Pordenone is a small, elegant city in Friuli Venezia Giulia, overshadowed by its neighbours Udine and Trieste but worth a stop in its own right. The Corso Vittorio Emanuele II, the main street, is one of the prettiest in the region — a long porticoed avenue of frescoed palaces and Gothic and Renaissance facades that gives the city centre an almost Venetian refinement.
The city's main cultural event is the Pordenone Silent Film Festival, held every October, which has become one of the most important silent cinema festivals in the world. The Palazzo Ricchieri houses a decent art museum with works by the Renaissance painter Giovanni Antonio de' Sacchis, known as Il Pordenone. The Noncello river runs through town, and the parks along its banks are pleasant for a walk.