Alla Famiglia: Experiencing Turin from Gran Madre

View of Turin with Mole Antonelliana spire from Ponte Isabella

Turin is a great fit for families, repeat visitors to Italy, and travelers who want something a little less obvious than Rome, Florence, or Venice. It offers enough major attractions to keep everyone interested, but it is also a place where you can slow down, settle into a neighborhood, and enjoy the rhythms of everyday Italian life. English is widely spoken at hotels, restaurants, and major attractions, while locals are generally patient and encouraging when visitors make an effort to speak Italian. It is especially rewarding for travelers who value museums, parks, river walks, good food, family-friendly apartment stays, and a destination that feels both accessible to visitors and distinctly lived-in. Turin’s magic side also makes it romantic for couples who enjoy history, mystery, architecture, food, and exploring together.

One of Turin’s elegant Savoy residences—a reminder that the city’s grand architecture extends far beyond its best-known landmarks.

Places to stay

• Vacation rentals in the Gran Madre Neighborhood: The apartment where we stayed is no longer available as a vacation rental, so I selected two nearby alternatives. Both are listed on the piano terra (ground floor), but travelers should confirm entrance access, thresholds, bathroom configuration, and any other specific accessibility needs with their travel advisor before booking:

• Una Terrazza nei pressi del Po by Wonderful Italy: A cozy, well-located apartment in Turin's exclusive Borgo Po foothills district.

• We also suggest Hotel Crimea for its proximity to Gran Madre for those who prefer hotels and it may be a more practical option for travelers with accessibility needs.

• Best Western Plus Hotel Genova: In 2026, we decided to extend our stay in Turin by one night, but our vacation rental was not available for an extra night. So, we splurged on a Quad Family Room at the four-star Best Western Plus Hotel Genova, which offered a very comfortable amount of space for our family of three. We chose it for its proximity to the Porta Nuova train station — and, let’s face it, the full-size Esselunga supermarket inside the station. You had me at Esselunga!

Borgo Medievale, a picturesque recreation of a medieval Piedmontese village tucked inside Parco del Valentino along the Po.

What to do in Turin

• One of the best parts of staying in the Gran Madre neighborhood was that all of these attractions were within a 15- to 20-minute walk, often along Turin’s colonnaded sidewalks—think welcome shade or shelter—or an easy bus or streetcar ride.

• Mole Antonelliana and the National Cinema Museum: The Mole Antonelliana is one of Turin’s most recognizable landmarks and home to the National Cinema Museum. We visited twice, returning the second time specifically for the glass elevator ride to the top and the panoramic views; the glass elevator, observation deck, and museum were wheelchair accessible when we visited.

• Museo Egizio: Turin’s Egyptian Museum is renowned and well worth visiting, especially for anyone interested in ancient history, archaeology, or museum collections. We have visited twice and strongly recommend it. Our favorite moment, though, was hearing a group of schoolchildren enthusiastically shout, “Grazie mille!” to their tour guide—it was adorable, and we have never forgotten how to pronounce “a thousand thanks.”

• MAO–Museum of Oriental Art: The Museum of Oriental Art offers an impressive collection in a beautiful historic building. We particularly appreciated both the art and the availability of nonbinary restrooms, a small but meaningful accessibility and inclusion detail.

• Walk along the Po and through Turin’s parks: Some of our favorite time in Turin was spent simply walking through its parks and along the Po River. These quieter spaces offer a different view of the city and make it easy to slow down between museums, churches, and historic sights.

• Gran Madre di Dio Church: Gran Madre di Dio resembles a miniature Pantheon, which makes it especially striking from the river and surrounding piazza. The stairs also provide wonderful views across Turin toward the Alps, although the church entrance was not wheelchair accessible when we visited.

• Find the Devil’s Door: Turin has a long-standing reputation as one of Italy’s most mysterious cities, and the ornate Portone del Diavolo—often called the “Devil’s Door” or “Gates of Hell”—is part of that lore. We have somehow managed to miss it on foot, which only makes it feel more elusive and gives us another reason to return.

• Explore Turin’s magical and alchemical legends: Stories of alchemy, hidden symbols, underground passages, white magic, and black magic are woven through Turin’s history. A guided mystery or occult-themed walking tour can be a fun way to engage teenagers and young adults who might be less excited by another palace, museum, or church.

• Explore the dark legends of Piazza Statuto: Piazza Statuto is associated with some of Turin’s darker myths and is often included on tours of the city’s mysterious side. Even travelers who are skeptical of the legends may enjoy seeing how history, architecture, and storytelling overlap in one of Turin’s grand public squares.

• Take a hop-on, hop-off bus tour: Turin is much larger and more spread out than many visitors expect, so the hop-on, hop-off bus is genuinely useful rather than merely touristy. It provides an easy overview of Savoy residences, the Olympic and football stadiums, the historic Lavazza factory, the medieval village, the Po bridges, and even the mysterious “Gates of Hell”—which we have somehow still not managed to find on foot.

• Give your feet a break: After ten days of walking on Italian cobblestones, my already-wonky ankle was ready for a rest. The sightseeing bus gave us a chance to continue exploring without sacrificing an entire day to recovery, making it especially helpful for travelers managing fatigue, pain, or limited walking tolerance.

Turin from the top of the steps at Gran Madre di Dio

Where to eat & drink in Turin’s Gran Madre neighborhood

• Except for lunches near the Mole, we never made it out of the Gran Madre neighborhood for food, and in fact, took the bus back to Gran Madre for dinner even when we checked into Hotel Genova!

• Gran Bar Torino: Gran Bar is the place to see and be seen during aperitivo in Gran Madre. With creative cocktails, live music, and a lively atmosphere overlooking the Po, it is a fun place to settle in and enjoy the early evening.

• Monferrato: We have celebrated two birthday dinners at Monferrato, and everyone in our family — from the semi-vegetarians to the committed meat lovers — has found something to enjoy. The menu brings together classic Italian seafood and pasta with Piedmontese specialties, and it includes a detailed allergen legend; travelers with food allergies should still confirm their needs directly with the restaurant. My only complaint is that my own birthday falls during Ferragosto, when many Italian businesses close for the August holiday!

• Almondo Trattoria: Almondo looks and feels like a classic Italian trattoria and serves the best cacio e pepe we have found outside Rome. We loved it enough to return to Gran Madre specifically for dinner, even after checking into a hotel in the city center.

• Esca Bistrot di Mare: Esca serves beautifully prepared northern Italian seafood, including whole fish, shellfish, and plenty of tentacles for more adventurous diners. The experience reminded us a little of sushi — not because the seafood was raw, but because the focus was on freshness, simplicity, and appreciating each ingredient as it was prepared. We enjoyed it enough that we hoped to return, but ran out of time.

• Gran Fiorio: Gran Fiorio became our neighborhood go-to for almost everything except dinner: morning coffee and chocolate croissants, lunch, aperitivo, and gelato. It is less trendy and more relaxed than Gran Bar next door, with a better view of the Po and an easygoing atmosphere that kept drawing us back. It was also our favorite place for “real Italian” gelato

View of the Italian Alps from the observation deck of the Mole Antonelliana

Hotel Genova worked for our brief stay, but its small elevators would not accommodate many wheelchairs; Hotel Crimea may be a more practical option near Gran Madre. Travelers should confirm entrance access, thresholds, bathroom configuration, and any other specific accessibility needs with their travel advisor before booking.

The Mole Antonelliana and Museo Egizio are two of Turin’s most popular attractions, so we recommend booking tickets or a guided tour at least two weeks in advance. Most other sights are either free or do not require reservations, which is one of Turin’s great advantages: you can plan a few key experiences ahead of time without scheduling every hour of your trip.

Grocery shopping: If you choose a vacation rental with a kitchen, I cannot recommend grocery shopping in Italy enough. It takes a little getting used to, but the ingredients are so fresh and ready to cook that both shopping and preparing meals become part of the travel experience. Also, in Italy, you literally cannot go wrong even with €6 (about $7-8USD) bottles of “grocery store” wine. It makes it very affordable to try wines from all over Italy from the comfort of your own rental. Reusable grocery bags also make a really practical souvenir. We still have not worked our way up to an open-air market in Italy, but it is on the list!

Esselunga in Porta Nuova, is one of my favorite grocery stores in the entire world! It’s not convenient to Gran Madre, but if you do stay in the center of town, definitely check it out. There is a Carrefour Express right in the Gran Madre neighborhood, just off the Via Monferrato pedestrian zone. Also conveniently located along the River Po is Borello Supermercato where we did the bulk of our grocery shopping in Gran Madre.

Indoor dining vs. accessible outdoor tables: While their Google profiles say “Wheelchair accessible” I remember both Monferrato and Almondo having a small number of steps from the entrance to the indoor dining area. Confirm when reserving and ask for an outside table (weather permitting) which should be more wheelchair friendly, if needed.

For more travel inspiration and insider recommendations, check out our Italy page.