Wedding at Villa Oliviero in Positano, Italy - COST & Inside Scoop!

Mar 24

If you want the inside scoop, cost and must know tips of getting married at Villa Oliviero in Positano, Italy, this is for you. This gorgeous villa in the Amalfi Coast is a wonderful option to host your destination wedding, but there are a few things that you need to know before you sign on the dotted line.

So you might be wondering, Kay, how do you know so much about Villa Oliviero? As an Italy Destination Wedding Planner, we've had boots on the ground at this villa every year for the last three years, both scouting it and producing weddings there for our clients. To see some of our recent work, check out this 3 day Amalfi Coast destination wedding at this villa. So Oliviero as a villa and Positano as a town and destination, we know like the back of our hands…it's our home away from home you could say. So let's pull back the curtain and break down everything you need to know before getting married at this property. We're going to go through pros, cons, caveats, and cost so you can determine if this venue is the right fit for you.

General Overview of Villa Oliviero

Alright, let's start with a general overview of the property itself. Villa Oliviero is located in the stunning mountain side of Positano, which is a town in the Amalfi Coast and roughly an hour to two hours from the Naples airport. It's got those classic water, mountain and sunset views, which makes it a really special destination, highly sought after by many couples. It's within walking distance to the town, beaches, restaurants, just a special little place!

The villa itself has six bedrooms. All of them have a view of the water except for one, which is the Amalfi Room. That's a really great option for guests with limited mobility because it's closer to the entrance with less stairs though more about the steps both to get to and within the property later on in this video - you're going to want to hear about that! The rooms themselves are all stunning.

The property is built right into the mountain, and so it actually is a sequence of levels that you're going to experience and you enter from the top. So you're going to walk into the door, immediately walk down the first set of stairs, you'll see where dinner happens and how to get into the actual villa, then you're going to go down another set of stairs to get down to the red terrace where the ceremony and cocktail hour and dancing typically happen. There are quite a lot of levels in this property, so it's not going to be the best option if you have a lot of people coming with mobility issues. We're going to talk more about that in a minute, but just want to get an overall picture in your mind of how this property is laid out.

Villa Oliviero is family run. We love Nello and Alice - they're easy to work with and are used to working with Americans . To have a really positive working relationship with them, they really value you asking questions and not making assumptions, and they want to know how your planning is progressing. So keep them posted as you're making decisions. Make sure they're in the loop about the vendors that you're trying to book. They want to have their finger on the pulse of your planning process so that it can be the most successful that it can be.

Now let's talk about the flow of events and how to best utilize the event spaces within the property. There is an in-house pizza oven, so it's kind of a no-brainer that the night before your wedding you would throw a welcome pizza party! This happens down by the pool, so it's an alfresco cocktail style party around the pool, which is recently renovated, and they have their in-house team of caterers cooking pizzas in the oven right in front of you. That's also accompanied by beer and wine. You can also add on a gelato cart, which has been a really popular add-on for our couples in the past. But note that the gelato cart cannot be brought all the way down to the pool deck. It does get served up closer to the top, so that's something to keep in mind. Overall, this is an absolutely wonderful way to kick off your wedding weekend.

Now on the wedding day itself, the ceremony almost always happens on the red terrace. This is where you're going to get those quintessential Positano views in the background of your wedding photos. Cocktail hour also happens on the red terrace just adjacent to the ceremony and this is where you'll have a bar, pass apps, your escort cards and cocktail entertainment all on this level.

After cocktail hour, typically folks will head back up the stairs to the green terrace where they'll have dinner under the covered awning. It is already covered in greenery, so that's fantastic. It's really fun if you want to add some extra hanging flowers from it. You can add chandeliers hanging from it just for a little bit of extra pizazz, but it's really stunning even without anything so highly recommend having dinner there.

Then typically folks will head back downstairs where the cocktail hour space has been flipped for dancing and you can have string lights there. You're dancing under the stars alfresco till 12:00 AM.

Let's talk about the rain plan because we have done this property both rain and shine, and I'm talking like monsoon level rain and it was still beautiful. So if it rains, your ceremony will typically get moved to the covered section of the white terrace and you're kind of looking out still on that same view, but your guests are covered. Then you would move into the covered section of the green terrace for dinner and cocktail hour. That doesn't change in good or bad weather, which is amazing. From there, your guests will just transition back into the house, which is literally right next to the green terrace and maybe have some champagne or dessert in there while the green terrace gets flipped for dancing. Then you're actually dancing underneath the greenery on the green terrace, which is great. I will say I don't recommend that plan. If you have more than 60 guests. If I could choose the most ideal number, I would want it to be between 30 and 40 guests, but you could probably go up to 60. It's just going to start to get a little tight after that, especially if you have to use one of these rain plans.

Speaking of weather, let's talk about the best time of year to book Villa Oliviero because we have been at this property spring, summer, and fall. The middle of winter generally isn't the best time to have a wedding in any of these Mediterranean places because the properties are all built to have these alfresco experiences. So you are going to miss out a little bit. Personally, I love spring. I think it's a great time and there are less crowds, especially before June and the weather's super mild.

August, when we were there at last, it was really, really hot. So if you do decide to get married in the peak season of July or August, I would be prepared to have a really light wardrobe for the day, have your hair up and have fans handheld or around your neck, plus lots of access to water and really limit the amount of time that you're outside taking photos. There is a very cool shaded walkway that runs behind the villa that you can use to take pictures and also stay out of the sun. That's what we did when we were there in August a couple years ago - I highly recommend looking into all of that if it is a very hot day in the middle of the summer. And the other thing that you can do if you're getting married here and you're worried about it being too hot is provide shade for your guests, especially during the ceremony because it's going to happen when the sun is right over you. So there's two different ways you can do that. There is a shade vendor who has done a sail cloth awning over the ceremony and cocktail area terrace before. Frankly, that company is really hard to get in touch with, not the best at communicating. So we actually ended up pivoting and instead placed a bulk order of parasols on Amazon, handed them out to the guests and it actually made for a very beautiful picture overhead. I find that the shade awning actually kind of cuts off the view, especially if you want those sweeping photographs with your photographer up on the level above the ceremony, taking pictures down of the ceremony.

Now October, October last year was so rainy in Italy, but honestly it was not all day rain. It kind of came in patches, so we were still able to have the ceremony outside here, but then we did have to do the covered dancing flip after dinner, which ended up working out fine. It was a smaller guest count, so it was totally seamless. That's kind of the caveat that comes with October. The weather might be a little bit less favorable, but it will certainly be cooler than the middle of the summer and it's generally cheaper. We're going to get into the prices in a second, but there are ways to save thousands of dollars getting married at this property just by getting married in shoulder season rather than high season.

Caveats of a Wedding at Villa Oliviero

Okay, let's talk about some caveats about this property that you should know about before booking it. I could sing Villa Oliviero's praises all day. It's one of my absolute favorite venues, but just like every property it has its weaknesses. I think it's important for you to know all of them before you decide to get married there.

The first less than ideal quality about this villa are the stairs. Now, there are two categories of stairs, the stairs to get up to the villa, and then the stairs within the villa.

The stairs to get up to the villa, even if you're in good shape, it was like walking a StairMaster to get up there. It's a lot of stairs… don't quote me on it, but it's like over 700 stairs. Now as of this past year. They put an elevator in which takes you from almost just outside of where Hotel Marincanto is (you just have to walk around the corner to get to the base of the elevator) and it will cut out a significant amount of that journey that you would've had to take on foot. The elevator opens up right next to the villa, which is great. So if you are walking from the beach in town to get to the elevator, there still are steps, but we're talking like hundreds of stairs less than it used to be because of the elevator. Now the elevator is free for locals, it costs money for tourists. It's €2.50, so you're going to want to make sure that you bring that cash with you in anticipation of using the elevator…because you'll use it.

The other caveat with the elevator is it closes at midnight, at least right now. So you do not want to miss the last elevator ride up or you'll be walking in the middle of the night to get back to the villa. There is also a parking garage at the base of the elevator, but the spots in there are really limited and honestly, spots all over Positano are really limited, so I do not recommend renting a car. I recommend that you either get a car transfer or a ferry, which we'll talk about in a minute so that you don't have to worry about keeping track of a vehicle.

Now once you get up to where the elevator drops you off, there are still some steps in between you and getting to the villa, so that's really important for people to know, especially if you're carrying very heavy bags of luggage for the people that are staying around the villa. Oliviero will send porters down depending on the time that you guys check in to help you with your luggage, but for all of your other guests that might be staying nearby, and we'll talk about what other accommodations options are nearby soon, they're going to have to pay for a porter. Every hotel and Airbnb will have a porter available. It’s sometimes up to $50 each way just to have them help you with the luggage. It's definitely easier now because the elevator is there, so it's not quite as far of a journey, but you are still going to have to drag your bags over steps to get to where you need to go once you're there if you don’t have a porter.

Now let's talk about the stairs within the villa. Like I mentioned before, it's on three different levels and within those levels there are little staircases and different ways that you can go. It's a really intricate and beautiful property, but again, if you are worried about anyone with mobility issues, this is something that you might want to talk to them about ahead of time so they can mentally prepare, especially because they're going to be switching from levels, (ceremony and cocktail hour, up to dinner, back down for dancing, and then back up two flights of stairs to leave).

They do have a handicap accessible chair where they can put any guests that are concerned or unable to move about the levels, whether that's within the property or outside of the property, and they will bring them up and down the stairs. The chair is about €200 per trip, so it's really expensive. And also what I found in the past is that people with mobility issues don't want to use it. They probably are already feeling a type of way about not having full mobility. Being on display, being carried in a chair up and down is not always an exciting process.

Let's talk about the next caveat: required vendors. So this property, like some other properties in Europe, have some required vendors that you have to use. What we love is that they still give you the flexibility to pick most of your vendors, photography, videography, hair and makeup, but they do require you to use their in-house catering (which is great by the way, I have had the food) and their entertainment, which means their AV, lighting, and musicians/DJs. They have a list for you to choose from. This is just so they can keep the process of getting the permits and booking everything in-house for you. It also takes a lot of stress off of you so that you don't have to file permits. So it really is a good thing at the end of the day, but it just limits your ability to customize your entertainment beyond the options that they're already providing you.

They have a preferred florist, we love them, they charge fair prices, so no red flags there.

Let's talk about the rentals. I’m talking about tabletop rentals, chairs, misc upgrades, things like that. It was limited before the elevator got put in. There actually was an 8,000 euro minimum to have a rental company bring upgraded rentals to the villa because it was so laborious to get all of the equipment from the street up all of the stairs. Now that the elevator is there, I don't know if that has impacted the minimums at all. So because of that, you're kind of leaning on the inventory that the villa has and they do have upgrade options for certain things like plates and glassware and can customize things like napkin colors. We have in recent months seen that their rental upgrades have been becoming a little bit more robust. So I'm excited to see where that goes and see couples having more options for their weddings there.

Inside Scoop of Villa Oliviero Weddings

Alright, let's talk now about the inside scoop. These are things that we know because we've had the privilege of being boots on the ground there. Things that we've picked up, little nuggets that you guys should know about.

Villa Oliviero sits right next door to another really well-known villa, which is called Villa San Giacomo. It's super beautiful, but in my opinion, it's a lot more money and it's the same view.

Next inside scoop - this villa only sleeps 12, but Nello has connections with annex apartments that surround the entire property that can sleep a lot more people. They are worth it. They are cute and fairly priced. So I highly recommend that when you book this villa, if you know you're going to have more than 12 people that need to stay in Positano, scoop up all the annex apartments that are available. There's also a really lovely Airbnb that we've stayed in a couple times now. It's called Giovanni’s House. We love it and it's literally right next door. The only caveat is that you have to go up a bunch of stairs and then down a bunch of stairs to get to it. But where they're sitting on the mountain, they are literally right next door to each other. So it's another great option for any of your guests or any of your vendors that need to stay nearby. But if you're staying there, pack light because you will have to move your luggage by yourself. Which brings me back to the porterage charges. Again, for the 12 people that are staying at Villa Oliviero, they will take your luggage up to the villa and down to the car waiting for you when you leave as part of the cost (generally, again, depending on the time of year and when you're checking in, that might change). But if you're staying in one of the annex apartments, tell your guests to budget and bring extra cash for those porterage charges so that there's someone there to help bring their luggage up into the apartment and bring it back down. I would just estimate 50 euros maximum each way. It could end up being less than that, but you need to put that on your wedding website so that your guests know.

Okay, other things about this property that's really the inside scoop - you can dance here outside with amplified music until 12:00 AM and that is irregular for the rest of Positano. This villa, because it's up in the mountains, you're able to go later and have amplified music because the sound carries up the mountain. But the properties down below, like Hotel Marincanto and other hotels that are a little bit closer walking distance to town aren't able to have amplified music, which means you can have a wonderful ceremony, cocktail hour and dinner, and maybe do your first dance, but after that, the event is ending. So this is a cool property because you can have the best of both worlds.

Now let's talk about the best ways to get there because we have done it both by car and by boat. Your guests are most likely going to fly into the Naples airport unless they have been exploring Italy and maybe took the train down, and so they're coming to the train station. But if they're coming from the airport, as most of your guests will, you can get a car transfer booked right from the airport to the base of the elevator, which is super easy. It is really costly though, especially if you're going really early in the morning or during a very popular time of year. I think we've spent over ~$250 each way on it. It can be cheaper depending on the company that you choose.

Alternatively, you can take the ferry, which means you would take an Uber from the airport to the ferry terminal, jump on the ferry. It is not that expensive, don't quote me on it, but when we did it last time, it was about ~50 bucks. Then you're taking a beautiful boat ride through the Amalfi Coast and you'll get dropped off at the ferry port in Positano, which is beautiful. Now, you'll begin a very long journey to walk your butt up to that villa. So make sure that they know to pack light, wear really good walking shoes or arrange for a porter to meet them at the ferry terminal, (or at least meet them up towards the bottom of the elevator so that they aren't huffing and puffing to make it to the villa). One thing to know about the ferry, it does get canceled in inclement weather, so you might want to have a backup in mind if you land in Naples and no ferries are running.

Another inside scoop about this property, they have connections to really cool cooking classes that can happen offsite. So if you're looking for an immersive cultural experience, I highly recommend taking them up on their offer to book you one of those for your guests. If you're planning to go out to eat at restaurants at all, reservations are a must or they will just turn you away. So definitely tell your guests that they need to be making proactive reservations, especially if you have really big parties, so that you're not getting turned away. I highly recommend La Tagliata. It is a beautiful family run restaurant. They have a farm right outside where they get all their fresh produce, and then a woman named Mama cooks your food for you. She comes out every night and you cheer for her. There's an accordion player that walks around while you're eating your dinner. They give you free limoncello shots (like everywhere else in Positano does ha!). But it's a really cool vibe, a beautiful experience, and it's even higher up in the mountains. So it's another place to see while you're visiting Positano. They also do cooking classes there which have gone viral on Instagram.

Cost of a Wedding at Villa Oliviero

OKAY - let's talk about the cost. Just like every venue, the cost of this place has increased year over year over year, and we have the data from the last three years to share with you. So we'll talk about what we've paid for the villa in the past and what they are charging currently. Just know the rate is probably going to keep increasing year over year. This is something that's happening across the board to every property.

First, let's talk about what this rate includes. For 12 people that are staying on property in the six rooms, all of their nights are covered and their breakfast for the days that they're staying are covered. The rates are based on a seven night rental from a Saturday to a Saturday. So you're checking in on a Saturday, you're checking out on a Saturday, so your wedding will be midweek. So if you're one of those people that's really attached to having a Friday, Saturday or Sunday wedding, it's not happening at this property.

Now in the off season, they are a little bit more lenient with that seven night minimum, and they're willing to go down to three or four nights, which can make the price cheaper. We'll talk about that in a second. Right now, that weekly rate in the most expensive high part of the season is around 30,000 euros, which with today's exchange rate is about $32,000 to $33,000 USD plus a 4,000 Euro event fee, which with today's exchange rate is around $4300 to $4,400 USD. This roughly equates to $4,500 a night. Spread across six rooms is about ~$750 per room per night. And for the quality of these rooms, the view and the location, that is a very fair rate. So for the month of October, that's when they get more lenient with that seven night policy, they sometimes are willing to go down to three or four nights, which is what we've done in the past, which saved a lot of money, but it is 100% up to them if they're willing to give you that offer. It depends on how full they are and if they're willing to accommodate you for less time.

In October, 2024, we were there for four nights (they allowed us to do that deal). Our couple paid around 19,000 euro, which at the time was about $21,000 USD. In August, 2023, we were there in high season for seven nights and we paid $29,000 USD. So you can see that increase has happened slightly annually to get us up to the price that it is now.

They also have an in-house caterer, so I can talk through food and beverage pricing that you might expect to see. Their packages are broken up by the day before, cocktail hour, the wedding meal, and the bar packages. So for the wedding day itself, the cocktail hour package is around $30 USD per person. The wedding dinner was around $200 USD per person, and the bar was around $60 USD per person to have an open bar during cocktail hour, a beer and wine bar during dinner, and an open bar after dinner, during dancing. The night before with the pizza party was around $90 USD per person for pretty much unlimited pizza (including dessert pizza), beer and wine.

So let's just say you have a wedding in the low season here, what would it cost?

The villa itself will be around 15,000 euros if you were able to do three nights plus that 4,000 euro event fee. Then we add up all of those minimum costs for the night before and the wedding day itself for food and beverage that I just shared, which equals $380 per person. And if you have 50 guests, that's about $19,000. So if you total all of that up, the euro cost is around 38,000 for food, beverage, the event fee and the actual accommodations for three nights.

Now, on top of that, you're going to have any other cost for the event, which could be photo, video, hair and makeup, the entertainment, the lighting, the rentals, the decor, the stationery, transportation, and a wedding planner. For more on what we’ve spent on these vendors in Italy in the past, check out Destination Wedding in Italy Wedding Cost - A Full Budget Breakdown. But, you're likely looking at a total wedding budget of as low as $65,000 USD to as high as $120,000 USD for 50 people.

So are we ready to dive in and plan a destination wedding here? Hold your horses. Don't go signing any contracts yet. $65,000 to $120,000 is still a huge range, and it's important to first understand where within that range you are based on what you expect. But how do you do that? How do you figure out what your wedding in Europe will cost? Well, to do that, you can just download my free guide to estimate the cost of your destination wedding in Europe before booking a venue, and the link to that is below!