Getting married in Florence: the most beautiful locations and famous weddings

Between a dream location, gourmet cuisine and outstanding professionals, more and more weddings are being celebrated in Florence

Forget the classic wedding, the religious ceremony and the overly abundant, boring wedding feast. The new trend in the world of weddings is to experience, and let the many guests experience, something that doesn’t exist, something that only the most creative minds could conjure up. The event entails three days: the welcome dinner, the day before the ceremony, with an informal but always distinctively Italian touch, and the real wedding day. The day after, to finish off, there’s a good-bye brunch. Basically, a mini-vacation, where guests can also enjoy a visit to the local wineries, for example, or a cooking class to learn the secrets of Tuscan cuisine. But let’s go slowly. Why are more and more foreigners and celebrities choosing to get married in Tuscany, and Florence in particular?

Locations definitely make a difference. From incredible hotels such as the Four Seasons Hotel Firenze, Il Salviatino, that will reopen in April 2022 with a new collaboration with the famous Milanese restaurant Da Giacomo, Villa Cora, Villa San Michele, A Belmond Hotel or The St. Regis Florence, to villas set in the Tuscan landscape, such as Villa I Collazzi, out of all, Villa di Maiano or Villa Le Corti, or even the spectacular Castle of Vincigliata. Florence is also strategically located. Guests can stay in the heart of the city, and in a short drive, be in Chianti country for a wine tasting or a tour of the cellars. But its heritage doesn’t end here. Tuscany has the largest number of top-level suppliers in almost all of Italy. Think of floral decorations by Vincenzo Dascanio and Tuscany Flowers, starred catering by the Four Seasons or Galateo Ricevimenti.

The small Tuscan towns like Borgo San Felice, Castello di Casole, A Belmond Hotel and Borgo Santo Pietro are all the rage with the Arab world.

And celebrities? Of the most famous marriages, the maximum-security wedding of Kim Kardashian and Kanye West at Forte Belvedere. The daughter of The Edge, and the U2 guitarist, chose Borgo San Felice, near Siena, with Bono Vox among the guests. Beyoncé, who came to Florence for her producer’s wedding, or Carolina of Bourbon Parma, niece of the Queen of Holland, who decided to get married in Florence to the wealthy entrepreneur Albert Brenninkmeijer. At least once a year, an Indian wedding with numerous guests is celebrated. Talking about Italian showbiz celebrities, our own Paolo Virzi, Jovanotti and Carlo Conti respectively wanted Livorno, Cortona and the setting of the Pieve Sant’Andrea in Cercina, and Sesto Fiorentino, as a wedding venue. To think it all began with David Bowie, who chose the Episcopal church of St. James in Florence to get married to Iman Abdulmajid. And, as we know, Bowie was always a trailblazer.