Anywhere ItalySubscribe
Udine, Friuli-Venezia Giulia
Coat of arms of Udine

Friuli-Venezia Giulia · Udine

Udine

The historic capital of Friuli, built around a man-made castle hill.

Picked by Peter Benei

Letter to come

Udine is on our list.

Subscribe and you get Udine's letter the day it comes out.

Subscribe, free

About the letter

Visiting

Best time
Apr–Jun, Sep–Oct
By car
1 h 4 min from Trieste
By train
Station in the comune
Population
98,279

When to visit

Best · Apr–Jun, Sep–Oct

  • J9°
  • F11°
  • M14°
  • A17°
  • M21°
  • J27°
  • J29°
  • A29°
  • S24°
  • O19°
  • N14°
  • D9°
  • Best
  • Hot or crowded
  • Quiet
  • Mostly closed

Daytime air temperature, averages for 2020–2024. Weather data by Open-Meteo.com.

Why come

Udine sits in the center of the Friulian plain, raised on a single man-made hill that legend assigns to Attila's army. The city is documented from 983, when Emperor Otto II donated the castle to the Patriarchs of Aquileia. In the thirteenth century the patriarchs moved their residence here, and for nearly two centuries Udine served as capital of the Patria del Friuli before Venice took the city in 1420 and governed it until 1797.

The hill and the square below it still read as two distinct centers: the castle above, rebuilt after the 1511 earthquake, looking down on the civic and religious cluster of the Piazza della Libertà, the Duomo, and the patriarchs' palace. From May 1915 to October 1917 the city was the seat of the Italian military command and was nicknamed Capitale della Guerra. A town built twice over as a seat of power, first ecclesiastical, then military, with its hill as the constant.

How to get there

From Treviso (TSF), about 1 h 33 min by car.

Verona (VRN) is about 2 h 46 min away.

By car from the center of Trieste 1 h 4 min.

Driving in is restricted: there is a limited traffic zone here (ZTL Centro). Check the signs and the times before you drive into the center.

There is a railway station in the comune, so you can arrive without a car.

Coming from Venice?

Coming by train into Trieste Centrale? Udine is about 1 h 2 min away by road.

Every town within reach of Treviso airport.

First time driving in Italy? Read our complete manual.

Udine, Friuli-Venezia Giulia
Udine, Friuli-Venezia Giulia

What to see

  • Piazza della Libertà

    Framed by the Loggia del Lionello of 1448, the Porticato di San Giovanni, and a clock tower with copper Mori that strike the hour above the square.

  • Castello di Udine

    Rebuilt in the sixteenth century after the 1511 earthquake, former seat of the Patriarchs of Aquileia and then of the Venetian governors, now housing civic museums on the hill above the city.

  • Galleria del Tiepolo (Palazzo Patriarcale)

    The frescoes here were painted for the Patriarch Dionisio Dolfin; Giambattista Tiepolo's rooms are reached through the palace's staircase and galleries, the setting as much a part of the work as the ceilings themselves.

  • Duomo di Santa Maria Annunziata

    The principal religious building of the patriarchal seat, holding further Tiepolo frescoes and altarpieces inside a fourteenth-century structure.

  • Oratorio della Purità

    A small oratory beside the Duomo, its every surface, including the ceiling Assumption, decorated by Tiepolo father and son together.

From the guides

Where to eat

Not our picks, but places the guides put their name to: a Michelin star, a Gambero Rosso fork, a Slow Food snail, a Michelin Key for the hotels. Worth a table, a counter, or a night when you pass through.

  • Agli AmiciRistorante

    Agli Amici has two Michelin stars, three Gambero Rosso forks (93/100) and a place in L'Espresso's Top 300, among other nods.

  • Vitello d'OroRistorante

    Vitello d'Oro carries one Gambero Rosso fork (78/100), plus a spot in the Michelin Guide.

  • 1905 dell'Hotel Là di MoretRistorante

    1905 dell'Hotel Là di Moret holds two Gambero Rosso forks (82/100).

4 more places the guides name in Udine

  • FredWine Bar

    Fred has two Gambero Rosso bottles to its name.

  • Hostaria alla TavernettaRistorante

    Hostaria alla Tavernetta holds a spot in the Michelin Guide.

  • Osteria Aquila NeraTrattoria

    A Gambero Rosso listing, at Osteria Aquila Nera.

  • Trattoria Alla VedovaRistorante

    Trattoria Alla Vedova has a place on Italy's historic-locali register to its name.

Before you sit down: how to order at a restaurant, how to spot a tourist trap, what aperitivo is and how the Italian bar works.

Living here

Could you live here?

Udine is a city.

  • A city of 98,279 people, and a provincial capital: the services are here, not a drive away.
  • A station of its own, so the rest of Italy is a train ride away.

The rules come from our series Where to Move in Italy, written from the places we have lived: Part 1, The End of the Road · Part 2, The Small Town · Part 3, The City · Part 4, The Postcard · Part 5, The Other Half. The towns we would pick are in Part 6, The Best Towns.

How we choose a town, and every town by these rules.

  • Population 98,279, down 1.4% since 2015
  • Train station in the comune
  • A national health service hospital in the comune · how healthcare works in Italy
  • Homes in the center: €850 to €2,200 per m² to buy, €4.80 to €8.30 per m² a month to rent
All the numbers Common questions, designations, lists and sources.

More about living here

  • A local hub
  • Pharmacy in town
  • High school within a 30-minute drive
  • Full fibre reaches 99% of homes
  • Primary school in the comune
  • Earthquake zone 2, medium hazard
  • Trieste airport (TRS), 36 min drive, the nearest with scheduled flights
  • Regional capital Trieste, 1 h 4 min drive

If you are moving here

Udine

Who lives here

15% of residents are foreign citizens, most often from Romania, Albania and Ukraine, against 9% across Italy. 273 of them come from English-speaking countries or western and northern Europe, mostly France, Germany and the United Kingdom. There are 258 people over 65 for every 100 children under 15, against 216 across Italy. 14% of homes have no resident, holiday homes and empty ones counted together, against 27% across Italy. Udine province ranks 3rd of 107 in Il Sole 24 Ore's quality of life ranking for 2025.

Health and schools

There is a major emergency department in the comune. It has a children's emergency room too. The nearest IB school is UWC Adriatic, 43 km as the crow flies. The nearest school listed as international is Udine International School, 3 km away.

Information, not medical advice. Confirm with a professional.

Working from here

Poste Italiane has finished a coworking room in the comune, on its register of 30 September 2026. Check that it is open on Poste's booking site before you count on it.

Taxes

Friuli Venezia Giulia has its own property tax, ILIA, in place of IMU. The town adds between 0.6% and 0.8% to your income tax, depending on your income, with nothing due on income under €15,000. 7% pensioner tax: this town is not in a qualifying area.

Information, not tax advice. Confirm with a professional.

What it costs

The average household in Friuli-Venezia Giulia spends about €2,350 a month, €520 of it on food, against about €2,170 across Italy. A family of three pays about €478 a year for water, on the Friuli-Venezia Giulia average. In Udine, the provincial capital, in September 2026, an espresso cost €1.41, a meal in a pizzeria €12.99 and a man's haircut €27.17.

What it costs to live in Italy.

Climate and risk

It is in climate zone E, on a scale from A, the warmest, to F, the coldest, and heating may run from October 15 to April 15, up to 14 hours a day, unless the mayor changes it. 8% of residents live in a zone the national maps rate high for floods. They show no residents in a high landslide zone.

These shares cover the whole comune, not any one street. Check an address on IdroGEO.

Moving from abroad? Which visa you need. Sources: ISTAT, the Ministry of Health, ISPRA, the Finance Ministry, the Ministry of Enterprise, Poste Italiane, the comuni, the IB, International Schools Database, Il Sole 24 Ore, Cittadinanzattiva.

Known for

  • TIEPOLO

    Udine treated as his second home; the frescoes in the Palazzo Patriarcale mark his transition into mature Rococo.

  • PATRIARCATO

    Capital of the Patria del Friuli from the thirteenth century until Venice took the city in 1420, the political center of medieval Friuli.

  • FRICO

    The Friulian potato and Montasio cheese tortino, the cooked-cheese dish that anchors Udine restaurant menus from the bakeries to the historic trattorie.

Common questions

What is Udine known for?
Udine is the historic capital of Friuli, built around a man-made castle hill.
Where is Udine?
Udine is a comune in the province of Udine, in Friuli-Venezia Giulia, at 113 meters above sea level.
What is the nearest airport to Udine?
The nearest airport with scheduled flights is Trieste (TRS), about 36 min by car.
Can you get to Udine without a car?
Yes. There is a railway station in the comune, so you can arrive by train.
How long is the drive from Trieste to Udine?
About 1 h 4 min by car.
When is the best time to visit Udine?
Best in Apr–Jun, Sep–Oct. July is the warmest month, averaging 29 degrees, and May the wettest, with about 16 rain days.
Which other towns are like Udine?
San Vito al Tagliamento, Cervignano del Friuli and Trieste.
How many people live in Udine?
98,279 residents, by ISTAT's count on 1 January 2025.
Is Udine a good place to live?
Udine is a city of 98,279 people, the kind of place Part 3 of our Where to Move in Italy series is about. There is a national health service hospital in the comune. Full fibre reaches 99% of homes.
Tags & data designations · numbers · sources

The numbers

  • Elevation: 113 m
  • Population: 98,279
  • Surface area: 57.17 km²

These figures were compiled from public directories: ISTAT, OpenStreetMap and Wikidata, and from the official listings of the guides named on this page. Town details change; verify with official sources before you travel.

The ranked lists

Lists Udine appears in

All the ranked lists ›

Similar

Towns like Udine

What all six share with Udine: over 10,000 people · near sea level · have a railway station in the comune

The letter

Udine is on our list. Its letter is still to come.

We are writing about all 1,000 of these towns, one at a time, in a free letter: the photo, what is worth eating, and when to turn up. That is our mission. Sign up and you will be there when Udine comes up. By Peter & Sophia, from Turin.

The nearest town we have written up is Chioggia, 120 km away. Read its letter →

Subscribe, free

About the letter

Paid plans, the moving year and the books are on the membership page.