Asti: what to see, where to eat and what to do in the evening

Photo by Ian Spackman. With an ancient and important past, Asti is one of the Piedmontese provincial capitals. Founded by the Romans with the name of Hasta Pompeia, it still has many testimonies today. On the via Franchigena and fulcrum city of the Duchy of Asti in the late Middle Ages, it was also an important center during the Risorgimento and under the Savoy . The churches, towers and strong houses tell of a glorious past, when it was known as the “city of a hundred towers”. It rises between the hills of the Langhe and Monferratoand is known all over the world for its wines. Many tourists come to Asti precisely for the richness of the territory, its villages, vineyards, woods and good food and you cannot fail to take home a nice bottle of Moscato d’Asti as a souvenir.

What to see in Asti

1 – Palazzo Alfieri
Photo by Matteo. Birthplace of the great writer Vittorio Alfieri , in Baroque style, the building houses the Alfieriani Study Center Foundation and the Alfieriano Museum . The main floor includes the apartments and the poet’s room, as well as a beautiful internal courtyard. All the rooms, even those dedicated to the museum, have the original furnishings that have been expertly restored.

• How to get there: 1 km from the train station, on C.so Alfieri, you can get there on foot in about 15 minutes or by urban bus n ° 4 at a cost of € 1.20 for a 90-minute ticket.Get directions
• Hours: from Tuesday to Sunday from 10:00 to 19:00; closed on monday
• Ticket price: full € 10.00 – reduced € 8.00

2 – Crypt of Sant’Anastasio
Photo of Incola. Originally part of the complex of the church of Sant’Anastisio, which was later destroyed, the crypt has a section dedicated to a museum and to the exhibition of various stone finds, found through excavations and researches in different parts of the city. In this suggestive underground space you can still see the remains of the old Romanesque church and admire the old walls.

• How to get there: in C.so Alfieri, 1 km from the station which can be reached in 15 minutes on foot or by bus line 4 at a cost of € 1.20 for a 90-minute ticket. Get directions
• Hours: from Tuesday to Sunday from 10:00 to 19:00; closed on monday
• Ticket price: full € 10.00 – reduced € 8.00

3 – Torre Troyana
Photo by Maltoni Elio. Located on Piazza Medici and also known as the Clock Tower, it is one of the most impressive medieval towers , perfectly completed and best preserved in Piedmont.
Dating back to the 12th century, 44 meters high with a square base, it was part of the strong house of the noble Troya family and then passed to the city in 1531. Recently, the tower has been restored and opened to the public. Through a wooden staircase of 199 steps you can climb to the top and admire the constant panorama.

• How to get there: in Piazza Medici, it is 900 m from the station and can be reached in 10 minutes on foot or by bus n ° 4 at a cost of € 1.20 for a 90-minute ticket.Get directions
• Hours: from Tuesday to Sunday from 10:00 to 19:00; closed on monday
• Ticket price: full € 10.00 – reduced € 8.00

4 – Baptistery of San Pietro
The Baptistery complex has four buildings erected between the 12th and 14th centuries and the most suggestive is certainly the Rotonda del Santo Sepolcro , built on a circular plan with the dome supported by eight columns and a beautiful holy water font at the center. The Baptistery is also the seat of the Paleontological and Archaeological Museum of Asti.

• How to get there: in C.so Alfieri, 1300 meters from the station and reachable by a 15-minute walk or by bus line No. 4 at a cost of € 1.20 for a 90-minute ticket.Get directions
• Hours: from Tuesday to Sunday from 10:00 to 19:00; closed on monday. For the opening hours and prices of the Museum, please refer to the official website
• Ticket price: full € 10.00 – reduced € 8.00

5 – Cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta and San Gottardo
Photo by Ian Spackman. Built between 1200 and the first half of 1300 on the remains of another building of which mosaics are visible, it is the most beautiful and impressive example of Gothic architecture in Piedmont . The interior is full of frescoes, statues and wooden works arranged on the sides of the two rows of marble columns. Under the church there is the “crypt of the bishops” where architectural remains of the Romanesque period have been found. The Romanesque bell tower that completes it is splendid.

• How to get there: in Piazza Cattedrale, a 15-minute walk from the train station or by bus n ° 1 or 4 at a cost of € 1.20 for a 90-minute ticket.Get directions
• Hours: always accessible
• Ticket cost: free

6 – Palazzo Mazzetti
In Baroque style, this palace preserves sumptuous interiors and period objects and is now the seat of the Civic Art Gallery which houses, among other things, tables by San Martino Alfieri, works by Guglielmo Caccia, Giancarlo Aliberti, paintings of the 1600s and a rich collection of Piedmontese and Italian artists of the 1800s and 1900s. During excavations, numerous Roman and mediaeval finds and structures emerged under the building, which can now be visited. Inside there is also a bookshop and a nice café.

• How to get there: in C.so Alfieri, 1300 meters from the station and reachable by a 15-minute walk or by bus line No. 4 at a cost of € 1.20 for a 90-minute ticket.Get directions
• Hours: from Tuesday to Sunday from 10:00 to 19:00; closed on monday
• Ticket price: full € 10.00 – reduced € 8.00

7 – Collegiate Church of San Secondo
Dedicated to the patron saint of the city, the current church was built in the fifteenth century in the Gothic style on the remains of a Romanesque church of which the bell tower and the central part of the crypt remain. The interior with three naves presents works of important historical value and a part is dedicated to hosting the drapes of the Palio donated to the Collegiate Church every year during the medieval ceremony of the Offer of the Palio on the 1st Tuesday of May.

• How to get there: in Piazza San Secondo, 1300 meters from the station and reachable by a 15-minute walk or by bus line No. 1 or 4 at a cost of € 1.20 for a 90-minute ticket.Get directions
• Hours: always accessible
• Ticket cost: free

8 – Torre Rossa

One of the oldest buildings in Asti , it seems to have been the last prison of the patron saint of the city before his martyrdom. Built in the 1st century in Roman style, it may have been one of the towers of the old city walls such as the Palatine one in Turin and Porta Nigra in Trier. In the 12th century it was used as a bell tower.

• How to get there: at the end of C.so Alfieri, 1400 meters from the station and reachable by a 20-minute walk or by bus line n ° 4 at a cost of € 1.20 for a 90-minute ticket. Get directions
• Hours: not open to visitors.
• Ticket cost: free

9 – Domus Romana
Photo of Incola. The Domus is a very well preserved private building from the Roman period and is part of the old urban area of ​​Hasta Pompeia . Inside the archaeological site it is possible to admire the ancient floor with a beautiful mosaic in the center.

• How to get there: in via del Varrone, in the center, a 15-minute walk from the train station or by bus n ° 1 or 4 at a cost of € 1.20 for a 90-minute ticket.Get directions
• Hours: from Tuesday to Sunday from 10:00 to 19:00; closed on monday
• Ticket price: full € 10.00 – reduced € 8.00

10 – Museum of the Risorgimento
A true historical cross-section, the Museum is housed in the beautiful Ottolenghi palace and presents objects, paintings, uniforms, flags, weapons and coins from the period 1797-1870, arranged on three floors. Visiting it you are fully immersed in a historical period in which Asti and all of Piedmont have made an important contribution. From the rooms, equipped with multimedia supports, you go down to the bomb shelter of World War II where it is possible to view films of that sad period.

• How to get there: in C.so Alfieri, 1300 meters from the station and reachable by a 15-minute walk or by bus line No. 4 at a cost of € 1.20 for a 90-minute ticket.Get directions
• Hours: due to renovations during this period the museum is open only on Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays from 10:00 to 13:00 and from 16:00 to 19:00
• Ticket cost: free

Asti itinerary in one day

• Morning – If you arrive at the train station or decide to park nearby, it is advisable to take the urban bus n ° 4 to the Baptistery of San Pietro and start the tour from here, perhaps after having breakfast at the nearby Battistero Caffe. You can decide to visit only the complex or even the annexed museum and then continue on C.so Alfieri up to the Collegiate Church of San Secondo. Continuing towards the historic center, we visit the Troyana Tower and the Mazzetti Palace, where the art gallery takes at least an hour and a half.
• Afternoon – After lunch (it is advisable to eat at the Pompa Magna Enoteca) we visit the Crypt of Sant’Anastasio and its small museum, one of the most beautiful sites in Asti, which deserves a careful and not superficial visit. A little further on, the Gothic Cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta and San Gottardo, beautiful on the outside and spectacular on the inside, with its frescoes and marble statues. The last stop of the daily tour is the beautiful baroque palace which was the birthplace of one of the greatest Italian poets and playwrights: Vittorio Alfieri. Here it is possible to visit the rooms that saw it grow for five years and in the building there is also a small but significant museum that collects objects and testimonies of all its period of activity.
• Evening – If you still have energy and it’s not too late, not far from Palazzo Alfieri, on the way back to the station, you can go ahead to the Red Tower and stop at the Domus Romana, but keep in mind that it closes at 19:00. For dinner, the restaurants in the center will surely be able to satisfy any palate and you will be able to wander among the many typical dishes and local pordotti accompanied by what in Piedmont is a real religion: wine. Our advice is to go to the Trattoria Taste’Vin.

One day itinerary at a glance

1. Breakfast at the Battistero Caffe, a stone’s throw from the Baptistery of San Pietro (Get directions)
2. Battistero San Pietro – opening hours: from Tuesday to Sunday from 10:00 to 19:00; closed on Monday – ticket cost: full € 10.00 – reduced € 8.00
3. Collegiata San Secondo – opening hours: always accessible – ticket price: free
4. Torre Troyana – opening hours: from Tuesday to Sunday from 10:00 to 19:00; closed on Monday – ticket cost: full € 10.00 – reduced € 8.00
5. Palazzo Mazzetti – opening hours: from Tuesday to Sunday from 10:00 to 19:00; closed on Monday – ticket cost: full € 10.00 – reduced € 8.00
6. Lunch at Enoteca Pompa Magna (Get directions)
7. Crypt of Sant’Anastasio – opening hours: from Tuesday to Sunday from 10:00 to 19:00; closed on Monday – ticket cost: full € 10.00 – reduced € 8.00
8. Duomo – opening hours: always accessible – ticket price: free
9. Palazzo Alfieri – opening hours: from Tuesday to Sunday from 10:00 to 19:00; closed on Monday – ticket price: full € 10.00 – reduced € 8.00
10. Dinner at Trattoria Taste’Vin (Get directions)

Where to eat in Asti

• Enoteca Pompa Magna : excellent dishes from both land and sea paired with an impressive number of wines. Be careful when ordering because wine is a serious matter in Piedmont.
  Average price per person: € 40.00
  Address and contacts: via Giancarlo Aliberti, 65 Get directions tel: (0039) 0141324402
• Campanaro : one of the most renowned restaurants in the city, offers local cuisine, typical recipes and attention to the quality of raw materials. Well-stocked cellar and well-kept environment.
  Average price per person: € 50.00
  Address and contacts: Corso Vittorio Alfieri, 36 Get directions tel: (0039) 014133252
• Taste’Vin : rustic atmosphere and simple dishes for this restaurant which has a very good quality / price ratio. Here too it will be easy to get lost in the choice of wines, but the owners will advise you for the best.
  Average price per person: € 35.00
  Address and contacts: via Carlo Vassallo, 2 Get directions tel: (0039) 0141320017

What to do in the evening: nightlife areas and the best clubs
The nightlife in Asti is elegant and without excess, made up of beautiful evenings in the clubs of the center, pubs, restaurants and disco. The main area is that of Corso Alfieri and the historic center, where the many wine bars that offer aperitifs and after dinner with various kinds of music are the masters.

• Loft Club : disco opening at 11.30pm, offering commercial music but also theme nights. Trained staff and adequate bartenders. Address: via Antico Ippodromo, 3 Get directions – Facebook page
• Jack Madden Irish Pub : excellent level pub, many craft beers, national and foreign, young and open late atmosphere. Address: Corso Felice Cavallotti, 64 Get directions – Facebook page
• Palco19 : beautiful multipurpose venue with restaurant, bar and hall for concerts and theatrical events. It has a very full and varied billboard and you can decide whether to attend the shows or just have a drink and something to eat. Address: via Ospedale, 19 Get directions – Facebook page

Plan your stay in Asti: info and useful tips

• How to get there: the closest airport is Turin Caselle which is 85 km from Asti and which is connected to the city by regional trains at a cost of € 5.25 or by taxi. By car it is 51 km from Turin (about 50 minutes), from Genoa 96 km (1 hour and 30), from Milan it is 180 km (1 hour and 40); from Bologna it is 384 km (less than 3 hours). If you prefer the train, from Rome it takes 5 hours at a minimum cost of € 60.95 (intercity + regional); from Milan 2 hours and 30 minutes at a cost of € 14.35 (fast regional); from Bologna about 5 hours at a cost of € 28.20 with three train changes. Flixbus buses connect Asti to the main Italian cities with fares starting from € 19.99
• How to get around : Asti can be easily visited on foot, but the railway station is located about 1 km from the historic center. You can use public transport to get to the center and then move on foot. Getting around by car is particularly complicated due to the ZTLs present, so it is advisable to park in a guarded parking lot or in the municipal areas for a fee.
• Where to park : Convenient and close to the train station is the Babilano car park, in via Alessandro Artom (Get directions) with rates of € 1.20 per hour. Near the cathedral, in Piazza Della Cattedrale there is a municipal parking with rates from € 1.20 per hour.
• Where to sleep: Hotels and b & b from € 55.00 per room – see the offers
• What to see in the surrounding area : Monferrato hills (50 km – 40 minutes) – Strada del Barolo (40 km – 30 minutes) – Turin (55 km – 45 minutes) – Terme di Acqui (40 km – 47 minutes).