Polcenigo and the Gorgazzo: the Secret Blue at the Foot of the Prealps
At Polcenigo, one of Italy's most beautiful villages, the springs of the Gorgazzo form a karst pool of turquoise, deep waters, in Friuli.
Foto: Antoniodelfiol (CC BY-SA 4.0) — Wikimedia Commons
About fifteen kilometres from Pordenone, where the Friulian plain leans against the last undulations of the Carnic Prealps, there is a village many travellers pass by without noticing. Polcenigo has entered the circuit of the Most Beautiful Villages in Italy, and yet it remains an almost unknown name outside Friuli-Venezia Giulia. This is precisely its fortune: you arrive without queues, without tourist buses, without the feeling of lining up for a photograph.
The heart of the visit is the spring of the Gorgazzo, just over a kilometre from the centre. Here the water does not flow: it wells up. From a pool set among rocks and trees, fed by a karst resurgence, rises a crystal-clear, icy water that shifts towards an intense, almost unreal turquoise. It's one of those places that seem doctored and instead are simply real. The submerged cavity is among the deepest ever explored by cave divers, and the transparency is such that from the outside you can make out the submerged statue resting a few metres below the surface.
Polcenigo is not only the Gorgazzo. The village is crossed by canals of crystalline water, and not far away, in the locality of Santissima, gush the springs that give life to the River Livenza, at the base of the wooded slope of Col Major. It is a landscape made of mills, little bridges, damp meadows and a blue-green light that changes with the hours.
The advice, in the spirit of slow tourism, is to move on foot: from the centre you reach both springs with short walks, leaving the car at a distance. The water is freezing cold and protected, so you look, you don't dive in. Respecting the silence and the trails is part of the experience, and it keeps these places intact.
The best months are spring and early autumn, when the water flow is generous and the colours sharpest. Go on a weekday, early in the morning: you'll have a good chance of being almost alone before that blue that seems to come from another world.
How to get there
Polcenigo and the spring of the Gorgazzo lie at the foot of the Prealps, in the province of Pordenone. By car you exit the A4 motorway and head north towards Sacile and Polcenigo. The reference railway stations are Sacile and Pordenone, connected to the village by local buses. From the village the spring is reached by leaving the car at the Gorgazzo car park and continuing on foot for a few minutes along a paved road.
Practical guides for Venezia
Practical info
When is the best time to visit Polcenigo and the Gorgazzo?
The recommended time is April, May, September and October, when it is less crowded.
Is Polcenigo and the Gorgazzo crowded?
Polcenigo and the Gorgazzo is a very quiet destination compared with the more touristy ones.
Where is Polcenigo and the Gorgazzo?
Polcenigo and the Gorgazzo is located in Polcenigo, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Italy.
Altre alternative a Lago di Braies
Guide selezionate dalla nostra redazione, tutte alternative alla stessa meta affollata:
How to get there
- 🚆 Nearest station: Budoia - Polcenigo ~3 km as the crow flies
- ✈️ Nearest airport: Aviano Air Base - Area F AVB ~8 km as the crow flies
Nearest points as the crow flies (source OpenStreetMap): actual times depend on the roads, often mountain ones.
