My article about choosing a right venue for your wedding
Italian Fable (Russian Version)
Planning your own wedding won’t be the only most emotional event but also a rather stressful time in your life. The experience can be compared to a roller coaster ride, which in Italy is called a “Russian coaster.” Only after the train comes to a sudden stop at high speed will your fear turn into a feeling of pleasure from the experience. And when you notice the eyes of those around you, eager to imitate, you will be overwhelmed with a feeling of utter happiness that you did it! Wedding celebration plannng is a complex process. The very first item on the wedding list, regardless of the scale and budget of the event, is choosing a venue. Once this issue is resolved, all other necessary services and amenities will fall into place.
Choosing a venue, first you need to understand what time of year is stylistically appropriate for your event. The main factors to consider are the size of the celebration; secondly, the number of guests; and thirdly, the venue itself: a villa-hotel, a medieval castle, a historic villa, a country hotel-relais, or a restaurant with excellent Italian cuisine. Italy has 20 regions, each with its own traditions, beauty, cuisine, and price points. Therefore, you need to decide right away where you want to hold your wedding: at a lake, on the coast, in a historic town, in the mountains, in vineyards or among olive trees. The second step is choosing a rough date for the celebration, as the venue you like may not always be available on your chosen date or you may find yourself in the “high season” when rental prices are very high. Winter with its Christmas and New Year’s atmosphere, the cold weather, and the snow, is perfect for the weddings in the mountains or in the historic towns. The Italian Alps are a very interesting destination for a wedding, in addition to the Christmas charm, tthe Alps offer the mountain ski resorts, such as the Dolomites. Large and medium-sized Italian cities are also charming in winter. Hotels and villas boast fireplaces and treat guests to delicious food. Guests will be ableto enjoy the celebration and also visit the city’s attractions.
Spring is a wonderful time for the lake weddings, in the romantic towns and on the coast, especially in Southern Italy where temperatures are higher and it is much warmerduring the day and in the evening . The lakes such as Garda, Como, Iseo, the cities of Rome, Venice, Florence, Verona, Naples, Positano, Sorrento, and many Sicilian towns will give you a sense of a floral paradise and romance. Choosing a venue remember that even a warm Italian spring can be frustrating with a rainy day, so you should always have a plan B, which means a possibility of moving the event or part of it to an indoor area, which could be either an indoor venue or a marquee. In summer almost any location in Italy is ideal for a wedding: lakes for lovers of romance and elegance, the sea for those who adore beaches and seascapes, and mountains for those who love the fresh air. But summer weddings also have their drawbacks. First and foremost, there’s the sweltering heat, which not everyone tolerates, especially in July and August, when temperatures can rise to 42°C. Therefore, in summer it’s best to start the wedding after 5:00 PM. Another challenge for summer weddings is the Italian national holidays in mid-August, when many people go in vacations and many service companies and stores are closed till the end of August.
Therefore, if you’re planning a celebration in September, book the venue a year in advance and choose weekdays, when prices are much lower than on weekends. The coastal areas begin to empty and historic towns and the lakes start to attract a special attention. As in spring it is a big possibility of rain, but prices drop significantly. Not all venues are heated at this time of year, so additional fees may be appled. Prices increase again in December for the Christmas and New Year’s Eve period.
The second important factor for choosing a wedding venue is the number of guests. If you have a small group of 10 to 25 people, you can consider private villas, hotel resorts or small country castles where guests can stay for one or more nights. A historic castle or a big villa which can fit more then 100 people can be immense for such wedding group. The decoration of the unused and empty spaces will certantly increase the cost of the floral arrangements. When a number of guests is between 30 and 80, you can consider different venues: both those designed exclusively for events and those with accommodation options. There are many venues like thse in the cities and in the countryside, suitable for any budget. Alternatively, you can split the celebration areas to create a greater impact on your guests. For example, the wedding could take place in a church and the dinner itself in a villa or in a castle; or the ceremony in a medieval town hall and the dinner in a luxurious hall at a villa-hotel. Ensure that each couple has a room and the guests with the children have a possibility to add en extra bed in their room. If all the guests stay at the same place you won’y have consantly worry about their movements and transfers in the case teh venue is siatuted in the countryside or away from a city center. For the wedding groups over 100 guests pay a lot of attention to the Plaan “B” as it will be difficult and in many cases quite imposible to relocate such a larger number of persons in the case of a bad weather.
If you decide to celebrate your wedding in Italy, remember that it is a different country with its language, traditions and unique characteristics, so all of it will give you a healthy dose of adrenaline and a thrilling experience as at a roller coaster, and don’t forget to choose a good photographer and a videographer who will preserve the memorie of you “Italian Fable” for a lifetime. Enjoy it!
