I am in process of planning a destination wedding in Florence for September 13-20 2009.

Does anyone have suggestions on reception venues? There will be maximum 20 guests.

One place I have heard about was the Villa San Michele, which is a beautiful location, but I hear mixed reviews on the food. It is also very pricey.

Any suggestions on hotels or experience with wedding coordinators would also be appreciated!

Thanks!

Hi C,

If you think that the Villa San Michele is pricey, compare it to the Palazzo Sasso in Reavello.

May I make a suggestion?

It is sooooooo much easier to get married in the States, have a small reception and go to Italy on your vacation.

Not to mention how much happier those 20 guests will be not having to spend a fortune on your gala extravaganza.

have you checked into the logistics (legal, etc) of getting married in Italy? A couple I know wanted to, and ultimately gave up because of the red tape.

If you are set on getting married in Florence, I would definitely get a wedding coordinator experienced in planning weddings for forgeiners in Italy. Take a look at the Romeoandjuliet-weddings.com site for ideas. One of their locations is the Villa San Michele and another I recognize from some celebrity wedding.

Years ago I saw someone post her wedding photos from Florence here and I found the link they had with the post:

http://www.loriandmatthew.com/photos...ng2/index.html

See if you can get some info from that couple

Good luck!

Agree you MUST have a local wedding planner, There is a lot of red tape in getting married in Italy - including filing Italian translations of all sorts of documents proving your citizenship, your status as unmarried etc.

Plus, you need to be there some time in advance to appear at Town Hall etc. for official purposes.

I married in Italy (Venice) and, Yes, there are documents to obtain before you even head to Italy. the key: you need to visit an Italian embassy in the country where you live with four friends to obtain some documents. I live in NYC so this was easy, but hits is usually the make--or-break art f the process for people who want to do this.

Meanwhile, here's a less pricey option in a lovely setting for your special meal:

http://www.ristoranteomero.it/

holy cow, I should check my typing

I live in NYC so this was easy, but this is usually the make--\or-break part of the process for people who want to do this.

one of the best wedding coordinators I know is http://www.vb-events.com/

Hope this helps!

Thank you all so much for the suggestions! I am definitely going to get a wedding coordinator for the legalities and for booking services like photography. I will price out some of the suggestions!

I live in Kitchener, Ontario- about an hour from Toronto.

Has anyone ate or toured Castello Vicchimaggio? My dad is suggestion this location as he was there on a food and wine tour back in 2002.

Are you really stuck on Florence? About an hour away, in the little town of Passignano Sul Trasimeno is the Il Borgia castle. It's owned by the Palombara family. My niece just got married there and it was fabulous. The castle sleeps about 14 and there are some nearby rustic apartments where others could sleep. The apartments are owned by the same family. If you go to the Il Borgia website at www.il-borgia.com you can see a link to planning weddings there. I'd really recommend it. All the guests can easily day trip from there to Cortona, Perugia, Siena, and Assisi. My niece actually got married in the Cortona courthouse and the wedding planner, Julie Palombara, had to translate the ceremony to English. By the way, to get their marriage license, my niece and her fiance had to promise that they were not members of the same family, they were not already married, and that they had not killed any of each other's previous spouses. Anyway, after the wedding in Cortona, we went back to the Il Borgia castle for the reception. The wedding planner took care of everything, including the bus that took us back and forth. Let me know if you want more info.