Reggia di Venaria Reale

The Reggia di Venaria Reale is one of the largest and most spectacular royal palaces in Europe, a Baroque masterpiece built in the seventeenth century as a hunting residence for the Dukes of Savoy and now a UNESCO World Heritage Site on the edge of Turin. After decades of decay it reopened in 2007 following one of the continent's biggest restoration projects, and visitors today walk through a triumphant sequence of state rooms culminating in the Great Gallery, or Galleria di Diana, designed by Filippo Juvarra: a luminous 80-metre hall of white stucco and tall windows that floods with light and ranks among the great interiors of the Baroque. The route also takes in the Chapel of Sant'Uberto, the vaulted former stables and the multimedia Theatre of History and Magnificence that recounts the rise and fall of the Savoy court. Beyond the palace stretch vast landscaped gardens combining restored formal parterres, the contemporary sculptures of artists such as Giuseppe Penone, fountains and long tree-lined avenues that host seasonal garden shows. A complete visit, palace and gardens together, easily fills three to four hours, and a small road train helps cover the grounds. The Reggia is busiest on spring and summer weekends and during major temporary exhibitions; weekday mornings are calmer, and golden evening light suits photography of the Great Gallery and the garden axes. Located in the town of Venaria Reale just north of Turin, it is reached in about thirty minutes by the dedicated Venaria Express shuttle or local GTT buses. As the centrepiece of the Savoy residences in Piedmont, it offers one of the fullest experiences of royal court life anywhere in Italy.