Essential travel guide to Neive, a pretty hilttop town in Piedmont famous for charming architecture, culinary excellence and sweeping views.
There are places that catch your eye with showstopping landmarks (Rome…) and then there are places like Neive, that quietly steal your heart and seem to nestle forever in corner of your soul.
Neive is a small village perched on a hilltop among the rolling vineyards of Piedmont’s Langhe region, and it often describes as one of the prettiest villages in Italy (Borghi piu’ belli d’Italia, a coveted title).
It is easy to see why!
Neive has winding stone streets, shuttered pastel houses, and flower-filled balconies with overflowing geraniums and cats lazying in the sun and its architecture has a delicate charm, reminiscent of medieval and baroque elements, with soft alpine touches that feel almost Swiss or Tyrolean.
The result is a place of quite elegance, that mixed an out of time yet authentic feel: truly, in my opinion, one of the prettiest towns in le Langhe and a must see!
Neive is the kind of place for leisure exploration and long pauses.
As you stroll, you just to take in the views, admire cute painting facades, let the scent of something delicious drifting from a kitchen window tickle your nostril and of course you rest as often as needed at Neive’s delicious restaurants and cellars.
When we visited, we did just this!
And we loved Neive so much, I want to give you all the info you may need to enjoy it as least as much as we did! This is my essential travel guide to Neive, with the best things to see, how to get there and our food finds.
I hope you enjoy it!
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Essential maps of Neive (top sights, our favorite restaurants)
The best things to do in Neive
Wander the historic town center
Neive is a small center and the best thing to see, truly, is the center itself.
All it takes is to wander its pretty streets to see all the cutest stops: my recommendations for this town is to go without an itinerary and just wander.
I’ll leave you a few photos to give a sense of that I mean!
These are typical streets in Neive, with houses in different pastel colors, cobbled streets and many cafes’ / restaurants with outdoor terraces
Below, you see details of the Neive Municipality, which has a peculiar, almost Alpine architecture that makes you feel like entered a medieval fairytale book!
A couple of things you may want to specifically look for (you’ll encounter them anyway) are
- The above mentioned Town Hall
- Neive’s clock tower – closed when we went but I am told you can climb it to get sweeping views of the country below (we climbed the one in Barbaresco instead, amazing!)
- The church of St Peter and Paul and the church of St Michael, both worth seeing inside
- The small chapel of San Rocco
- The Momumento ai caduti (memorial)
- Neive’s Castle (see below)
Catch a view
Neive is on a hilltop and this means it is a fantastic vantage point to catch beautifl views over the rolling hills of this area.
Go wine tasting
The area of le Lamghe in general is wine country and the home of outstanding wines such as Barolo, world famous, but also many more white, red, bubbly and flat (my favorite is Alta Langa, a fantastic bubbly white!)
When it comes to good wine, you cannot go wrong in Neive, but a good place to start and get an overview is Neive’s Cantina Comunale which is comfortably juts in front of the Town Hall, very easy to include in your itinerary.
Another beautiful place to visit for wine lovers is Neive’s Castle which has beautiful cellars and is typical of this area. You can find their website here: reservation recommended, closed on Tuesday
Where to eat in Neive
As well as wandering the city center, I recommend you take some time to experience the culinary excellences of Neive, a village that punches above its weight in terms of the concentration and quality of its wine and food establishments.
The area is famous especially for the production of wine, truffles and hazelnut and you have several restaurants thay showcase the use of these products with outstanding results. Some you may enjoy are:
- Umano – my favorite! A lovely, small restaurant with indoor and outdoor table. Ask for daily recommendations on food and wine pairing: he is happy to help and his taste is flawless! Reservation recommended and pretty much essential for dinner (lunch is easier) https://www.umanoneive.it/
Visiting Neive with kids
Neive is a delightful small town with a mellow and quiet feel, very easy to enjoy with kids due to its lack of traffic and tranquil atmosphere.
While we cannot say there is much for kids to do here specifically (this is a small center, so don’t expect soft play areas or anything of the sort), this is fabulous place to call home if you want a small town base or a place to visit for a day.
In terms of terrain, if you have kids in strollers, you need to be ready to push the stroller uphill and for some roads to offer a bit of a bumpy ride. However, it is still a place you can easily tackle also with toddlers for a short walk.
The town itself has a small but cute playground just at it entrance the circonvallazione.
How to get to Neive and where to park
You can reach Neive by car.
The road to the town is scenic and well kept, but there are some bends and low speed limits so make sure you pay attention to local signs and go slow.
Neive’s historic center is a ZTL (limited traffic zone), so you’ll need to park outside and walk in: this is easy as the parking spaces are pourpusly very close to the center and well indicated. Make sure you follow local signage for pay and display – bring cash. We parked on ‘Circonvallazione’ and it was perfect.
The best time to visit Neive
Neive is beautiful year-round, but the best times to visit are:
- Late spring (May–June) and early fall (September and early October) – The countryside is lush, and the flowers are in bloom. This is a fantastic time to stroll, take in the views of rolling hills and verdant vines and enjoy good weather before the oppressive heat of July and August kicks in
- Autumn (October – November ) – Perfect for wine harvest festivals and the start of white truffle season
Where to stay in Neive
Places you may enjoy in and near Neive are:
Casa Caimotta – beautiful property in Neive with nice rooms (including family rooms), seasonal swimming pool, air conditioning, parking, option to rent bikes, wi fi etc
Castelbourg – a clean and well priced 3 star hotel located in the center of Neive, with pretty rooms with air conditioning, minibar and wifi. A lovely place to call home in the heart of the town
Cascina Longoria – out of town, a beautiful property to immerse yourself in the local countryside, with also family rooms available. The property has a seasonal pool, wifi, parking on site and an excellent breakfast
Extra accommodation tip! Not in Neive but in nearby Alba, a very short driving distance from here, we adore Villa Meridiana, a fantastic country stay with amazing breakfast, seasonal pool, game room and the most amazing family of hosts. A fantastic base to explore this whole area.
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