Your quick travel guide to Asti

Car rental Asti

The city of Asti was founded by the Romans in 129 BC. The surroundings are very picturesque – the fertile valley of the Tanaro River, green vineyards and bright blue sky of Piedmont as a background. This land of plenty flourished in all times but in the modern age it gained world-wide fame due to its sparkling wine. You can rent a car in Asti and to drive around the province and to visit colourful wineries. Bottle of golden sparkling Asti Spumante is the best souvenir you can buy for your friends or for yourself – to uncork it later and to recall sweet memories about Italian vacation.

The history of Asti is ancient and rich in events, as the history of most Italian cities. People settled there since neolithic age. Linguists believe that the name is derived from Celtic root ast (“hill”). According to another version the name is associated with asta (“spear” in Latin). As the legend says, Roman general Gnaeus Pompeius arrived in the valley of Tanaro, was very impressed by the location, stuck his spear into the ground and ordered to built a city at that place. Asti survived many wars and managed to keep its unique charm and ancient traditions. The city has a medieval look but at the same time it offers all modern conveniences, comforts and services, including the service of car hire in Asti.

Every year fairs and festivals in Asti gather tens of thousands of visitors from all over the world. Car rental in Italy gives an excellent opportunity to adjust your trip so you could visit as many local festive events as possible. White Truffle Festival gained a special fame. Local climate and soil are especially good for this delicacy mushrooms and they grow in abundancy on the hills around the city. And of course Palio di Asti is the main event of the year. The bareback horse race has been held at the main square of the city since the 13th century.

The whole city looks like a giant stage built specially for this festival. Gothic cathedrals, baroque palaces, posh villas of merchants, impressive towers (once Asti was called the City of One Hundred Towers), ruins of Roman fortifications, the gems of architecture – Cattedrale di Santa Maria Assunta built in 13th century, one of the biggest Gothic buildings in Piedmont, Sant’Anastasio Church with excellent collection of antique sculptures, the Baptistery of St.Peter… Beautiful monuments are literally at every corner so the only worry of visitors is not to miss the most important ones. Staff of car rental office in Asti will gladly help you to find the nicest place to stay, to have the most authentic dinner and to visit all main places of interest.