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Voykit pocket guide · Italy
Asti
Give Asti one night, or two if you want a wine-country base: the old town is compact and walkable, and the Palio (first Sunday in September) is the reason to time a trip.
Asti is the commercial centre of Piedmont's wine hills, 30 minutes by train from Turin and about an hour from Milan via a change. The medieval core is compact and walkable, with about 15 surviving towers, a Gothic cathedral and a Romanesque collegiate church. It works as a cheap, quiet base for the Langhe, Roero and Monferrato, and as a one-night stop on the Turin–Genoa line. Most travellers see the sights in half a day and spend the rest on food and wine.
- Country
- Italy
- Best months
- Apr–Jun, Sep–Oct
- Avoid
- Jul–Aug (hot, many shops shut), late Nov–Feb (cold, tower closed)
- Stay
- 1–2 nights
Checked 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change; anything marked (check) is not confirmed.
Essentials
- Currency
- EUR
- Money
- Currency is the euro (EUR, €). Cards and contactless are widely accepted in cities; small cafés, markets and rural places may prefer cash.
- Daily spend
- Budget €55–85 excl. bed · Mid €90–150 excl. bed · High €160+ excl. bed (estimate; check)
- SIM and data
- TIM, Vodafone, WindTre and Iliad sell prepaid SIMs in shops and at airports; a passport and an Italian tax code (codice fiscale, issued in-store) are needed.
- Emergency
- Europe-wide emergency 112 · Police 113 · Fire 115 · Ambulance 118
- Plugs
- Types C, F, L · 230 V · 50 Hz · Italian type L plugs have three pins in a row; most sockets also take two-pin Europlugs (C), and bivalent sockets take Schuko (F).
- Tipping
- Bar: Leave €0.10–0.20 of change on the counter if you like.; Restaurant: Coperto or service may already be on the bill; leave €1–2 a person or round up for good service.; Taxi: Round up to the next euro.; Hotel porter or housekeeping: €1–2 per bag or per night.; Tour guide: €5–10 per person for a half day.
- Water
- Tap water is safe unless signed otherwise; Rome's nasoni fountains run all day. Restaurants serve bottled water (naturale or frizzante) unless you ask for tap (acqua del rubinetto).
- Toilets
- Few public toilets; use bars (buy a coffee), museums and stations, where some charge €1.
What things cost
| Item | Price |
|---|---|
| Coffee at the bar | €1.20–1.80 |
| Glass of Barbera or Moscato | €4–6 |
| Plate at the Festival delle Sagre | €3–4 |
| Lunch, trattoria | €15–25 |
| Dinner, mid-range restaurant | €30–45 |
| Taxi within town | €10–15 |
| Museum or tower entry | €2.50–6 |
Desk estimates, checked 2026-09; check locally.
Get in
By air
- TRN · Turin Caselle
- About 1 h by car (check); bus or train connections via Turin, check times
- GOA · Genoa Cristoforo Colombo
- About 1 h by car (check); train via Genoa and Asti, check times
- MXP · Milan Malpensa
- About 1.5 h by car (check); train to Milan then change at Alessandria or Voghera, check times
- LIN · Milan Linate
- About 1.5 h by car (check); train via Milan, change at Alessandria or Voghera, check times
Typical fares
- Train Asti → Turin
- about €6, 30 min
- Train Asti → Alba
- about €4, 30 min
- Taxi in town
- €10–15
Get around
Central Asti is compact and easy to walk; the station is a 5–10 minute walk from Piazza Alfieri (check). Two central car parks (Piazza Alfieri and Campo del Palio) are convenient except on market days (Wednesday and Saturday); Piazza Roma and Piazza Catena also have parking, but watch the restricted streets. For the wine hills you need a car or a pre-booked driver: buses to Alba, Barolo and Canelli are thin, especially at weekends.
See and do
Known for
- Moscato d'Asti and Barbera wines
- Palio di Asti bareback horse race
- Medieval towers (about 15 survive)
- Piedmontese food and truffles
Day trips
| Where | How | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Alba | Car via the SS231, about 30–40 min; train from Asti, check the route and journey time | About 45 min by car (check) |
| Barolo | Car or taxi, about 40 min; train to Alba then bus or taxi | About 1 h |
| La Morra | Car, about 45 min via Alba and Barolo | About 1 h |
| Turin | Direct train from Asti, about 30 min | About 45 min |
| Canelli and Nizza Monferrato | Car, about 30–40 min; buses are limited | About 45 min |
Sleep
- Centro storico (Piazza Alfieri / Piazza San Secondo)
- Best for one night: walk to everything, restaurants and bars on the doorstep. Parking is restricted in the old streets.
- Around the train station (Piazza Marconi / Via Cavour)
- Handy for early trains to Turin or Alba, 5–10 min walk to the centre; simple, station-side hotels.
- Countryside agriturismi (Valleandona, Valgera, San Marzanotto)
- Vineyard stays 10–20 min by car from town; you need a car and a designated driver for wine tastings.
Phrase card
| English | Say or show |
|---|---|
| Good morning | Buongiornobwon-JOR-no |
| Thank you | GrazieGRAT-tsyeh |
| The bill, please | Il conto, per favoreeel KON-toh per fa-VOH-reh |
| A glass of Barbera, please | Un bicchiere di Barbera, per favoreoon beek-KYEH-reh dee bar-BEH-rah |
| Can I pay by card? | Posso pagare con la carta?POS-soh pa-GAH-reh kon la KAR-tah |
| Where is the toilet? | Dov'è il bagno?doh-VEH eel BAH-nyoh |
Etiquette, safety and scams
Etiquette
- Greeting: Say buongiorno (until mid-afternoon) or buonasera on entering shops and bars; avoid: Walking in and pointing without a greeting
- Cheek kisses: Two kisses, right cheek first, among friends; follow their lead; avoid: Kissing strangers or in business settings
- Dress: Smart-casual in cities; covered shoulders and knees in churches; avoid: Beachwear, bare chests and flip-flops away from the beach
- Queues: At delis and pharmacies take a number (numerino); avoid: Assuming the crowd at a bar counter is chaos — pay at the till first where asked
- Restaurants: Wait to be seated and ask for the bill; avoid: Splitting a bill item by item with a large group
- Conversation: Food, football and family are safe openers; avoid: Mafia jokes and north–south stereotypes
- Dinner at a home: Bring pastries, wine or flowers (not chrysanthemums, which are for funerals); avoid: Refusing seconds too firmly
Scams and watch-outs
- ZTL camera zones cover the old streets: do not drive into the centre without checking your hotel's access rules.
- Tower and museum opening hours are limited and change by season; the Torre Troyana closes November–March. Check before you go.
- The synagogue and some workshops are visit-by-appointment only.
- August empties the town: many family-run restaurants and shops close for holidays.
- Palio week (early September) books out beds and restaurant tables in Asti and the surrounding towns; reserve weeks ahead.
Asti is a quiet, low-crime town; the real risks are pickpockets around the Wednesday and Saturday markets, ZTL camera fines if you drive into the old streets, and wine tastings followed by driving. Walk, or book a driver.
One and two days
No timed day plan for Asti yet. Suggested stay: 1–2 nights. Build a day from the list below, mornings for the big sight.
- Moscato d'Asti and Barbera wines
- Palio di Asti bareback horse race
- Medieval towers (about 15 survive)
- Piedmontese food and truffles
Sources
Written by Voykit; facts cross-checked against these sources, last desk check 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change: check on the day.
- Comune di Asti: www.comune.asti.it
- Visit Asti — Palio di Asti: visit.asti.it/en/september-in-asti/the-palio-of-asti/
- Wikivoyage: Asti, revision 5239223 (CC BY-SA 4.0): en.wikivoyage.org/w/index.php?oldid=5239223
Pocket card
Cut along the border and keep it in your wallet. Show the local-script lines to a driver.
Asti
A questo indirizzo, per favore
To this address, please
My hotel (write the name and address in the local script)
No embassies in Asti; the US, UK, Canada, Australia and New Zealand all have embassies in Rome. Check your embassy's current address and hours.
112 works from any phone, including mobiles with no local SIM.
Voykit · checked 2026-09
Printed from Voykit (/asti). Written by Voykit; checked 2026-09. Estimates only: confirm prices, hours and entry rules on the day.