Piedmont · Cuneo
Guarene
A Roero hilltop village above the Tanaro, whose Roero family baroque castle is now a luxury hotel and contemporary art destination.
- Best time
- Apr–Oct
- By car
- 1 h from Turin
- Population
- 3,551
Known for
ROERO CASTLE
Eighteenth-century baroque castle of the Roero bankers of Asti, rebuilt from 1726, now a Relais & Châteaux hotel and museum.
SANDRETTO ART
Fondazione Sandretto Re Rebaudengo's first venue, Palazzo Re Rebaudengo, plus a 2019 sculpture park in the surrounding vineyards.
ROERO HILLS
Sandy hill country across the Tanaro from the Langhe, producing Roero Arneis and Roero DOCG Nebbiolo at 350-400 meters.
When to visit
Best · Apr–Oct
- J7°
- F11°
- M13°
- A17°
- M21°
- J26°
- J29°
- A29°
- S24°
- O18°
- N11°
- D7°
- Best
- Hot or crowded
- Quiet
- Mostly closed
Daytime averages, 2020–2024. Weather data by Open-Meteo.com.
Why come
Guarene sits on the left bank of the Tanaro, the last hill of the Roero before the river crosses to Alba and the Langhe. The Roero family, powerful Asti bankers, took the village in 1379 and held it until the line ended with Count Alessandro in 1899. Count Carlo Giacinto Roero rebuilt the medieval fortress between 1726 and his death, turning it into a baroque summer residence; his sons completed the work and hosted the king and queen of Sardinia here in 1773.
The castle is now a Relais & Châteaux hotel with a small museum. On the slope below the village, the Fondazione Sandretto Re Rebaudengo opened Palazzo Re Rebaudengo in 1997 as its first contemporary art space; the foundation added an open-air sculpture park in 2019 with works by Carsten Höller, Marguerite Humeau, and Paul Kneale set among pear orchards and Nebbiolo rows. The hill carries four institutional signals at once, the highest density of any Roero commune.
The Sunday letter
Guarene is on our list. Its letter is still to come.
We are writing about all 1,000 of these towns, one at a time, in a free letter every Sunday: the photo, the food, the festa. That is our mission. Sign up and you will be there when Guarene comes up. By Peter & Sophia, from Pietrasanta.
Read on
Guarene in our articles
The prettiest villages in the province of Cuneo6 towns, Guarene among them.
The prettiest villages that eat well in Piemonte6 towns, Guarene among them.
The 7 best small wine towns with a serious restaurant in Piemonte7 towns, Guarene among them.
The best towns worth staying overnight in Piemonte7 towns, Guarene among them.
How to get there
From Turin (TRN), about 1h 20m by car.
Genoa (GOA) is about 1h 44m away.
By car from the centre of Milan 2 hours.
Coming by train into Torino Porta Susa? Guarene is about 1 hour away by road.
What to see
Castello di Guarene
Eighteenth-century baroque castle rebuilt 1726 by Count Carlo Giacinto Roero from a medieval fortress, now a Relais & Châteaux hotel.
Palazzo Re Rebaudengo
Fondazione Sandretto Re Rebaudengo's first contemporary art space, opened 1997 in an eighteenth-century palazzo in the village.
Parco d'arte Sandretto Re Rebaudengo
Open-air sculpture park opened 2019 with works by Carsten Höller, Marguerite Humeau, and Paul Kneale among Nebbiolo rows and pear orchards.
Chiesa parrocchiale dei SS. Pietro e Bartolomeo
Baroque parish church in the village, with eighteenth-century stuccoes and altarpieces commissioned by the Roero family.
Belvedere di Guarene
Lookout terrace at the top of the village over the Tanaro and across to Alba and the Langhe hills beyond.
The slow-trip planner
Building a trip? Find where Guarene fits in a slow Italy circuit.
Answer five questions. We will shape a geographically coherent slow trip from the 1,000 Italian towns most travelers skip. Yours to save and share.
We recommend
Where to eat and stay
Not our picks, but places the guides put their name to: a Michelin star, a Gambero Rosso fork, a Slow Food snail, a Michelin Key for the hotels. Worth a table, a counter, or a night when you pass through.
Io e LunaRistorante
Io e Luna holds a spot in the Michelin Guide.
Limonaia del Castello di GuareneRistorante
Two Gambero Rosso forks (80/100), at Limonaia del Castello di Guarene.
Pico Bistrot in MadernassaBistrot
Pico Bistrot in Madernassa carries two Gambero Rosso tables.
Castello di GuareneHotel
Castello di Guarene holds a place in the Michelin hotel guide.
Living here
- Population 3,551
- Commuter belti
- Pharmacy in town
- High school within a 30-minute drive
- Nearest airport Turin, 1 h 20 min drive
- Regional capital Torino, 1 h 2 min drive
Common questions
- What is Guarene known for?
- Guarene is a Roero hilltop village at 360 meters above the Tanaro, whose Roero family baroque castle is now a luxury hotel and contemporary art destination.
- Where is Guarene?
- Guarene is a comune in the province of Cuneo, in Piedmont.
- What is the nearest airport to Guarene?
- Turin (TRN), about 1h 20m by car.
- How long is the drive from Milan to Guarene?
- About 2 hours by car.
- When is the best time to visit Guarene?
- Best in Apr–Oct. July is the warmest month, averaging 29 degrees, and May the wettest, with about 13 rain days.
- Which other towns are like Guarene?
- Castagnole delle Lanze, Neive and Dogliani.
- How many people live in Guarene?
- 3,551 at the 2023 count.
Tags & datadesignations · numbers · sources
The numbers
- Elevation: 360 m
- Population: 3,551
- Surface area: 13.45 km²
These figures were compiled from public directories: ISTAT, OpenStreetMap and Wikidata, and from the official listings of the guides named on this page. Town details change; verify with official sources before you travel.
Featured on
Guarene appears on this themed pick from our Collections:
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