Superga is a hill (672m above sea level, 10km east of central Turin) and a basilica (the Basilica di Superga, 1717-1731, by Filippo Juvarra, the Sicilian architect who transformed Turin's architectural profile for the Savoy court and who built Superga as the Savoy dynastic church comparable to the Escorial in Spain) and a tragedy (the Superga air disaster of May 4, 1949, when the Fiat G.212 aircraft carrying the entire Grande Torino football squad, the team that had won five consecutive Italian championships and contained the bulk of the Italian national team, crashed into the Superga hillside in fog, killing all 31 people on board). These three identities are inseparable from each other and from the hill, and the visitor who arrives at Superga encounters all three simultaneously.
How do you want to see it?
Piedmont, ItalyCompare the same experience on GetYourGuide and Viator, save what you like to My Trip, share it, and book when you’re sure. Nearest to this page first.
Superga: The Three Identities
Juvarra's Basilica
The Basilica di Superga (begun 1717, consecrated 1731) was commissioned by Vittorio Amedeo II of Savoy to fulfill a vow made during the Siege of Turin of 1706, the battle in which the French besieging force was routed by a Savoy-Imperial army, preserving Turin's independence. Juvarra's design: a central-plan church with a massive dome (37m interior diameter) on a cylindrical drum, flanked by twin campanili, and mounted on a tall podium-base that contains the royal crypt. The facade faces west toward Turin and the Po plain and the Alps beyond, the specific Superga view from the basilica steps, with the entire Piedmont plain and the Alpine arc from Mont Blanc to Monte Rosa visible on clear days, is among the finest in Italy. The interior: the rich Baroque decoration (the marble altars, the frescoed vault, the gilded stuccos) is specifically Juvarra at his most confident, informed by his training in Rome under Carlo Fontana and his next experience at the Savoy court.
Superga: tours & tickets
Compare guided tours, skip-the-line tickets and day trips for Superga.
See availability & prices →Compare tours on Viator →We may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you.The Royal Tombs
The crypt beneath the basilica contains the tombs of the Kings of Sardinia and Italy from the House of Savoy, from Vittorio Amedeo II (died 1732) through Carlo Alberto (died 1849) and multiple generations of the royal family. The crypt is the specific dynastic memorial that Juvarra's patron intended: a royal burial church comparable to the Habsburg tombs in Vienna or the Bourbon tombs at Saint-Denis. The last King of Italy, Umberto II (died 1983, in exile in Portugal), is also buried here, the constitutional prohibition on his returning to Italy during his lifetime (the transitional provisions of the 1948 Constitution barred the male heirs of the House of Savoy from entering Italy until 2002) meant that his wishes to be buried at Superga were fulfilled posthumously.
The Grande Torino Memorial
The rear wall of the basilica (the east face, on the hillside side) is the site of the impact of the May 4, 1949 crash, a commemorative plaque marks the exact point. The memorial chapel inside the basilica complex contains the permanent exhibition of the Grande Torino tragedy: the team photographs, the careers of the individual players (Valentino Mazzola, the captain, who is considered the finest Italian footballer of the pre-Pelé era. Ezio Loik. Franco Ossola), and the specific historical context of a team that had won the Scudetto five consecutive times and contained ten of the eleven positions of the Italian national team. Italian football has never fully recovered from the loss of this generation of players, and the Turin football culture, the specific Torino FC identity distinct from and in eternal shadow of Juventus, is permanently marked by the Superga tragedy.
Q&A: Superga Turin
How do I get to Superga from Turin?
By the Tranvia di Superga (the historic funicular-tram line from Sassi, reachable by Turin city bus 61 from Piazza Vittorio Veneto, the funicular runs Saturdays, Sundays and holidays, and in summer on weekdays. Check gtt.to.it for the current schedule). Alternatively, by car via the SS590 from the city (20-25 minutes from the center). The funicular approach is the more specifically Torinese experience: the 1934 rack-rail line climbs through the Sassi-Superga hillside vegetation to the basilica, a 30-minute journey that the Turin tradition of weekend family excursions has used for 90 years.
Internal Links
- Torino Barocca: Juvarra e la Città Sabauda
- Torino in Dicembre: Mercatini e Cultura
- Vista dalle Colline di Torino: Guida Fotografica
- Torino Fuori Stagione: La Città Autentica
- Calcio Italiano: Grande Torino e Storia
- Cucina Piemontese: Il Pranzo dopo Superga
- Piemonte Sabaudo: Dal Castello alla Basilica
