Friuli-Venezia Giulia · Udine
Venzone
A 230-meter walled medieval town in the Tagliamento valley, leveled by the 1976 earthquakes and rebuilt as it had been, winner of Borgo dei Borghi 2017.
Picked by Peter Benei
Letter to come
Why Venzone is on our list
It holds Borghi più belli d'Italia and Borgo dei Borghi.
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Visiting
- Best time
- May–Oct
- By car
- 41 min from Udine
- By train
- Station in the comune
- Population
- 1,935
- J8°
- F11°
- M13°
- A16°
- M20°
- J25°
- J28°
- A28°
- S23°
- O18°
- N13°
- D8°
- Best
- Hot or crowded
- Quiet
- Mostly closed
Daytime air temperature, averages for 2020–2024. Weather data by Open-Meteo.com.
Why come
Venzone sits in the upper Tagliamento valley, ninety kilometers northwest of Trieste. The hexagonal walls, double-built and eight meters high, were started in 1258 by Glizoio of Mels and circled by a moat and fifteen towers. The town survived intact into the twentieth century, the best-preserved walled town in Friuli.
The Friuli earthquakes of May and September 1976 leveled it: forty-seven residents died, the duomo collapsed, almost every house came down. The town was rebuilt as it had been, and the duomo took the rare path of anastilosis, recovering each fallen stone and putting it back where it had been. The Duomo di Sant'Andrea Apostolo, erected in 1308, was reassembled by 1990.
In the crypt of the San Michele Chapel are five of the mummies of Venzone, naturally preserved corpses found from the 1600s onward, their preservation still unexplained. The town was voted Borgo dei Borghi 2017 by the RAI program Kilimangiaro.
How to get there
From Treviso (TSF), about 1 h 58 min by car.
Verona (VRN) is about 3 h 10 min away.
By car from the center of Udine 41 min or Trieste 1 h 29 min.
There is a railway station in the comune, so you can arrive without a car.
Coming from Venice?
Coming by train into Trieste Centrale? Venzone is about 1 h 26 min away by road.
Every town within reach of Treviso airport.
First time driving in Italy? Read our complete manual.
What to see
Duomo di Sant'Andrea Apostolo
Cathedral built in 1308, destroyed by the 1976 earthquake and reassembled stone by stone by 1990 using the original blocks.
Cinta muraria
Hexagonal double walls eight meters high, started in 1258 by Glizoio of Mels, surrounded by moat and fifteen defensive towers.
Mummie di Venzone
Five naturally mummified bodies preserved in the crypt of the San Michele Chapel, found from the 1600s onward, cause of preservation still unknown.
Centro storico
Walled medieval core rebuilt as it had been after 1976, recognized as the best-preserved fortified town in Friuli.
Living here
Could you live here?
Venzone is at the end of the road.
- A village of 1,935. The nearest town of 5,000 people, Gemona del Friuli, is 24 min away: past our 15-minute rule, which makes this the end of the road.
- Udine, a city of 98,279, is 41 min by car. Inside our 30 to 60 minutes: close for the services, far enough to keep its own life.
- A station of its own. Trains are the overlooked way to get around Italy: no parking, straight into the center.
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.
- Population 1,935, down 9.5% since 2015
- Nearest city Udine, 41 min drive
- Train station in the comune
- Nearest national health service hospital Tolmezzo, 13 km as the crow flies · how healthcare works in Italy
- Homes in the center: €650 to €950 per m² to buy, €2.80 to €4.10 per m² a month to rent
Weighing a move here? See the moving year.
All the numbers Common questions, designations, lists and sources.
More about living here
- In-between
- Pharmacy in town
- High school within a 30-minute drive
- Full fibre reaches 14% of homes
- Primary school in the comune
- Earthquake zone 1, Italy's highest hazard
- Trieste airport (TRS), 55 min drive, the nearest with scheduled flights
- Regional capital Trieste, 1 h 29 min drive
If you are moving here
Who lives here
4% of residents are foreign citizens, most often from Romania, Morocco and China, against 9% across Italy. There are 369 people over 65 for every 100 children under 15, against 216 across Italy. 33% 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
The nearest emergency room is in Tolmezzo, 13 km as the crow flies. The nearest major one is in Udine, 31 km away. The nearest children's emergency room is in Udine, 31 km away. The nearest IB school is UWC Adriatic, 72 km as the crow flies. The nearest school listed as international is Udine International School, 29 km away.
Information, not medical advice. Confirm with a professional.
Taxes
Friuli Venezia Giulia has its own property tax, ILIA, in place of IMU. 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.
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, 14% in a high or medium one. 3% live in a zone rated high or very high for landslides.
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
REBUILT STONE BY STONE
Leveled by the 1976 earthquakes, the walled town was rebuilt as it had been, with the duomo reassembled by anastilosis from its original fallen blocks.
THE MUMMIES
Five naturally mummified corpses in the San Michele crypt, the cause of preservation still unexplained four centuries on.
BORGO DEI BORGHI 2017
Voted Italy's most beautiful village by RAI's Kilimangiaro program, recognition of the post-earthquake reconstruction.
Common questions
- What is Venzone known for?
- Venzone is a 230-meter walled medieval town in the Tagliamento valley, leveled by the 1976 earthquakes and rebuilt as it had been, winner of Borgo dei Borghi 2017.
- Where is Venzone?
- Venzone is a comune in the province of Udine, in Friuli-Venezia Giulia, at 230 meters above sea level.
- What is the nearest airport to Venzone?
- The nearest airport with scheduled flights is Trieste (TRS), about 55 min by car.
- Can you get to Venzone without a car?
- Yes. There is a railway station in the comune, so you can arrive by train.
- How long is the drive from Udine to Venzone?
- About 41 min by car.
- When is the best time to visit Venzone?
- Best in May–Oct. July is the warmest month, averaging 28 degrees, and May the wettest, with about 19 rain days.
- Which other towns are like Venzone?
- Fortezza, Sante Marie and Tirano.
- How many people live in Venzone?
- 1,935 residents, by ISTAT's count on 1 January 2025.
- Is Venzone a good place to live?
- By the rules in our Where to Move in Italy series, Venzone is at the end of the road: the nearest town of 5,000 people, Gemona del Friuli, is 24 min away. The nearest city, Udine, is 41 min away by car. The nearest national health service hospital is in Tolmezzo, 13 km as the crow flies. Full fibre reaches 14% of homes.
Tags & data designations · numbers · sources
Landscape
The numbers
- Elevation: 230 m
- Population: 1,935
- Surface area: 54.55 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 Venzone appears in
- The best hidden towns you can reach by train in Friuli-Venice GiuliaFriuli-Venezia Giuliaby trainhidden6 towns · smallest 1,935 residents
- The prettiest small villages in Friuli-Venice GiuliaFriuli-Venezia Giuliaprettiest villagessmall6 towns · smallest 588 residents
- The prettiest villages in the province of UdineUdine provinceprettiest villages6 towns · smallest 1,320 residents
Similar
Towns like Venzone
Fortezza
Province: Bolzano
both mountain-valley towns · both under 3,000 people
Sante Marie
Province: L'Aquila
both mountain-valley towns · both under 3,000 people
Tirano
Province: Sondrio
both mountain-valley towns · both hill towns
- Written about. No. 10.
Castiglione di Garfagnana
Province: Lucca
both mountain-valley towns · both under 3,000 people
Genga
Province: Ancona
both under 3,000 people · both hill towns
Murlo
Province: Siena
both under 3,000 people · both hill towns
The letter
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Chioggia | Everyone is wrong about this town
It’s not an alternative to Venice
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