Italy · Chianti, Tuscany · Venue guide
A Wedding at Borgo San Felice, Chianti
Borgo San Felice is a whole medieval hamlet in the hills of Chianti Classico – a little piazza, a chapel, stone lanes, cellars and vineyards all around – that has become one of the most beautiful wedding venues in Tuscany. I filmed Valentina and Stefano’s wedding here in September 2023 – a church ceremony, a long dinner with speeches by candlelight and a party in a glass pavilion that lasted long into the night.
- Where
- Castelnuovo Berardenga, Chianti Classico – about 20 km from Siena
- Guests
- Up to about 130, with a marquee for more than 120
- Stay
- Rooms, suites and two vineyard villas – the whole borgo can be yours
- Season
- Spring to autumn – the hotel closes in winter
A village to yourselves
The hamlet dates back to the Middle Ages. Around its small piazza are the chapel and the lanes that once held a school, a bakery and an olive press; today they are rooms and suites of a Relais & Châteaux hotel – the first in Chianti, a member since 1992 – and the estate is still a working winery. For a wedding the venue offers the entire borgo for exclusive use over several days, so your guests can stay together, wake up in the same village and walk to every part of the celebration.
The wedding day
Ceremonies take place in the borgo’s chapel, and the celebration then spills out into the piazza for the aperitivo. Dinner can be set in the piazza, in the gardens or on the terraces overlooking the vineyards. Valentina and Stefano’s celebration ran over several days, with a pool party for their friends; on the wedding day their guests sat at long tables full of flowers, the speeches came under strings of lights, and the night ended with dancing in a glass pavilion hung with chandeliers.
Getting there
Siena is about 20 km away and its skyline can be seen from the borgo. Florence airport is roughly 90 km away by road – plan on an hour and a quarter or more – and Pisa and Rome are both within a few hours’ drive. Most couples arrange a shuttle for the guests on the wedding day, and a car is the best way to explore the Chianti villages on the days around it.
When to marry in Chianti
The hotel is seasonal and closes over the winter. May and June bring green hills and long evenings; September and early October bring the grape harvest, softer light and the colours of autumn in the vineyards – my favourite time to film in Tuscany.
In Italy a civil marriage is celebrated by the comune, so ask your planner about the legal ceremony. More about weddings in Tuscany.
Planning your wedding at Borgo San Felice?
Tell me your date and place – I’ll let you know if I’m free.
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