I've heard and read so much about the awesome food and wine of Friuli, Venezia, Giulia but I'm having a difficult time deciding whether we should plan a week-long trip to that region as our primary destination. There seems to be so much more written about travel to other regions of Italy. We've been to Italy several times, each time renting a villa or apartment and taking day trips to explore the area. We tend to spend more time in the smaller towns and villages than in the big cities, and we love to explore the restaurants that the "locals" enjoy. Should we spend our next vacation in FVG? And, if so, does anyone have a recommendation regarding a great, well-priced place to stay? Thanks!
Posted by
New York, NY, USA
11294 posts
One advantage of going to an "obscure" region like Friuli-Venezia Giulia is that it's just you and the locals. I haven't been there, but a friend of mine went in September 2009. He stayed for 3 days in Udine, and lucked into a food festival. He had a great time, and also took a day trip somewhere else in Friuli-Venezia Giulia (I don't remember where). He stayed at this hotel in Udine, and liked it a lot: http://suiteinn.it/. As always, he used Fred Plotkin's book Italy For The Gourmet Traveler and the Slow Food Guide To Italy for restaurants, food stores, etc. He's usually pleased with the places that are listed in these books, and they're particularly useful for areas (like this one) that aren't covered so well in most guidebooks. I don't remember if he used Rough Guide, Lonely Planet, or both (each has a small section on this region).
Posted by
San Francisco Bay Area (USA)
16232 posts
In FVG, aside from the great mountain resorts, there are several sites that are worth visiting. I've been there just a few times but the following I would recommend (in no particular order): Trieste + Castello di Miramare nearby. Udine Aquileia Palmanova (very interesting city plan, look it up on google maps) Sacrario of Redipuglia (Monument to the Fallen WW-1 Veterans)
Tarvisio and the Friulan Dolomites and Giulian Alps. I also went to Gorizia, but don't remember much about it (it's been decades). I think it would be a nice vacation for a few days. The Friulani are famous for starting their mornings with a shot of Grappa, so don't be surprised if your breakfast drink is going to be a little 'stronger' than the typical cup of coffee. This is the FVG Tourist Board website: http://www.turismofvg.it/
Posted by
Seattle, WA, USA
7737 posts
The basic problem with that question is one of the things that makes Italy so wonderful. Most of the regions and provinces have no shortage of amazing stuff, if you take the time to seek it out. FVG is not a primary destination in the usual sense of "Is it where most tourists go on their first visit to Italy?" But since you've been to Italy several times, what you're really asking for is whether FVG is worth going to. As you've seen, you will not run out of cool things to see and do. Happy travels.
Posted by
OP
West Chester, PA, US
2 posts
Funny you should Mention Italy for the Gourmet Traveler, Harold. I just ordered it yesterday and I've got Plotkin's La Terra Fortunata that I borrowed from the library. I also have Osterie & Locande d'Italia, a Slow Food publication. George from what I can see, LaSubida looks like JUST the type of place we'd like to stay at. However, I'm having a little difficulty navigating through their website. I'll try again on a different web browser. Roberto thanks for listing the specific places to visit in FVG, in particular, some of the smaller places. That's really helpful. I'm thinking that maybe 4-5 days in the region rather than a week or longer might be sufficient. That will allow us to spend a few days in Slovenia.
Posted by
Vernon, Canada
32402 posts
@Cindy & Elle, I tried the the La Subida website using the link provided, and it seems to work fine. I was able to navigate through various parts of the website without any problems at all. Try clearing your Cache and Cookies, to see if that helps. Cheers!