Best Luxury Wedding Venues in Lake Como Italy

Lake Como is undeniably one of the most popular wedding destinations in Italy (and possibly the world) right now. There’s a reason why celebrities from John Legend to Emily Blunt are all getting married here - because the setting is simply what dreams are made of. You can count on Lake Como for a true fairytale destination wedding. And maybe, just maybe, you might run into George Clooney while visiting Lake Como, who owns a villa right up the lake.

The best months to get married in Lake Como are July and August, where the weather is the most dry and more stable. June and September are also good months to consider, with weather slightly cooler. With that said, couples should consider that weather on the lake can be unpredictable sometimes, and often can’t be determined until the day before the wedding. It is especially important to have a good plan B in place, no matter if it’s an indoor space or a covered tent, when planning a wedding in Lake Como.

Villa D’Este

Built in 1568 as the summer residence of Cardinal Tolomeo Gallio, Villa D’Este was transformed into a luxury hotel in 1873. The 152 available rooms are furnished with plenty of antique furniture in the Renaissance style and equipped with modern comfort at the same time. The four private villas on the property, located within the park, are particularly great for the bride and groom, offering all the hotel’s normal services but with added privacy. I appreciate the event space optionality this venue offers, with plenty of grand indoor ballrooms to leverage in case the weather doesn’t cooperate. Of course, who can forget the gardens at Villa D’este? The backdrop as seen in the first photo here makes this venue one of the most sought after wedding locations in the world.

Insider Tip: As a wedding planner, I always prefer operating hotels as wedding venues vs. a standalone building or location that’s typically empty. The sometimes spontaneous nature of weddings and events can always benefit from having a full staff ready for first-class service. Guests need a band-aid? Seltzer water for a stained shirt? Babysitting service that’s easily accessible for the parents? These are all things that can be easily taken care of at a 5-star hotel.

Courtesy of Mandarin Oriental, Lake Como Italy

Mandarin Oriental, Lake Como

The Mandarin Oriental brand might be new to Lake Como, having opened only in April 2019, but the architecture and structure of the hotel has stood its ground for much longer than that. I love venues with a good background story. It adds an element of magic that further elevates the already beautiful grounds. The main villa of Mandarin Oriental Lake Como used to be owned by the famous Italian opera singer Giuditta Pasta in the early 1800s. The story goes that Vincenzo Bellini, one of the most important composers in music history, who lived on the other side of the lake, visited Pasta after hearing her sing out of her bedroom window. Inspired by her voice, he went and wrote “Norma” especially for her to perform.

This venue is one of the fewer venues that’s located up the right side of the lake (most other popular wedding venues can be found along the left side of the lake), where transportation can be more challenging and buses should be arranged for guests for a better wedding experience. While every detail is immaculate at Mandarin Oriental Lake Como, the main terrace and outdoor restaurant area are especially enchanting for medium-sized weddings and events. For smaller celebrations, couples can consider the larger standalone villa rooms with plenty of green grounds for a private outdoor gathering.

Insider Tip: Walk through the main building of the villa and go through the impeccable lawn and terrace, one would find the indoor part of the L˜Aria restaurant. While the ground level of the restaurant serves as a good option for an indoor wedding reception, don’t miss the upper floor of the restaurant. With glass ceilings and a splendid view of the lake, the second floor serves as a great spot for a welcome or rehearsal dinner as part of the overall wedding weekend.

Villa Balbiano

Villa Balbiano is my favorite wedding venue in Lake Como. It is not too far up the lake, so guests don’t have to travel too far from their accommodations. There are several different lawn spaces to leverage for the different wedding events, allowing guests different experiences along the wedding day. The venue also has a generous indoor space that is both a good plan B for the ceremony and a great spot to have the after-party. While Villa Balbiano definitely has one of the most beautiful locations for the wedding ceremony (the area behind the Villa that’s facing the water), I am completely obsessed with the front view of this venue. As seen in the first photo here, the path that leads up to the Villa is what your guests will immediately see as they arrive at your wedding… isn’t it something!?

Insider Tip: Unlike many standalone villa venues in Lake Como, Villa Balbiano actually has several full bedrooms, including gorgeous marble-covered bathrooms, that can be used by the bride and groom and their families. This way, the couple doesn’t need to worry about getting in a car or bus to go back to a hotel at the end of the night. They can simply walk upstairs and spend the night together as husband and wife.

Villa Erba

Villa Erba is my second favorite wedding venue in Lake Como, right behind Villa Balbiano (who can say no to Villa Balbiano’s magnificent front lawn?). Also not far from the town’s main train station, this venue is easily accessible for wedding guests. I love this venue for its grandeur. From the lion statues that welcome guests into the villa to the grand staircase that would make the most impressive bridal aisle, Villa Erba exudes royal elegance. I love how different each of the spaces feel at Villa Erba, since having different event spaces doesn’t necessarily mean the spaces would feel differently. Sometimes, the different rooms can look and feel exactly the same, which is unfortunate. Great wedding venues offer guests different experiences as they move along the wedding day, keeping everyone engaged and surprised; Villa Erba is most definitely a great wedding venue for this reason. The outdoor lake-front garden feels entirely different than the reception room, and feels entirely different from the villa’s main chamber for the after-party. But all stunning nevertheless.

Insider Tip: Villa Erba does have several rooms on the upper level for the bride and groom to relax before the wedding starts, but unfortunately these rooms, while big in size, do not have full bathrooms attached to them. For the bride, especially, this means she should get ready at the hotel before arriving at the venue. It is always easier to do hair and makeup if there are large mirrors and running water available.

Grand Hotel Tremezzo

Grand Hotel Tremezzo is the best luxury hotel in Lake Como. If you plan on visiting Lake Como, this is the place to stay and be seen. While the general structure of this venue doesn’t necessarily have your typical wedding ceremony location with lake view for Lake Como, it does have a tremendous greenhouse-like reception space or larger weddings and events in the garden. For smaller weddings and celebrations, one could consider privatizing one side of the terrace restaurant for lunch, in addition to leveraging the venue’s medium-sized ballroom.

Insider Tip: Hidden behind the hotel’s main building by the garden pool is T Pizza, a super chic restaurant that delivers an authentic Italian pizza experience. Indulge yourself with some stoneground flour, fresh tomato sauce, and buffalo mozzarella. T Pizza makes a lovely welcome event for day-after brunch for an overall destination wedding weekend in Lake Como.

Grand Hotel Tremezzo T Beach

Being beside lakeside just got even more fabulous at Grand Hotel Tremezzo’s T Beach restaurant. With real and, white loungers and parasols, T Beach is a gem and my favorite place in all of Lake Como. Take a dip in the floating pool in Lake Bellagio, enjoy lunch under the Italian sun, and sip on a refreshing cocktail. Can you imagine a more perfect day?

Insider Tip: T Beach can be privatized for private weddings and events. The hotel can move all the sunchairs and furniture to create an open space that’s perfect for a standing sunset cocktail event. The hotel is also able to cover the parts of the restaurant that has sand, so guests can comfortably attend the wedding or event in their finest shoes. It’s one of the most unique event venues I’ve ever come across; guests will be talking about your event for decades to come. I can’t recommend T Beach enough for a welcome event or rehearsal dinner as part of an overall destination wedding weekend.

Villa Pizzo

Welcome to the dreamy Villa Pizzo, where John Legend and Chrissy Teigen got married. If you’ve always imagined getting married somewhere a bit rustic with lots of romance, look no further than Villa Pizzo. I’ve never bit ‘hit’ with romance so hard as when I stepped into this wedding venue. If the walls could talk at Villa Pizzo, I imagine it would tell tales of epic love stories; how an old married couple still held hands every day as they walk through the gardens, how a young couple defied their parents and class norms and eloped by the lake, how prince charming saw the princess for the first time and instantly fell in love. In other words, Villa Pizzo is simply the stuff love stories are made of.

Insider Tip: The wedding ceremony spot here is tricky to get to. The captivating terrace, the main draw for couples choosing Villa Pizzo as their wedding venue, is a 10-minute stroll from the main villa building. The path to the terrace is narrow and covered with cobblestones, which can be hard to walk on for guests who are wearing high heels. To avoid this situation, I recommend the use of golf carts to take the wedding guests to and from the main villa to the terrace for the ceremony. This is especially important for the bride, since walking 10 minutes on cobblestone in your wedding dress and shoes is far from ideal.

Villa Balbianello

Villa Balbianello is the most luxurious wedding venue in Lake Como, without a doubt. Open to the public for viewing during the day, one can privatize Villa Balbianello for weddings and events only in the evenings, two days of the week. No words can describe the beauty and magic of this venue; one can only experience it. Even as I stood there at the venue myself, there was a part of me that just couldn’t believe my eyes. I’ve never seen a more enchanting place in the world. It’s as if I was transported into a fairytale, and who wouldn’t want to get married at a venue that transports you in such a way?

See that epic umbrella tree in the second photo here? Does it seem familiar? This exact spot is where they filmed the last scene of the 007 Casino Royale film with Daniel Craig. And if you were wondering, the answer is yes, you can absolutely have your wedding reception underneath that marvelous tree on the terrace.

Insider Tip: The only way to access Villa Balbianello is by boat. Since there are literally no roads that connect to the Villa, couples should allocate ample time to transport their wedding guests to the Villa by boat. This also means baking more time for set-up, since everything from flowers to the furniture will have to be transported onto the venue by boat as well, which could increase transpiration and set-up costs for the wedding significantly compared to other venues.