7 reasons why you should visit Friuli Venezia Giulia
Why visit the Italian region Friuli Venezia Giulia? Here are 7 good reasons to do it
Friuli Venezia Giulia, located in the northeast of Italy a couple of hours from Venice, is the cornerstone of my blog. Perhaps by browsing the Hikes section, you have already understood if our region suits your holiday idea, but if you are still in doubt, here are 7 reasons you should visit Friuli Venezia Giulia, which we call in short FVG.
As for the article on 10 Hikes to do for your first time in Friuli Venezia Giulia, I relied on my community (of Friulians) on Instagram to identify the reasons that make our Friûl, a region worth visiting.
Of course, I already knew them, but it was nice to see how similar the responses I received were. The 7 reasons to visit Friuli Venezia Giulia that you read below make everyone agree.
The first reason to visit Friuli Venezia Giulia is that Friuli Venezia Giulia is not yet so crowded and it’s off the main Italian touristic routes. Italy is dotted with UNESCO heritage sites, but FVG is still quite foreign to mass tourism. This translates into many benefits for the tourist.
Monuments, museums, and sites of interest are still quiet. In short, forget the long lines under the sun to visit the Colosseum or the endless processions through the streets of Venice.
And what about nature? Still wild for the most part. If it is true that there are many areas with all the comforts for tourists, there are just as many that are still wild or that are becoming wild following the abandonment of the mountain areas. In short, if you have always dreamed of experiencing an Italian version of Into the wild, in Friuli Venezia Giulia you can do it.
2. Friuli Venezia Giulia has everything
Obviously not exactly everything, but if you can’t decide whether to go on vacation to the sea, in the mountains or in the hills, you won’t need to choose one option and exclude the others.
This is the most popular reason why you should visit Friuli Venezia Giulia in my Instagram survey. In fact, this is something we are quite proud of in the region.
If you want sand beaches, you will find them in Grado and Lignano. If you want pebbles and cliffs, there is Trieste. If you like being in the hills, you are spoiled for choice between Collio and Friuli Collinare. For the mountains… well, just go to the Hikes section to get a taste.
Udine, Trieste, Gorizia, Pordenone, San Daniele, Palmanova, Aquileia and Cividale are little jewels that will make you fall in love with Friuli Venezia Giulia and a side of Italy you’ve never seen.
The variety of Friuli Venezia Giulia, however, is not only anthropological but also translates into terms of biodiversity. In fact, in a small area, you will find almost 100 different habitats. In how many places can you find the Dolomites, Karst, lagoon, and magredi within a few kilometers?
3. Everything is close
The most beautiful thing you will discover when you decide to visit Friuli Venezia Giulia is that all the places I described in point 2 are close. It only takes a couple of hours by car to go from Tarvisio to Lignano or from Forni di Sopra to Trieste. Basically, you can hike in the mountains in the morning and drink an evening aperitif by the sea. If this is not a good reason to come to Friuli Venezia Giulia …
If you really don’t want to choose what to do, I recommend staying in Udine which is located exactly in the center of the region. From Udine and its surroundings, you can reach any part of the FVG in an hour or so.
4. Everything is close ... Even foreign countries
Friuli Venezia Giulia is located in the northeastern corner of Italy and borders Austria and Slovenia. This means that if you decide to come to our region you can also cross the border and visit our neighbors.
I’ll give you some examples:
Udine is only 160 km from Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia. Or, from Udine, you have to travel over 600 km to get to Rome, but only 450 km to eat a slice of Sacher in Vienna.
Moreover, one of the most beautiful roads to take by car, bike, or motorbike is the one that follows the Slovenian path of the Isonzo (Soča in Slovenian) from Nova Gorica, the Slovenian heterozygous twin of Gorizia, up to Tolmin. From Tolmin it takes less than 20 km to get to Kobarid and then back to Italy in the Cividale area.
If we turn our gaze to the north, it will be very easy for you to cross over to Austria even while hiking (for example, in Val Bartolo or on the Pal Piccolo). If you really want to use the car, know that Carinthia is wonderful to explore. In the winter season, many ski areas are cross-border, and if you want to go to the spa when visiting Tarvisio in winter, don’t even look in Italy, point your google maps directly towards Villach Warmbad.
On the Italian front, too, we have illustrious neighbors. The cheapest car parks to visit Venice are Udine and Pordenone. And if you stay in Sappada it won’t take you long to get to Cortina or South Tyrol.
5. Guests of unique people
We’re probably the least Italian people you can find in Italy. If you dream of the warm Italian welcome, think again. In Friuli Venezia Giulia we’re a bit more uptight.The average inhabitant of Friuli Venezia Giulia comes as cold and not very hospitable… and in fact, at least on the surface, it might seem true. We are somewhat suspicious people, perhaps due to our long history of unfriendly invasions, but if you have the patience to get to know us when you visit Friuli Venezia Giulia, you will discover a world of generous, hard-working and even nice people that will make anything to put you at ease. If you then move to the eastern part of the region you will find that it is difficult to resist the sympathy of the people of Trieste.
In any case, the secret to making the heart of even the sulkiest inhabitant from Friuli Venezia Giulia melt, is just to offer a drink. This brings us to the 6th reason to visit Friuli Venezia Giulia
6. Wines are a good reason to visit Fruli Venezia Giulia
In Friuli Venezia Giulia liquid gold is not oil, but wine. When you visit our region your gaze will rest on countless vineyards.
From the naturalistic side, this means that many areas of Friuli Venezia Giulia are similar to the famous Tuscan hills (but with more accessible prices and fewer crowds). Take a ride on the Colli Orientali del Friuli or get lost in the Collio crossing into Slovenia (where the Collio continues under the name of Brda).
On the food and wine side, here you can taste many native vines (Friulano, Ribolla, Schiopettino, Ramandolo, Pignolo, Piccolit) and I’m sure that at the end of your holiday when someone offers you prosecco you will say “Hell no! I want a sparkling Ribolla! ”
Last but not least, when you go out to eat the house wines are also very good. Very often wine costs like water and is certainly less expensive than any soda.
7. We are the only place on earth where you can eat Frico
Frico, a cheese and potato pie, is the typical dish of Friuli Venezia Giulia. It is found in many variations and the recipes are as numerous as the FVG families.
It seems incredible that although there are dishes like rösti or tortillas, no one else has ever thought of combining cheese with potatoes. Frico is usually made with Montasio cheese.
When you visit Friuli Venezia Giulia you will try it in all its different ways and if you want to take some Frico home with you, just go into any supermarket to find vacuum-packed frico and polenta.
If you want to discover other succulent recipes from Friuli Venezia Giulia, go to the Food section of the Site.
I hope this roundup of reasons to visit Friuli Venezia Giulia has made you want to visit our little and unknown corner of Italy. If you come from Friuli Venezia Giulia, leave a comment saying why people should visit Friuli Venezia Giulia. If you want to reiterate those written here is fine.
If, on the other hand, you have visited Friuli Venezia Giulia as a tourist, why should a person choose it as a destination for their holidays?
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