Grado
A fortified island town and ancient port: early Christian basilicas and the walk from the old castrum to the garden city.
Tour details
Guided tour
Palmanova
A perfect nine-pointed star, built by the Venetians
About 2 hoursFriuli Venezia Giulia
Seen from above, Palmanova looks like a snowflake drawn with a compass. Founded by the Republic of Venice in 1593 as an ideal fortress city, it is a perfect nine-pointed star, and since 2017 part of the UNESCO site Venetian Works of Defence between the 16th and 17th centuries.
The story
The first stone was laid on 7 October 1593, the anniversary of the victory of Lepanto. The town was designed as a perfect geometric machine for defence: streets radiate from the hexagonal Piazza Grande to the bastions, so that soldiers could reach any point of the walls quickly.
Three monumental gates, Porta Udine, Porta Cividale and Porta Aquileia, lead through three rings of fortifications, two built by Venice and one by Napoleon. We walk along the ramparts, between moats and green earthworks, and discover how the fortress was meant to work.
In the centre, the cathedral and the palaces around the vast square tell of a town built for soldiers that became a home for families.
In pictures
What we'll see
- Piazza GrandeThe vast hexagonal square at the heart of the star.
- The monumental gatesPorta Udine, Porta Cividale and Porta Aquileia, triumphal entrances to the fortress.
- The rampartsA walk along bastions, moats and earthworks of three different eras.
- The cathedralThe Duomo, built facing the square in the heart of the ideal city.
A taste of Palmanova
Sit at a café in Piazza Grande and look at the star from its centre. The plain around Palmanova is wine country too, an easy pairing with a winery visit in the afternoon.
Ready to discover Palmanova?
Tell me your dates and group size, and I'll shape the visit around you. It can also be combined with a winery or another town on the same day.
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