Villa Cimbrone Wedding Weekend in Ravello

Megan and John married at Villa Cimbrone in Ravello with 72 guests and a welcome party the night before at a trattoria in Scala. Here is how the weekend worked, with the real numbers.

Once Megan and John landed on Villa Cimbrone as their top pick for wedding venue, it was time to build out our itinerary for the remainder of the wedding week. John's parents wanted to host an epic welcome party for the guests on the eve of wedding day. While there are many beautiful villas and hotels to rent for events in Ravello, we really wanted something with local charm. We found our ideal venue in Scala at Da Lorenzo, a trattoria overlooking the rolling hills of Ravello and the surrounding towns. Transitions are always really important to us, and we loved that guests could start outside in a lush garden and then move inside, which opened up to the incredible views that the terrace offered, with an inside-outside feel. And we were very lucky with our count of 72, because everyone would perfectly fit at two long tables extending the length of the restaurant. And if that weren't enough, Da Lorenzo is also a family-run business with a hospitable and welcoming team.

Even though you can see Da Lorenzo from Ravello, the winding roads through the hills make it very difficult to walk there. Transportation is a must! We found a local transportation company and arranged a pickup spot right outside of Ravello. There wasn't much of a landmark, so we had a point of contact from our team there to ensure everyone found the correct location and made it over to Da Lorenzo.

We started with cocktails in the garden, and guests were greeted by the most lively five-piece band. The scrumptious hors d'oeuvres included bruschetta, olives, breadsticks, and fried zeppole with tomato and parmesan. Additionally, we added a fresh mozzarella station, which is an absolute must. The guests took pictures and videos of the chef working the curds into the most delicious, warm mozzarella bites. The food for cocktail hour was about 25 euros per person, and it was an additional 550 euros for the mozzarella station.

When everyone arrived and the sun started dropping lower in the sky, we moved inside for dinner service. We started with a bang as the band's energy really took off for some fun classic Italian hits, like "Tu Vuò Fà L'Americano." We used tambourines with ribbon as place cards for guests to find their seats, and so everyone waved and shook their tambourines in the air, clapping along to the music. We had a few toasts, and then we started dinner, which was described as the typical Italian Sunday. Read: it was a feast! We chose six appetizers, including fried zucchini flowers, stracciatella with eggplant, and caprese. We added a pizza course. For the pasta course they chose the bolognese. After that came a delicious baked pezzogna fish. We finished with cannoli. The pricing was about 100 euros per person. The pizza course was an upgrade. And all of the drinks were billed separately.

Villa Cimbrone is located at the far end of Ravello, on a cliff overlooking all of the Amalfi Coast. It's important to understand that it will be a walk for guests, well labeled, but with many steps. The hotel has 19 rooms, so for most groups this means that some, if not most, guests will stay off property. However, there are many options in Ravello, including the fabulous Caruso, a Belmond Hotel. One of the more difficult questions to figure out at Villa Cimbrone is how to use the Terrace of Infinity. It's important to know for planning purposes that it is an upgrade, and an expensive one at that, coming in at almost 10,000 euros. The Terrace is not available to use prior to 7:30 p.m. because the gardens at Villa Cimbrone are open to the public until then. The minimum spend at Villa Cimbrone was 50,000 euros, which is quite easy to hit. The three-course meal comes in at roughly 310 euros per person, and all beverages are billed separately; cocktails are about 20 euros apiece.

Megan and John chose to do the ceremony in the gardens and move to the Terrace of Infinity for cocktail hour. From there, guests moved to dinner in the Crypt, and back out to the gardens for dancing, a dessert buffet, and the live millefoglie show, a must for any destination wedding in Italy.

Planning from afar can be easily accomplished, and there's no need to worry about involving a local planner. We have wonderful relationships with local suppliers, and we frequently travel with any additional supplies we may need. From a planning perspective, we usually suggest a few site visits. We also like to schedule weekly Zooms with our couples as we work through all of the logistics, itinerary, design details, and more. Our first site visit may be a tour of the property prior to signing any contract with the venue. We also take a look at the room offerings at that time, both on site and at hotels nearby, to make sure that we have the needed accommodations and think through where the bride and groom will get ready and stay before and after the wedding day. Our second site visit is focused on a tasting and food selections at all venues, table mockups if we are using a local provider, cake tasting, and potentially hair and makeup trials if working with local artists.

The season for a wedding in Ravello is short, April to October, as most of the town is closed during the winter and off season, which means booking far in advance is required to secure a date at Villa Cimbrone or anywhere along the Amalfi Coast. However, with guests traveling from afar, don't feel confined to weekend dates; weekdays also work well for European destination weddings. That said, booking 12 to 18 months out is usually necessary to secure a date during high season.

Questions couples ask us about Ravello

How much does a wedding at Villa Cimbrone cost?

For Megan and John's wedding, the minimum spend at Villa Cimbrone was 50,000 euros, which is easy to reach with 72 guests. The three-course dinner was roughly 310 euros per person, beverages were billed separately with cocktails around 20 euros each, and the Terrace of Infinity was an upgrade of almost 10,000 euros. Everything else, from the flowers to the band, is on top of the venue.

How far ahead should we book Villa Cimbrone?

Twelve to eighteen months for a date in high season. The Ravello season runs April to October, since most of the town closes for the winter, so the best dates go early. Weekdays work well for a destination wedding, because your guests are traveling anyway, and they open up more of the calendar.

Can we do a full wedding weekend in Ravello?

Yes. Megan and John's guests had a welcome party at Da Lorenzo in Scala the night before, then the ceremony in the gardens, cocktail hour on the Terrace of Infinity, dinner in the Crypt, and dancing in the gardens at Villa Cimbrone. Ravello is small enough to walk, so the only transportation you need is for anything outside town, like Scala.

Can our guests stay at Villa Cimbrone?

Some of them. The hotel has 19 rooms, so for most groups some, if not most, guests stay off property. Ravello has good options nearby, including Caruso, a Belmond Hotel, and we look at rooms on our first site visit so the couple and their families are where they want to be.

Do we also need an Italian planner?

No. We plan weddings in Italy from Houston with local suppliers we have worked with before, weekly calls with our couples, and two site visits before the wedding.