Alba Piedmont
Where Culinary Delights and Rich Heritage meet. Sights, highlights, and insider tips for the popular city in the middle of Piedmont’s vineyards
Alba Piedmont
Alba is a beautiful city, picturesquely situated among the hilly vineyards of the Langhe, with many sights, attractions, and places of interest. A visit belongs to every Piedmont vacation or road trip. Alba is mainly known as the city of a hundred medieval towers, its white truffles and the surrounding vine country.
Langhe info: The Langhe, Monferrato, and Roero form a UNESCO-listed area, known for their scenic hills, vineyards producing renowned wines like Barolo, and exquisite cuisine. Its historic towns and cultural significance led to its UNESCO World Heritage Site status.
I have already been to the beautiful city several times, as it is also an outstanding starting point for excursions and tours to the fruit and wine growing area of the Langhe.
Keep reading my Alba travel guide, and you will find all information about the things to see and places to visit in Alba, one of the most popular destinations in Piedmont. I am adding as well as some close-by must-see places in the wine region you can’t miss during your visit.
History Walking Tour and Food Tasting with a Local
Discover the sights of Alba on an exclusive guided food tour with several food tastings like cheese, salami, truffle products, and more.
Alba Piemont
Overview of the Alba Sights
The beautiful city of Alba is located in the south of Piedmont, about 60km east of the provincial capital of Cuneo. The city, famous for truffles and Nutella, with its nearly 32000 inhabitants, is the main town of the Langhe hills, on the edge of the Po Valley.
Alba is surrounded by famous vineyards as well as fruit orchards and is a center of the confectionery industry. The beautiful area was already known by the Romans as Alba Pompeia.
Since 1946 it has been the headquarters of the Ferrero company. In 2017, Alba was recognized by UNESCO as a creative city of gastronomy and every year, in autumn, the alleys of the picturesque old town are filled with people arriving for the world-famous truffle fair.
Another famous event is the Alba Music Festival, a highlight of the Northern Italian cultural season. It offers concerts in the most prestigious venues, majestic castles, historical churches and enchanting squares of the city.
But Alba has more to offer than just Piedmontese delicacies, such as the unique white truffle. The city is rich in history and its legacies. Already at the time of the Romans, Alba was a flourishing center.
Alba is also known as the city of a hundred towers, even if there are not that many. These are located among the beautiful houses and palaces and characterize the image of the medieval city center.
Alba Piemont
Alba Sights and landmarks
The medieval old town of Alba houses many buildings, palazzi and especially towers worth seeing.
Below is just a brief overview of the most important sights. Since the narrow streets offer so many other big and small highlights, my list can and will never be complete.
Tip for your visit: Alba is not particularly big. A maximum of half a day is enough for a sightseeing tour. Why don’t you combine a visit to the Alba city center with a Barolo wine tasting or a trip to Monforte d’Alba for a wine tasting while enjoying the panoramic view?
Alba Piedmont
Cattedrale di San Lorenzo / Duomo di Alba
The Cathedral of San Lorenzo is one of the most popular Alba sights. It is located in the historical center of Alba, in Piazza Risorgimento. It is the most important place of worship in the city, a building with a thousand-year history that has its roots in Roman times.
Of the original church, dating back to the 11th century, only the bell tower, the three portals, the portico of the facade and the crypt have been preserved. In the course of the following centuries, further and several reconstruction and restoration processes took place.
The bell tower is one of the highest in Piedmont and still houses the original bell. In some places the church floor has been made visible after archaeological investigations and earlier layers have been revealed.
Opening times: Monday – Friday from 8:00 – 19:00hrs, on weekend until 21:30hrs
Alba landmarks
Piazza Risorgimento / Piazza Duomo
On the beautiful cathedral square, Piazza Risorgimento, you will also find the tourist information office and the town hall. The latter was built on the ruins of a former Roman building. Inside the Palazzo Comunale, some frescoes from the close-by church of San Domenico are displayed.
My tip: A little touristy as right next to the Alba Duomo but Ape Wine Bar is a great place to have a glass of local vine, watch the scenery and enjoy the dolce vita.
Alba sights
Chiesa San Domenico
The Gothic brick building of the church of San Domenico has an impressive three-nave interior with remains of frescoes from the 16th century. Napoleon’s soldiers, when stationed here, used the building as a horse stable.
Today, the light-flooded nave is used for theater performances and concerts, due to the unique ambience.
My tip: Just in front of the church there is a lovely small café, Caffè Teatro, which is an ideal spot to have a break and relax from sightseeing.
Alba Highlights
Chiesa di San Giovanni Battista
After the Cathedral of San Lorenzo, the church of San Giovanni Battista is the oldest church in Alba. The Baroque church in Piazza Pertinaceas has a beautiful ceiling and works of art by Barnaba da Modena, Nicola da Tolentino and Moncalvo.
Alba Piedmont
Alba City Wall
The medieval city wall of Alba was / is over 2 meters high and half a meter wide. Each of the four city gates was equipped with one or two watchtowers. Additionally, lots of houses had their own towers. The higher, the wealthier the family.
Of the towers, only a few can still be seen in the streetscape. The best preserved are the towers between Piazza Risorgimento and Via Cavour, Torre Bonino, Torre Astesiano and Torre Sieno, located in Piazza del Duomo. In Via Calissano still stands the tower Torre di Casa Chiarlone.
Pedestrian area Via Vittorio Emanuele
The pedestrian area of Alba on Via Vittorio Emanuele is the artery of the city. It leads through the historic center with its beautiful medieval, Renaissance and Art Nouveau buildings and the towers of noble families.
A particularly beautiful house is Casa Fontana (Via Vittorio Emanuele 11). It has great Renaissance terracotta tiles on the facade above the first floor, showing dancers, gamblers, ladies, and knights.
Alba Piedmont
Via Cavour and Piazza Pertinace
Via Cavour is another main artery of Alba, whose beautiful arcades create an atmosphere of the Middle Ages. In, or rather under, Piazza Pertinace, remains of the Roman city walls can still be seen. These can be admired through a glass floor from the square.
Chiesa della Maddalena
The beautiful Church della Maddalena, with its unfinished brick facade, is located in the middle of the pedestrian area (Via Vittorio Emanuele 17). It was designed by the famous Piedmontese architect Bernardo Vittone and completed in 1749. The chapel is dedicated to St. Margherita of Savoy, with its altar containing the body of the woman who died in 1464.
Alba and its white truffles
The white truffle of Alba, in botanical terminology Tuber magnatum Pico, is the most famous truffle from Piedmont. It is so popular because it is the only truffle variety in the world that cannot be cultivated.
Real truffle fans come to Piedmont in person in autumn to buy the real Alba truffle, at fair prices, at one of the numerous truffle and mushroom markets in the region. The Fiera del Tartufo, Alba’s famous truffle fair, takes place on weekends from early October to mid-November.
Not only can the sought-after white gold be bought here, but there are also numerous folklore events worth seeing at the most famous truffle fair in Piedmont.
My Tip: If you are interested in truffles, you should do a truffle hunting tour. Join a local truffle hunter at sunset and learn all about an activity listed as a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage. ⇨ More info on the truffle hunting tour
Alba Piedmont Italy
Wine Castles in the surroundings ⇨ Excursion tip
Around the city of Alba are an incredible number of charming wine villages and imposing castles to visit. Take a road trip, for example along the romantic road and go on a discovery tour! If you do not like driving yourself, join an organized wine tour, like ⇨ this one.
In the rolling hills of the surrounding regions of Langhe, Monferrato and Roero, are the following beautiful castles in the immediate vicinity of Alba:
Grinzane Cavour
The Castle of Grinzane Cavour, dating from the 11th century, dominates the breathtaking panorama of the Langhe hills with its beauty and distinctive architecture. It was the residence of Camillo Benso Count of Cavour, the first Prime Minister of Italy and passionate winemaker.
Inside it houses today the Langhe Museum, historical rooms with memorabilia and the regional Enoteca Cavour Piemontese.
Already, a visit to the exterior of Grinzane Cavour is rewarding. From the castle courtyard, you have an outstanding view of the surrounding vineyards. Around the castle there is a free, short walk through vines, including historical information about the wine and the surrounding area.
Distance from Alba: 10km / 15min by car
Opening times: Daily, except Tuesdays, from 10:00 – 19:00hrs
Ticket price: € 7.00 per person / free for owners of the Torino Piemonte Card
⇨ More info on the Turin city pass and if it is worth buying
Alba Sights – Castles in the vicinity
Castello Roero – Monticello d’Alba
The Roero Castle in Monticello d’Alba is privately owned. A visit to the interior of the castle is only possible with a guided tour, the visit to the park is on your own.
There are QR codes to scan at various stations, which lead to further information in the form of small films or direct explanations by the count.
Distance from Alba: 11km / 18min by car
Opening times: Only on weekends from 10:00 – 12:30hrs and 14:30 – 18:00hrs
Ticket price: € 7.50 per person
⇨ Further information on the Castello Roero
Alba Piemont
How to get to Alba and where to park
By plane: The closest international airports are those of Turin, Milan, and Genoa. From there, you can rent a car and drive to Alba in less than 2hrs.
By train: Alba is easily reached by train. From Turin, it will take you about 2 hours, a little more from Milan, and close to 3 hours of travel from Genoa.
By car: Alba and the surrounding wine region is a great day trip from Turin. The 62km drive via the Highway A6 (toll road) will take you about one hour.
Parking in Alba: Alba is easily accessible by car from all directions. The city also offers many parking spaces, most of which are paid. There is a free parking lot (⇨ location) near the historic center at the western entrance to the city, on Via Vivaro.
But beware: in the front parking area the spaces are paid (blue marking) and only the rear area (white marking) is free of charge.
