Tarvisio

Not to be confused with Treviso.

Tarvisio
—  Comune  —
Città di Tarvisio
Main square with Sts. Peter and Paul Church
Coat of arms
Tarvisio Location of Tarvisio in Italy
Coordinates: 46°30′N 13°34′E
Country	Italy
Region	Friuli-Venezia Giulia
Province	Udine (UD)
Frazioni	Tarvisio Centrale, Camporosso in Valcanale, Cave del Predil, Coccau, Fusine in Val Romana, Monte Lussari, Muda, Plezzut, Poscolle, Rutte, Sant'Antonio
Government
• Mayor	Renato Carlantoni (FI)
Area
• Total	205 km2 (79.2 sq mi)
Elevation	754 m (2,474 ft)
Population (2007)
• Total	4,962
• Density	24.2/km2 (62.7/sq mi)
Demonym	Tarvisiani
Time zone	CET (UTC+1)
• Summer (DST)	CEST (UTC+2)
Postal code	33018
Dialing code	0428
Patron saint	Saint Peter and Saint Paul
Saint day	June 29
Website	Official website

Tarvisio (German and Friulian: Tarvis, Slovene: Trbiž) is a town in the Province of Udine, in the northeastern part of the autonomous Friuli–Venezia Giulia region in Italy. Located in the Canal Valley (Val Canale) of the Southern Limestone Alps, at the border with both Austria and Slovenia, it is characterized by its location at the tripoint of Latin, Germanic and Slavic Europe.

View of Tarvisio in 1915.

History

As a place upon ancient trade routes across the Alps to Venice, Tarvisio's roots date back to Roman times. In 1007 Emperor Henry II vested the newly created Diocese of Bamberg with the Carinthian Canal Valley down to Pontebba, a region which had considerable importance because of nearby ore mines and ironworks, especially around the village of Fusine (Weißenfels/Bela Peč). Tarvisio remained a southern exclave of the Prince-Bishopric of Bamberg, until in 1758 the bishop finally sold Tarvisio to the Habsburg Empress Maria Theresa of Austria. Until 1918 it was part of the Duchy of Carinthia, it received town privileges in 1909.

According to the Italian census of 1971, 13.3% of the population was of Slovene ethnicity.

Main sights

Lake Fusine

Tarvisio features include the parish church Saints Peter and Paul, built in the 15th century, as well as sceneries like the Fusine laghi mountain lakes. At the summit of the 1,789 m Monte Lussari (Luschariberg/Svete Višarje) is a pilgrimage church, where according to legend in 1360 a shepherd discovered a statue of Virgin Mary. The church and the nearby ski centre can be reached by cable car from Malborghetto Valbruna. The area around the Sella Nevea mountain pass between Tarvisio and Chiusaforte is also a popular ski resort.

Economy

For decades, Tarvisio benefited economically from people coming from Austria and Yugoslavia for shopping trips. However trade at the notorious "Rag Market" diminuished after the implementation of Schengen Agreement and the establishment of the Eurozone. Today, tourism and winter sports in the Karavanke, the Carnic Alps and the Julian Alps have become important industries. Tarvisio is known for its profound alpine snow which attracts many tourists for skiing and snowboarding, mainly schools. It was host to the 2003 Winter Universiade and the Women's 2007 Alpine Skiing World Cup.

Transport

Tarvisio has access to the A23 Alpe-Adria autostrada (European route E55) running from the Austrian A2 Süd Autobahn to Udine and the A4 autostrada at Palmanova. The Tarvisio railway station is located at the new Pontebbana line from Villach to Udine opened in 2000, that replaced the tracks of the former Austrian k.k. Staatsbahn built in 1879.