Visiting Italy is a lifetime experience – Piedmont is no exception
Below are just few of many places to explore and adventure into when you are visiting Italy, amongst them many of Italy’s most beautiful places and popular tourist attractions.
First we would though like to introduce you to the best kept secret of Italy that most visiting Italy are missing: Piedmont, especially the Piedmont countryside and the immediate surrounding of our Casa Nuova holiday house in Italy.
Bormita and Monferrato
The Bormita river runs along the valley from which it draws its name. At the east end of the valley is Acqui Terme where there are hot springs and old Roman Baths and the remains of a Roman aqueduct. To the west the road windes further along the valley through Bubbio, and then Loazole and Cessole. Going still further will lead you over the mountains to Alba. North of the hill that Casa Nuove risides on is the Monferrato area with towns like Canelli and Nizza Monferrato. The former is home to the Asti Spumanti wines and the latter is the center for the Barbera wines. In Canelli there are 13 km of tunnels dug into the hills used for aging and preserving of the spumanti wines.
Langhe – Alba- La Morra – Barolo
Alba is the major city to this area where the prestigious nebbiolo wines are produced. The pedestrian streets of Alba with their cafes and shops are busy all year around. La Morra stands high on a hill and in the slopes below and and the hills around it are the vineyards that provide the nebbiolo grapes for Barolo. The town of Barolo sitts comfortably between small hills just south of La Morra, surrounded by vineyards.
See our gallery pictures of the Piedmont countryside.
The Italian Rivera
From Casa Nuova there are only 70 km down to the beaches and towns of the Italian Rivera. Furthest east are Cinque Terre, the five villages and their surroundings that have been declared a UNECO heritage site and that have been become so popular among hikers. One can walk between all or any two of these towns since there is a railway going through all the five towns, or you can go by boats. West of Genoa are numerous towns with beaches all the way to the France Rivera. These places are grate for going to the beach and for sampling the many seafood restaurants. Our favorite are the towns of Noli and Finale Ligure. From there is only an hour’s drive to Monte Carlo and Nice in France.(Italian Rivera gallery pictures)
Lake Maggiore
From Casa Nuove there is only a two hour drive north to Lake Maggiore, the one of the big North Italian lakes that is furthest to the west. By the lake are multiple towns that can be visited by ferries or by driving around the lake. The town that you come to at the west shore of the lake is Stresa. This is where Hemingway stayed in 1948 at the end of his military service at the marvelous Grand Hotel and wrote his book Farewell to Arms. Just outside of Stresa are small islands with villages, castles and gardens worth visiting. A perfect day starts with a boat trip to one or more of the islands in the morning or around noon, returning in the afternoon and finishing the day by a stroll along the streets of Stresa and having a dinner at many of its excellent restaurants before heading back home to Casa Nuova.(The Italian Lakes gallery pictures)
Turin and Milan
It only takes about an hour and half to get to Turin. Turin is a wonderful city, much untouched by tourism but rich of the culture of its sophisticated inhabitants and the old aristocratic culture of the Savoys. It has a long standing history of coffee and chocolate production and here you will find multiple cafes, restaurants and shops along miles of arcades and squares.
The center of Milan can be reached in two hours and of its many attractions if suffices to mention the Duomo (Milan Cathedral), the Galleria, the Scala operahouse, the Sforzesco Castle and gardens, the fashion region, the Last Supper painting by da Vinci and the da Vinci museum.
(Turin and Milan gallery pictures).
In additions to the above exciting and beautiful places, Venice, Florence, Pisa, Cinque Terra, the Alps, Lugano Switzerland, Monaco, Cannes in France, are all with in 2-4 hour drive from our Casa Nuova holiday house in Italy, waiting for you to explore and enjoy while visiting Italy.
