We report on the achievement of freestanding GaN photonic crystal L7 nanocavities with embedded InGaN/GaN quantum wells grown by metal organic vapor phase epitaxy on Si (111). GaN was patterned by e-beam lithography, using a SiO2 layer as a hard mask, and usual dry etching techniques. The membrane was released by underetching the Si (111) substrate. Micro-photoluminescence measurements performed at low temperature exhibit a quality factor as high as 5200 at similar to 420 nm, a value suitable to expand cavity quantum electrodynamics to the near UV and the visible range and to develop nanophotonic platforms for biofluorescence spectroscopy. (C) 2012 American Institute of Physics. [doi:10.1063/1.3684630]