Turin blends grand royal architecture, arcaded boulevards and a rich cafe culture with two major universities and a lively, affordable student scene. It is cheaper and calmer than Milan but just as well connected, with the Alps for skiing and the Langhe wine hills close by. Home of gianduja chocolate, vermouth and the aperitivo tradition, it rewards those who look past the obvious cities.

• Milan is about an hour away and the Alps around 90 minutes for skiing.
• The Langhe wine country (Barolo, Alba) is roughly an hour south.

Student life centres on San Salvario, the multicultural nightlife district by Porta Nuova, and Vanchiglia near the university. Turin practically invented the aperitivo, and evenings revolve around a drink with a generous free buffet. The Quadrilatero Romano adds more bars, making for a rich but budget-friendly scene.

• Do aperitivo in San Salvario, where a drink comes with a big free buffet.
• Head to Vanchiglia and the Quadrilatero Romano for student bars and nightlife.
• Ask the Turin group on Studcasa which aperitivo spots give the best buffets.

Turin is noticeably cheaper than Milan while keeping the northern quality of life, sitting in the mid Italian band for students. Rents are reasonable, and the aperitivo buffets double as cheap dinners. Markets like Porta Palazzo keep food costs low.

• Fill up on an aperitivo buffet in San Salvario for the price of one drink.
• Shop Porta Palazzo, Europe's largest open-air market, for cheap fresh food.
• Share a flat in San Salvario or Vanchiglia to stay comfortably mid-band.

Students concentrate in San Salvario and Vanchiglia (both near the universities and nightlife), plus Aurora, Cit Turin and San Donato. Rooms come through Facebook groups, agencies and university services, and the market is more relaxed than Milan's. Start looking a month or two ahead.

• Search Affitto stanze Torino studenti on Facebook and post in the Studcasa Turin group.
• San Salvario suits UniTo students and nightlife; Vanchiglia is close to the humanities faculties.
• Check heating costs, Turin winters are cold and can be foggy.

Turin has a clean automated metro (Line 1), an extensive tram and bus network run by GTT, and the ToBike bike-share scheme. A student season ticket makes it cheap, and the grid layout with arcaded streets is easy to walk. Porta Nuova and Porta Susa stations handle trains everywhere.

• Buy a GTT student season pass for the metro, trams and buses.
• Use the automated Metro Line 1 to cross the city quickly along the main axis.
• Try ToBike bike share for short trips along the arcaded boulevards.

Turin has two big institutions: the University of Turin (UniTo), a large public university strong in humanities, law, economics and sciences, and the Politecnico di Torino (PoliTo), one of Europe's top engineering and architecture schools. Both are highly international, with English-taught programmes and a large Erasmus community.

• PoliTo sits near Porta Susa; UniTo's faculties are spread across the centre and Vanchiglia.
• ESN Torino runs frequent ski trips and events, an easy social starting point.

If you are an EU or EEA citizen you need nothing beyond registering your residence if you stay past 90 days. Non-EU students almost always need a national type D study visa arranged through the Italian consulate before arrival, plus proof of enrolment, funds and health insurance. Exactly what you need depends on your nationality, so check with your consulate early.

Once in Italy, non-EU students must apply for a permesso di soggiorno, the residence permit, within eight days of arrival, using a post office kit and a police questura appointment. It is slow and paperwork-heavy, so bring photocopies of everything and expect queues. Your university's international office will usually walk you through it.

• EU/EEA, no visa; register if staying 90+ days
• Non-EU, type D study visa from your consulate
• After arrival, permesso di soggiorno within 8 days

Turin is a foodie capital: birthplace of gianduja chocolate, vermouth and the bicerin (a coffee, chocolate and cream drink), with a serious historic-cafe culture. Piedmontese cooking brings agnolotti del plin, vitello tonnato, bagna cauda and, in autumn, white truffles from nearby Alba. The aperitivo here is generous and ritualistic.

• Order a bicerin at a historic cafe like Al Bicerin, and try gianduiotto chocolates.
• Eat agnolotti del plin and vitello tonnato in a Piedmontese trattoria.
• Shop Porta Palazzo and the Mercato Centrale, and taste truffles in autumn.

San Salvario is the multicultural nightlife hub by Porta Nuova; Vanchiglia is the arty student quarter near the university; and the Quadrilatero Romano is the historic centre's bar district. Crocetta is elegant and residential, Aurora cheaper and up-and-coming, and Borgo Po sits prettily across the river.

• San Salvario: lively, diverse and nightlife-heavy near the station.
• Vanchiglia: student and arty, close to UniTo.
• Aurora: cheaper and changing fast, well connected to the centre.

Turin is a springboard for the Alps and Piedmont. The ski resorts of the Via Lattea (Sestriere) are around 90 minutes, the Langhe wine towns of Alba and Barolo an hour, and Milan an hour by train. Genoa and the Ligurian coast are about 90 minutes, with the Aosta valley and even France within reach.

• Ski the Via Lattea slopes at Sestriere, around 90 minutes away.
• Tour the Langhe for Barolo wine and Alba's truffles, an hour south.
• Train to Genoa and the Ligurian coast for a seaside weekend.

Turin is understated, so its charms reveal themselves slowly, lean into the cafe and aperitivo culture and the free buffets that come with drinks. It is cheaper than Milan, so make the most of that. Dress warmly for foggy winters, and use the excellent train links for skiing and wine country at weekends.

• Make aperitivo buffets your budget dinners, Turin's are among Italy's most generous.
• Get a GTT season pass and use the trains for cheap Alpine and Langhe weekends.
• Wrap up for the cold, damp winters, which can drag on into spring.