Sleep in an old factory? Not necessarily tempting, a priori… But what a factory! The Lingotto belongs to the Turin legend. From the belly of this Art Deco concrete behemoth emerged tens of thousands of small Fiats. Fortunately, it’s been forty years since any of these mini-racers climbed the famous spiral ramp that leads to the vertiginous test track on the roof. In the early 1980s, the architect Renzo Piano was commissioned to rehabilitate the site into a shopping center, seeking to recreate “an original part of the city”. He took the opportunity to also design a hotel there.
With its ample volumes and unusual high ceilings, room 3022 at the DoubleTree by Hilton is both warm and minimal. Mixing gray and water green, it keeps the memory of the industrial past, but the nimbus of these amber woods of which the Genoese architect has the secret. Above all, on this high floor, the huge bay window overlooks the Alps in the distance: spotlight on the still snow-capped peaks rather than on the car park below, onto which the rooms on the lower floors open. The common areas are just as bright and the breakfast more varied. All for a relatively modest price for Italy. Be careful not to get lost in the maze of Lingotto to find the entrance, a stone’s throw from the Eataly store, a haven for food lovers. Another reason to choose the somewhat out-of-the-way district of Nizza Millefonti, which takes us back to Turin between the wars.
DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel, Lingotto. From 140 euros. Via Giacomo Matté Truco, 1. hilton.com
100 meters away: take cultural heights
Renzo Piano has not contented himself with transforming the Lingotto: he has placed on its roof a museum which seems ready to take off, tailor-made for the collection of the Agnelli family, historic owners of Fiat. In the aerial setting of the Pinacoteca Agnelli, one can contemplate, far from the crowds of oriental paintings by Matisse, the kinetic impulses of Giacomo Balla and travel to Venice with, for guides, the vedute by Canaletto and Bellotto. Access is free for DoubleTree residents, remember to ask for your ticket at the hotel reception. Car enthusiasts will also be in heaven: the art gallery provides access to the oval of the mythical track.
Open every day except Monday, from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. On the roof of the Lingotto, Via Nizza, 230.pinacoteca-agnelli.it
At 4,500 meters: refueling with young artists
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