has direct connections with railway and highway networks. The airport is connected to Milan by the Milano-Varese highway as well by a dedicated train called "Malpensa Express". It is also connected to Linate Airport by a scheduled bus service.

• Linate airport (LIN)[5] is the closet airport to Milan’s city centre and is well served by domestic and short-haul international carriers. It has easy access to the local highway network and is connected to Malpensa Airport by a scheduled bus service.

• Orio al Serio (BGY) [6] (Phone number: +39035326323) is located nearer to Bergamo and serves the low-cost traffic of Milan.

To the south is Cristoforo Colombo Airport (GOA)[7] in Genoa which is served by domestic and short-haul international carriers.

Another option is Le Valdigi airport (CUF) [8] in Cuneo, but it has a very limited number of flights and very few connections other than private car.

[edit] By train

• from France directly to Turin from Lyon through the Frejus Tunnel
• from Swiss thru Domodossola

[edit] By car

• from France thru the Frejus Tunnel, Ventimiglia or Tenda Pass
• from Swiss thru Sempione, Saint Gothard and other minor passes
• from the other parts of Italy by A4 Turin - Trieste, A21 Turin - Piacenza or A6 Turin - Savona highways

[edit] Get around

Although some local bus and train service exists, the best way to tour the Piedmont is by car, especially for tourists who want to venture outside Turin and a few other large cities.

[edit][add listing] See

• Mole Antonelliana. A spectacular building in Turin originally built as a synagogue but now housing the National Cinema Museum. edit

• Museo Egizio. In Turin, the second most important Egyptian museum in the world, second only to the one in Cairo. edit

[edit][add listing] Do

[edit] Ski areas

There are a number of well known ski resorts in Piedmont Alpine region

[edit] Resorts

The Milky Way ski area is one of the biggest areas in Europe and encompasses the following resorts.

• Sestriere -location of the Winter Olympics
• Sauze D'Oulx
• Claviere

Bardonecchia is another large ski area and was host to the 2006 Winter Olympic snowboarding events.

[edit][add listing] Eat

If you can, try the Bollito Misto and Fritto Misto. These are two very traditional dishes and you may only be able to find them in old restaurants far from the tourist circuit. The Bollito Misto is a mix of beef and pork meat boiled with vegetables and eaten with a variety of sauces. The Fritto Misto is a mixture of fried frogs, vegetables, fishes and meat. Another very typical meal is Bagna Cauda: it consists of a hot garlic sauce eaten with raw vegetables.

These are typical restaurants in Torino province:

• Il Frutto Permesso [9]
• Locanda Belfiore [10]

[edit][add listing] Drink

Piedmont is well known for its great wines, particularly Barolo and Barbaresco but also Dolcetto, Arneis, Freisa, Gavi and others. Most vineyards are on the Langhe hills around Asti, Alessandria and Alba, but the passion for strong red wines has spread among the entire territory.

[edit] Stay safe

Piedmont is generally a very safe place.

[edit] Get out

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