It’s May and it feels more like November. April brought us unseasonably warm weather and May arrived with cold temperatures and rain!

While that may put a damper on your Italian adventures, you can rest easy when in beautiful Torino. We’ve got 18 kilometers of porticoes to shield you and keep you dry! So what CAN you do in Torino when it rains?

MUSEUMS-

The most popular activity is definitely visiting some of Torino’s famous museums! Everyone usually flocks to the Mole Antonelliana which houses the National Cinema Museum or The Egyptian Museum. If the wait time is too long, try heading to Palazzo Reale to see where the first King of Italy lived! The Royal Library houses the several important Da Vinci works included a self portrait. If you’re traveling with kids, they would probably enjoy the Museo Civico also known as the Museum of Pietro Micca. Learn about the important battle of Turin and tour 9 miles of underground tunnels!

VISIT THE OLD FIAT FACTORY & THE ORIGINAL EATALY-

I think it’s safe to say that most people who are fans of the Eataly chain are unaware that the original Eataly is here in Torino. Opened in 2007, the original store is still a popular spot with tourists and locals. Personally, I could spend hours browsing their food, kitchen supplies and cookbooks!

To reach Eataly, you’ll need to take the Metro to the last stop which is Lingotto. Once you come out of the metro station, you’re greeted by the old Fiat factory which is now known as the Lingotto shopping center. Instead of walking around the building to reach Eataly, take a stroll through the building. You can shop, visit the Pinacoteca Agnelli, and see the spiral roadway that was part of the assembly line and led up the the test track! (You know that famous car chase scene in The Italian Job… yeah.. that one!!)

*On a side note,  The Agnelli family owned Fiat and the museum has their personal art collection. Visit the museum and you can actually go out onto the test track.

SHOPPING-

Italians take their shopping very seriously. This I knew but what I didn’t know was they really enjoyed window shopping as well. I always considered window shopping to be somewhat depressing because you were lusting after things you couldn’t afford. Somehow, here in Torino, window shopping is not only fun but I don’t find it depressing at all. Maybe because we all can’t afford it so I don’t have to worry about ‘Keeping up with the Joneses’.  As I mentioned early, with the many porticoed street in Torino, you can enjoy your day out and about and not worry too much about the weather.

If you’ve been to Torino and it rained during your visit, what did you do? Tell me in the comments!