Friuli is Italy's most schizophrenic region in the best way: Dolomite peaks in the north, Prosecco-country hills in the west, Habsburg-era Trieste on the coast, and the Slovenian border running through vineyards. It's also where they make Prosciutto di San Daniele — which, if I'm being honest, I prefer to Parma (thinner, sweeter, more complex). Come at me.
Plan my trip →While everyone fights over Barolo and Chianti, the Collio wine region quietly produces some of Italy's best white wines. Friulano, Ribolla Gialla, Pinot Grigio that actually tastes like something (unlike the industrial stuff exported abroad). Visit Josko Gravner — the madman who buries his wine in Georgian amphorae underground. His orange wines changed Italian winemaking. Tastings by appointment, €15-25. Worth every cent.
Udine has a Tiepolo-frescoed cathedral, a Venetian-style main square, and the best aperitivo tradition in Northeast Italy (they invented the spritz before Venice appropriated it). The Piazza Matteotti on a Friday evening — locals packed into wine bars, plates of frico (crispy cheese and potato), prosciutto on every table — is peak Italian living. Tourist count: approximately zero.
A Lombard-era gem that is a UNESCO World Heritage site and yet receives fewer visitors in a year than San Gimignano gets in a week. The Tempietto Longobardo is the most important Lombard monument in Italy. The Devil's Bridge over the turquoise Natisone river is one of the most photogenic spots in the country. Free. Uncrowded. Perfect.
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