# Friuli Venezia Giulia: three eras, one region

> Aquileia is Roman, Cividale Longobard, Palmanova Venetian, and all three are World Heritage. Plus a share of the Dolomites, on 2.18% of Italy's nights.

URL: https://myitalia.it/regions/friuli-venezia-giulia
Last updated: 2026-09-02

Friuli Venezia Giulia holds five World Heritage listings covering three different empires, Roman Aquileia, Longobard Cividale and Venetian Palmanova, on 2.18% of Italy's overnight stays.

## Aquileia: the largest early Christian mosaic floor in the West

The basilica floor at Aquileia runs to more than 760 square meters of mosaic, laid between 313 and 320 in the hall built under bishop Theodore. Nothing else from early Christian Europe survives at that scale, and you walk over it on raised glass.

The town was inscribed in 1998 as an archaeological area and patriarchal basilica. The current church was consecrated in 1031 under patriarch Poppo, and the bell tower is 73 m tall. There are two crypts: the Crypt of the Frescoes, 12th century, and the Crypt of the Excavations, with earlier mosaics underneath.

Entry with the Domus di Tito Macro costs €12 for adults, €9 for groups of 15 or more, free for school groups. It covers the basilica, both crypts, the north Theodorian hall, the baptistery, the Sudhalle, the domus and the episcopal palace.

## Cividale, where the Longobards left a chapel

Cividale del Friuli joined the World Heritage list on June 25, 2011, inside the serial site of Longobard power centers between 568 and 774. Seven places make up that site, from Brescia and Castelseprio in the north to Benevento and Monte Sant'Angelo in the south.

The Cividale component is the Gastaldaga area, with the Longobard Temple and the monastery of Santa Maria in Valle, plus the remains of the episcopal complex. Hours are 10:00 am to 1:00 pm and 2:00 pm to 5:00 pm, so a late morning arrival gives you an hour, and then you're at lunch.

## Palmanova, a town in the shape of a nine pointed star

Venice founded Palmanova in 1593 and it's the only planned fortress town of its kind still intact in outline. Three rings enclose it: two Venetian, with nine bastions and nine ravelins, and one Napoleonic from the early 19th century with nine lunettes.

It was designed for 70 hectares and a population of 20,000, and the central square is hexagonal. More than 4 km of ramparts can be walked. Palmanova became a national monument in 1960 and joined the World Heritage list on July 9, 2017 within the Venetian defense works, alongside Bergamo and Peschiera del Garda. There is more at [Palmanova](/attractions/palmanova).

## The Dolomites, on the side with fewer lifts

The Dolomiti Friulane e d'Oltre Piave are one of the nine Dolomite systems inscribed in 2009, split between the provinces of Pordenone and Udine. Four of the region's five listings are shared with someone else, and this is the largest of them.

This is the emptiest part of the whole Dolomite property. Access is by road and on foot rather than by cable car, which changes what a day there looks like compared to Cortina or Val Gardena.

## Ham from a single town

Prosciutto di San Daniele DOP has been registered since June 21, 1996, and its production zone isn't a province or a valley. It's the 35 square kilometers of the town of San Daniele del Friuli, and nothing may be added except Italian pork and sea salt.

Curing runs at least 400 days. The trotter stays on, which is why the finished ham has its guitar outline. The region as a whole recorded 10,143,980 overnight stays in 2024, 2.18% of the national total, with the coast around Grado and Lignano carrying most of the summer volume. The five listings are set out at [UNESCO sites in Friuli Venezia Giulia](/unesco/in-friuli-venezia-giulia).

## FAQ

### What is there to see at Aquileia?

A basilica floor of more than 760 square meters of mosaic, laid between 313 and 320 under bishop Theodore, and the archaeological area around it. The combined ticket with the Domus di Tito Macro costs €12, €9 for groups of 15 or more, free for school parties.

### Why is Palmanova shaped like a star?

Because Venice built it as a fortress town in 1593. It has three concentric rings: two Venetian, with nine bastions and nine ravelins, and a Napoleonic one with nine lunettes. It became a national monument in 1960 and World Heritage on July 9, 2017.

### What are the opening hours at Cividale del Friuli?

The Longobard Temple and the Santa Maria in Valle monastery open 10:00 am to 1:00 pm and 2:00 pm to 5:00 pm, at via Monastero Maggiore 34. Tickets go through Vivaticket. The site joined the World Heritage list on June 25, 2011.

### Are the Dolomites in Friuli Venezia Giulia?

Part of them. The Dolomiti Friulane e d'Oltre Piave are one of the nine systems inscribed in 2009, in the provinces of Pordenone and Udine. They're the least developed section of the whole listing, with fewer lifts and fewer villages than the Trentino or South Tyrol sides.

### What makes San Daniele ham different?

The production zone is one town. Prosciutto di San Daniele DOP can only be made inside the 35 square kilometers of San Daniele del Friuli, from Italian pork and sea salt alone, cured at least 400 days, and it keeps the trotter, which gives it the guitar shape.

## Sources

| Fact | Source | Confidence | Valid until |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nel 2024 Friuli-Venezia Giulia ha registrato 10.143.980 presenze turistiche. pari al 2.18% del totale nazionale | [Eurostat](https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/api/dissemination/statistics/1.0/data/tour_occ_nin2) | medium | 2027-07-31 |
| In Friuli-Venezia Giulia ricadono 5 siti UNESCO del Patrimonio Mondiale (2026) | [UNESCO World Heritage Centre](https://whc.unesco.org/en/statesparties/it/); [Ministero della Cultura - Ufficio UNESCO](https://unesco.cultura.gov.it/projects/); [Wikidata (query SPARQL su P1435=Q9259, P17=Q38, P757, P131)](https://query.wikidata.org/sparql) | medium | 2027-08-31 |
| Il Prosciutto di San Daniele DOP, prodotto nel comune omonimo in provincia di Udine, e registrato nel registro UE dal 21 giugno 1996. | [MASAF - Elenco DOP e IGP prodotti agricoli (PDF, agg. 11/06/2026)](https://www.masaf.gov.it/flex/cm/pages/ServeAttachment.php/L/IT/D/1%252Fa%252F2%252FD.e7bdb4ebe6d458c7925a/P/BLOB%3AID%3D15453/E/pdf?mode=download); [Commissione europea - DG AGRI, registro eAmbrosia](https://ec.europa.eu/agriculture/eambrosia/geographical-indications-register/) | high | 2099-12-31 |
| Aquileia e' patrimonio mondiale UNESCO dal 1998 come 'Area archeologica e basilica patriarcale': il pavimento musivo della basilica supera i 760 metri quadrati ed e' il piu' esteso mosaico paleocristiano dell'Occidente, realizzato fra il 313 e il 320 sotto il vescovo Teodoro | [Wikipedia](https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Basilica_di_Santa_Maria_Assunta_(Aquileia)) | medium | 2099-12-31 |
| Il biglietto del complesso basilicale di Aquileia con la Domus di Tito Macro costa 12 euro per gli adulti e 9 euro per i gruppi da 15 persone, gratis per le scolaresche; comprende basilica con mosaici del IV secolo, cripta degli affreschi del IX secolo, aula teodoriana nord, battistero e Sudhalle, domus e palazzo episcopale | [Discover Aquileia - gestione visite del complesso basilicale](https://www.discoveraquileia.com/biglietti/) | medium | 2027-06-30 |
| Palmanova, fondata dalla Repubblica di Venezia nel 1593, e' l'unica citta' di fondazione ancora intatta nella forma di stella a nove punte: tre cerchie concentriche, due venete con nove bastioni e nove rivellini piu' una napoleonica di nove lunette; monumento nazionale dal 1960, e' patrimonio UNESCO dal 9 luglio 2017 dentro le 'Opere di difesa veneziane tra XVI e XVII secolo' | [Comune di Palmanova - Visit Palmanova](https://www.visitpalmanova.it/palmanova/); [Commissione Nazionale Italiana per l'UNESCO](https://www.unesco.it/it/unesco-vicino-a-te/siti-patrimonio-mondiale/opere-di-difesa-veneziane-del-xvi-e-xvii-sec-stato-di-terra-stato-di-mare-occidentale-bene-transnazionale-per-litalia-peschiera-bergamo-palmanova/) | high | 2099-12-31 |
| Cividale del Friuli e' patrimonio UNESCO dal 25 giugno 2011 dentro il sito seriale 'I Longobardi in Italia. I luoghi del potere (568-774 d.C.)', che riunisce sette localita' italiane; la componente cividalese e' la Gastaldaga con il Tempietto Longobardo e il monastero di Santa Maria in Valle, piu' i resti del complesso episcopale | [Tempietto Longobardo - Monastero di Santa Maria in Valle, Cividale del Friuli](https://www.tempiettolongobardo.it/it/unesco) | medium | 2027-12-31 |
| Il Friuli-Venezia Giulia ha una quota del bene UNESCO Dolomiti: le Dolomiti Friulane e d'Oltre Piave sono uno dei nove sistemi iscritti nel 2009 e coinvolgono le province di Pordenone e Udine | [Commissione Nazionale Italiana per l'UNESCO](https://www.unesco.it/it/unesco-vicino-a-te/siti-patrimonio-mondiale/dolomiti/); [Provincia autonoma di Trento](https://www.provincia.tn.it/Argomenti/Focus/Riconoscimenti-UNESCO-in-Trentino/Dolomiti-Patrimonio-dell-Umanita) | medium | 2099-12-31 |
| Il Prosciutto di San Daniele DOP, riconosciuto nel 1996, si puo' produrre solo dentro i 35 chilometri quadrati del comune di San Daniele del Friuli, contiene esclusivamente cosce di suino italiano e sale marino, stagiona almeno 400 giorni e mantiene lo zampino, da cui la caratteristica forma a chitarra | [Qualigeo - Fondazione Qualivita](https://www.qualigeo.eu/prodotti-qualigeo/prosciutto-di-san-daniele-dop/); [Consorzio del Prosciutto di San Daniele](https://www.prosciuttosandaniele.it/il-consorzio/) | medium | 2029-12-31 |

## Image

https://media.myitalia.it/media/region.friuli-venezia-giulia.1600.jpg
Author: Marco Del Torchio 95. License: CC0 (http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/deed.en).
Source: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Chiesa_di_San_Martino_a_Socchieve_-_facciata_e_portico_-_agosto_2026.jpg

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