Piedmont’s beautiful provincial capital, Asti, is probably best known for its sparkling wines, and annual Palio — the historic bareback horse riding race run through the city’s central square. We think that Asti is a great destination for foodies, wine lovers, those with an interest in historic architecture and picturesque bits of Italy. Our pick of the best places to stay in Asti are on the outskirts of the city, surrounded by rolling vineyard and rural views, as well as in the historic centre of Asti. We’ve discovered some really charming villa conversions — and a palazzo, a castle and a monastery, plus guesthouses and traditional hotels.

Asti sits in the saddle of two hills, Monferrato and Langhe, both covered in vine rows, which are shaded somewhat by their hillside locations, and equate to a requirement to do some of the annual grape harvesting by hand — join in if you fancy it! The location also creates a picturesque backdrop to enjoying the final fruits of all the labour, the Asti Spumante and Moscato d’Asti wines. Robust red wines are produced around Asti too, in fact around 40% off all Piedmont’s wine comes from this region. You can also find a high percentage of the region’s Michelin-starred restaurants around Asti, including some of the hotel restaurants from our Gurus’ list of the best places to stay in Asti.

The city of Asti has had two golden ages, at least: a medieval boom, which saw the creation of a number of impressive buildings, including the Gothic-style Cattedrale di Santa Maria Assunta, the Romanesque San Secondo Church, and streets worth of impressive merchant’s houses in between; and another especially wealthy period around the beginning of the 17th century, when Asti's second historic centre was built, this time in Baroque style, centring around the Plaza Alfieri. The Plaza Alfieri hosts the dramatic Palio on the third Sunday in September, just after the annual Festival delle Sagre, which celebrates the region’s culinary traditions — the plaza also hosts a food market every week. Asti’s calendar is pretty busy with food festivals… Asti has some impressive Roman ruins too, including a first century Roman amphitheatre, and the original town walls. It’s easy to see why our Gurus have found the best places to stay in Asti both inside and outside the city proper.

The Best Places to Stay in Asti

For Foodies

• The Sunstar Piemonte is a stunning castle, converted into a 14 room hotel overlooking its own vineyards. This is a romantic spot — the larger rooms have four poster beds, beamed ceilings and wonderful murals — but some of the smaller of its 20 rooms and suites are also affordably priced if you’re saving all your euros for the restaurant, which is known for its locally sourced produce, some from the castle’s own gardens, and outstanding regional menu. And of course it has an excellent wine list. The gardens are also beautiful. This is a perfect spot for foodies, close enough for a pleasant day trip to the vineyards of Barolo and the markets of Alba.

In Asti’s Historic Heart

• If you want to be in the historic heart of town, consider staying at the Relais Cattedrale, a stylishly converted 18th century palazzo, with seven individually decorated guest rooms, and a seriously romantic atmosphere. Some of the rooms are more ornately, or historically, decorated than others; one has original mosaics, several have four poster beds. All share a peaceful terrace and gardens, and a welcoming lounge filled with inviting books. There’s also a communal dining room.

For Family-Friendly Romance

• The Relais Sant’Uffizio Wellness & SPA Hotel is a gorgeous, four-star hotel converted from a monastery, that’s divinely elegant with its simplicity, and set in its own grounds. The facilities here are really something: there’s a spa so large it has three distinct zones, the hydropool area, the wet area and the treatment and beauty zone; the restaurant is run by a multi-Michelin-starred chef; the wine cellar is vast, and the hotel offers tastings —along with cooking classes; there’s a beautiful outdoor pool with a sun terrace, and tennis courts surrounded by the hotel’s gardens and grounds. The decor is a lovely blend of historic features and contemporary design, with the Sant’Uffizio suite offering original frescoes and reams of space. Two of the suites are ideal for families.

For a self catering apartment or private villa

• If you’re looking for a self-catering option browse through the wide variety available online with our partner, Booking.com.

Travel Information

• The closest airport to Asti is Turin Airport, which is about an hour away by road. Milan Malpensa and Milan Linate are also very close: both of Milan’s airports are about an hour and a half away by road. Turin and Milan are also good stations to head for if you want to travel by train.
• If you want to hire a car we recommend you visit our online partner, Rentalcars.
• Asti can be quite rainy in May and November, so, unless you have a good reason to travel during these months, it might be worth crossing them off your list. The Asti harvest season runs between August and September, so it’s an understandably popular time to visit. The Palio di Asti is usually run on the third Sunday in September. Piedmont is very lively in autumn; pumpkins, chestnuts and hazelnuts grow here, and are harvested as well as the wine grapes, and this is a fantastic time to visit for foodies. The lazier late spring, early summer days are also extremely pleasant, though, and it’s at this time of year that you’ll have the best access to local wine experts and tastings.

Still not sure where to stay?

• You could expand your search to include all the best places to stay in Piedmont
• Expand a little further to include the best places to stay in Turin, with its Fiats, Nutella, and many museums, or Alba, with its white truffles, or Lake Maggiore, with its exotic plants
• Refine your search by the kind of holiday you’re planning, and focus on the best wine hotels in Piedmont
• Alternatively, you could contact one of our friendly Gurus for personalised advice.