Piemonte · Cuneo
Neive
A hilltop borgo in the Barbaresco zone, named for the Roman gens Naevia, with four wines in commercial volume.
Picked by Peter Benei
Letter to come
Why Neive is on our list
It holds Borghi più belli d'Italia and Bandiera Arancione.
Subscribe and you get Neive's letter the day it comes out.
Visiting
- Best time
- Apr–Oct
- By car
- 1 h 6 min from Turin
- By train
- Station in the comune
- Population
- 3,211
- J8°
- F12°
- M14°
- A18°
- M22°
- J27°
- J30°
- A30°
- S25°
- O19°
- N12°
- D8°
- Best
- Hot or crowded
- Quiet
- Mostly closed
Daytime air temperature, averages for 2020–2024. Weather data by Open-Meteo.com.
Why come
Neive sits on a Langhe ridge, fifty kilometers southeast of Torino and eight kilometers from Alba. The name traces to the gens Naevia, a Roman family that held the land in antiquity. The medieval village was fought over between Asti and Alba; its castle was destroyed in 1276 and rebuilt repeatedly through the Middle Ages.
The Torre dell'Orologio dates from 1224 and embeds a Roman funeral plaque to Valeria Terza in its wall, a deliberate piece of spolia from the older settlement. Neive is one of three Barbaresco communes (with Barbaresco and Treiso) and is the one locals call the township of four wines: Barbera, Dolcetto, Moscato and Nebbiolo all produced in commercial volume from the same hills. The centro storico is Borghi più belli, eight centuries of layered building stacked tightly enough that the old gates still mark the entry to the village.
How to get there
From Turin (TRN), about 1 h 24 min by car.
Genoa (GOA) is about 1 h 43 min away.
By car from the center of Milan 1 h 52 min.
There is a railway station in the comune, so you can arrive without a car.
Coming from Turin, Genoa or Milan?
Coming by train into Torino Porta Susa? Neive is about 1 h 5 min away by road.
Every town within reach of Turin airport.
First time driving in Italy? Read our complete manual.
What to see
Torre dell'Orologio
Civic tower of 1224 with a Roman funeral plaque to Valeria Terza set in its wall, the symbol of Neive's centro storico.
Centro storico
Hilltop Borghi più belli village stacked across eight centuries, with surviving medieval gates and Renaissance palazzi.
Palazzo del Municipio
White Baroque civic palace on the main piazza, decorated with arch motifs and standing beside the Torre dell'Orologio.
Castello di Castelborgo
Surviving castle on the village edge, rebuilt after the 1276 destruction; private but visible from the panoramic walks.
Vigne del Barbaresco
Surrounding Nebbiolo crus, plus Barbera, Dolcetto and Moscato vineyards making Neive the township of four wines.
Signature product
Barbaresco DOCG
One of three Barbaresco-producing communes; vineyards on the slopes above the Tanaro river.
See the towns we cover in the zone of Barbaresco DOCG.
Living here
Could you live here?
Neive is at the end of the road.
- A village of 3,211. The nearest town of 5,000 people, Alba, is 17 min away: past our 15-minute rule, which makes this the end of the road.
- Asti, a city of 73,440, is 30 min by car. Inside our 30 to 60 minutes: close for the services, far enough to keep its own life.
- A station of its own. Trains are the overlooked way to get around Italy: no parking, straight into the center.
The rules come from our series Where to Move in Italy, written from the places we have lived: Part 1, The End of the Road · Part 2, The Small Town · Part 3, The City · Part 4, The Postcard · Part 5, The Other Half. The towns we would pick are in Part 6, The Best Towns.
We measured every town in the region on these rules, by its drive to Turin, the city we moved to: Moving to Turin and Piedmont.
- Population 3,211, down 5.4% since 2015
- Nearest city Asti, 30 min drive
- Train station in the comune
- Nearest national health service hospital Verduno, 16 km as the crow flies · how healthcare works in Italy
- Homes in the center: €860 to €1,250 per m² to buy, €3.30 to €4.20 per m² a month to rent
Weighing a move here? See the moving year.
All the numbers Common questions, designations, lists and sources.
More about living here
- Commuter belt
- Pharmacy in town
- High school within a 30-minute drive
- Full fibre reaches 67% of homes
- Primary school in the comune
- Earthquake zone 4, very low hazard
- Cuneo airport (CUF), 51 min drive, the nearest with scheduled flights
- Regional capital Turin, 1 h 6 min drive
If you are moving here
Who lives here
15% of residents are foreign citizens, most often from North Macedonia, Romania and Bulgaria, against 9% across Italy. 12 of them come from English-speaking countries or western and northern Europe. There are 229 people over 65 for every 100 children under 15, against 216 across Italy. 35% of homes have no resident, holiday homes and empty ones counted together, against 27% across Italy. Cuneo province ranks 27th of 107 in Il Sole 24 Ore's quality of life ranking for 2025.
Health and schools
The nearest emergency room is in Verduno, 16 km as the crow flies. It has a children's emergency room too. The nearest major one is in Alessandria, 46 km away. The nearest IB school is International School of Turin, 41 km as the crow flies.
Information, not medical advice. Confirm with a professional.
Taxes
A home that is not your main one pays 0.95% a year in property tax, charged on the cadastral value rather than the price. A main home pays none unless it is in a luxury category. The town adds 0.6% to your income tax. 7% pensioner tax: this town is not in a qualifying area.
Information, not tax advice. Confirm with a professional.
What it costs
The average household in Piemonte spends about €2,240 a month, €580 of it on food, against about €2,170 across Italy. A family of three pays about €467 a year for water, on the Piemonte average. In Cuneo, the provincial capital, in September 2026, an espresso cost €1.34 and a meal in a pizzeria €12.38.
Climate and risk
It is in climate zone E, on a scale from A, the warmest, to F, the coldest, and heating may run from October 15 to April 15, up to 14 hours a day, unless the mayor changes it. 3% of residents live in a zone the national maps rate high for floods, 3% in a high or medium one. 5% live in a zone rated high or very high for landslides.
These shares cover the whole comune, not any one street. Check an address on IdroGEO.
Moving from abroad? Which visa you need. Sources: ISTAT, the Ministry of Health, ISPRA, the Finance Ministry, the Ministry of Enterprise, Poste Italiane, the comuni, the IB, International Schools Database, Il Sole 24 Ore, Cittadinanzattiva.
Known for
BARBARESCO
One of the communes of the Barbaresco DOCG, alongside Barbaresco, Treiso and part of Alba, with powerful, tannic expressions.
TORRE DEL 1224
The civic clock tower preserves a Roman funeral plaque in its base, linking the medieval village to the gens Naevia.
FOUR WINES
Barbera, Dolcetto, Moscato and Nebbiolo all grown in commercial volume; Neive is the only Barbaresco commune that holds all four.
DOCG ZONES
The commune also lies inside the Asti and Canelli DOCG production zones.
Common questions
- What is Neive known for?
- Neive is a hilltop borgo at 308 meters in the Barbaresco zone, named for the Roman gens Naevia, with four wines in commercial volume.
- Where is Neive?
- Neive is a comune in the province of Cuneo, in Piemonte.
- What is the nearest airport to Neive?
- The nearest airport with scheduled flights is Cuneo (CUF), about 51 min by car.
- Can you get to Neive without a car?
- Yes. There is a railway station in the comune, so you can arrive by train.
- How long is the drive from Milan to Neive?
- About 1 h 52 min by car.
- When is the best time to visit Neive?
- Best in Apr–Oct. July is the warmest month, averaging 30 degrees, and May the wettest, with about 13 rain days.
- Which other towns are like Neive?
- Castagnole delle Lanze, Candelo and Ornavasso.
- How many people live in Neive?
- 3,211 residents, by ISTAT's count on 1 January 2025.
- Is Neive a good place to live?
- By the rules in our Where to Move in Italy series, Neive is at the end of the road: the nearest town of 5,000 people, Alba, is 17 min away. The nearest city, Asti, is 30 min away by car. The nearest national health service hospital is in Verduno, 16 km as the crow flies. Full fibre reaches 67% of homes.
Tags & data designations · numbers · sources
Recognized as
Landscape
The numbers
- Elevation: 308 m
- Population: 3,211
- Surface area: 21.3 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.
The ranked lists
Lists Neive appears in
- The prettiest villages in the province of CuneoCuneo provinceprettiest villages6 towns · smallest 87 residents
- The prettiest villages you can reach by train in PiemontePiemonteby trainprettiest villages7 towns · smallest 192 residents
- The prettiest villages within 90 minutes of TurinNear Turinwithin 90 minprettiest villages8 towns · smallest 102 residents · closest 57 min away
Featured on
Neive appears on this themed pick from our Collections:
Similar
Towns like Neive
What all six share with Neive: inland, away from the coast · between 3,000 and 10,000 people · hill towns · have a railway station in the comune
The letter
Neive 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: the photo, what is worth eating, and when to turn up. That is our mission. Sign up and you will be there when Neive comes up. By Peter & Sophia, from Turin.
The nearest town we have written up is Camogli, 92 km away. Read its letter →
Paid plans, the moving year and the books are on the membership page.