Save the date

We will be inviting our guests to join us for a 5 day celebration in Rapolano Terme, which is a remote area in Tuscany, Italy. We have fully booked and pre-paid for two hotels/villas, Hotel Laticastelli, and Hotel Molino della Lodola. 

Much of the hanging out will be done at Laticastelli, including the wedding and reception, however Molino della Lodola is an equally wonderful location, which is located just 2.7km (5 min drive) away from Laticastelli. We will have the entire grounds of both Laticastelli and Molino della Lodola to ourselves from July 11th - 15th. Please read "Booking" section below! 

Guests will be welcome to arrive at their respective hotel/villa on Monday, July 11th, and depart on Friday, July 15th. 

• Monday, July 11th: Arrival and check-in to your respective location. Relax and enjoy a pizza night that evening at Laticastelli. Dress attire is casual.

• Tuesday, July 12th: We'll be organizing transportation for a day trip to Siena, which is a beautiful medieval city about 30 minutes drive away. Transport will leave around 11am, and come back at around 5pm. A formal Tuscan dinner (rehearsal dinner for all) at Laticastelli will close out the evening. Dress attire is semi-formal/garden chic (dress shirt and khakis for men).

• Wednesday, July 13th: You guessed it, wedding day! We are likely aiming for a 6pm wedding, meaning you are free to book activities in the daytime if you see fit. Since we have the entire Laticastelli hotel booked, we have no curfew on the festivities, so plan for a late evening!! Dress attire formal, but not black-tie. 

• Thursday, July 14th: Sleep in if you need it, which we expect from most. Brunch will be served, and then you have the option to relax and lounge by the pool, or book yourself for an excursion (see below). This evening we will be enjoying an Italian BBQ at Laticastelli for dinner! Dress attire is casual/garden chic.

• Friday, July 15th: You don't have to go home, but you can't stay here (unless you book additional nights for yourself). Some will carry-on to other vacation destinations, but this will largely be goodbye for everyone. It is likely that we laughed, we cried, we sang, we danced, and now we are wed. Mission accomplished in the best of ways! 

- This Bike Rental company in Rapolano Terme that has guided bike tours, accommodating small and large groups, as well as bike rental: https://www.bikeridingtuscany.com   

- This is another nearby bike company: https://www.chiantibikelife.it/bike-rental/     

- This Adventure Park is nearby, looks to be something that might occupy the kids for a bit, with some adult courses as well: https://www.saltalbero.it/en/index.html    

- Horseback riding is an option here, which is also close by: https://clubippicosaltalbero.weebly.com/  

--Their pricing: https://clubippicosaltalbero.weebly.com/le-nostre-tariffe-e-offerte.html     

- Wine Tasting: 

- The hotel recommends this vineyard for a tasting: https://coldilamo.com/  

- If you don't want to travel, Laticastelli also offers wine tastings: https://www.laticastelli.com/en/activities-country-relais-rapolano-terme/internal-activities-massages-cooking-classes

- Castle Brolio is a very well known wine destination, located 30 minutes from the hotel: https://visit.ricasoli.com/en/61f80358d6ef8a0cd8588f51?lang=en

- This Chianti winery is 45 minutes away: https://www.collebereto.it/en/visite.html

- This Chianti winery is 40 minutes away: http://www.lemiccine.com/services.html 

- This company does Guided Nature Tours of the region: https://www.instagram.com/saraincammino/    

Scooter Rental:  

- https://www.slowhills.com/  

- https://www.sienabyvespa.com/scooter-rental-in-tuscany/index.php/it/   

- https://www.vintagetours.it/web/    

Spa: 

Treat yourself to a spa day: https://www.termesangiovanni.it/it 

Rapolano Terme is Tuscany at it's best! The location for the wedding is Laticastelli, which is a lovely medieval Tuscan village that has been transformed into a hotel.   

Located just over an hour south of Florence, and only 30 minutes directly east of the city of Siena, the region is surrounded by the beautiful Tuscan countryside.   

Laticastelli will serve as the home based and primary hangout for the group, with gorgeous views, beautiful gardens, and a large pool to enjoy, as well as a restaurant for a-la-carte lunches.   

We will have a shuttle service back and forth between Molino della Lodola and Laticastelli, in the morning, afternoon, and late evening. Guests are also welcome to skip activities, if desired, short of the wedding of course, and arrange their own transportation at their leisure.  

Getting to the hotels: 

1. If you are arriving in Rome, the ride is approximately 2 hours 15 minutes to the hotels. You can either rent a car, hire a private car service, or train to Florence and then do the same from there. 
2. The drive from Florence to Rapolano Terme is 1 hour 15 minutes. You can either arrange a private car service, rent your own car, or take our shuttle/bus (depending on your arrival time).

• We will have two shuttles from Florence to the hotels on July 11th: 
• --One at 2pm leaving Florence Airport (Amerigo Vespucci/Peretola), with the meeting location being the Bus Parking Lot outside baggage. We will get more information with the bus driver.
• --The other shuttle at 2pm leaving Florence City Center, with the location being Via Fiume, near Hotel Joli. Everyone on these shuttles has already communicated this with C&N, so if you have not, then please let us know immediately and we will see if there is still room. 

1. --Two shuttles will leave the hotels at 10am on July 15th, one going to Florence Airport, and the other to Florence City Center. Same as above, these participants have already been communicated. 
2. The drive through Tuscany to the hotel is considered to be part of the allure of coming to this place, and this will also provide you with a bit of independence and freedom should you want it.

Flight Routes: We removed these to cut down on the website content, as your flight should be booked already. If you need a hand, let us know. 

(Updated, May 14, 2022) We immediately found out that we are more liked than we initially anticipated, or perhaps people are just eager to travel, haha. At the moment, we have fully booked and pre-paid for two locations for all 4 nights, and everyone that has RSVP'ed, and not booked their own accommodations, will be in one of these two places:

1. Laticastelli, which consists of 33 individual rooms, each with their own private bathrooms. Room arrangements vary between some all to their own, some with shared entrances, and others with shared living rooms. Laticastelli has a private pool, as well as expansive grounds with amazing views and space for relaxation and enjoyment. This is where the wedding and reception will take place, which also includes an indoor backup plan for rain.

2. Molino della Lodola, 16 overall rooms, arranged with 6 larger apartments, ranging from 1bd+living room, to 3bd+living room, and also 5 individual 1bd apartments. The grounds include a lovely pool, whirl pool, and day beds, as well as a 17th century mill on the property. There is also a designated dining space for the morning's continental breakfast. This beautiful Tuscan villa is only 2.7km (5 min drive) from Laticastelli.

3. Other nearby accommodations - Those of you that have booked your own  accommodations, we have already spoken. 

It is our intent to help with the cost of the event, as we know that getting to the location is already a big ask. Both hotels have been fully booked and pre-paid for in advance. Our goal is to place all guests, whom have not booked their own accommodations elsewhere, in the room/location that best matches their needs, while also taking into consideration group sizes, as well as arrangements for the bridal party members. We appreciate your trust and understanding, and if you have any questions, comments, or requests, do not hesitate to ask at all, and know that we will do our best to make it awesome and accommodating for everyone!  At this point we have a good idea of where everyone will be, but as the locations are so close to one another, and we will have a shuttle to go back and forth, it does not make so much of a difference, and we prefer to wait until closer to the date in case of late cancellations and room adjustments.

To make things as simple as possible, we would collect an amount of $150 per room per night (so $600 for 4 nights), which  will include your room cost, breakfast every morning (already complimentary from both hotels), and dinner (including standard alcoholic drinks) every night. The dinner and drinks each night will be paid for by C&N, thus making bill settlement much simpler for everyone, and our thanks for coming and having a great time. This fee is only applicable to those staying at Laticastelli and Molino DL. See below for other accommodation bookings.

 What is included in my room reservation? What other costs should I be aware of? 

If you are booked at Laticastelli, your room reservation, will include:
- The room and all of its amenities (not including minibar purchases).
- Continental breakfast every morning.
- Dinner every night (including standard alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages).
- Access to everything on the grounds of Laticastelli and Molino della Lodola.
- The wedding and all that goes with it is also included, of course :).
- A welcome basket waiting for you in your room, which will include some wine, beer, water, and snacks.

Those staying at Molino della Lodola:

- Continental breakfast every morning.

- A la carte lunch (with self-payment) at Laticastelli is possible for all guests. 

- You are also invited to all dinner/evening activities, free of cost, including standard drinks. 

- You are also welcome to take part in all activities at Laticastelli, pool days, etc., free of cost.

- Participating in scheduled activities is also welcome/encouraged, like cooking classes and wine tasting mentioned above, which are arranged and paid for individually.

- The wedding and all that goes with it is also included, of course :).

- A welcome basket waiting for you in your room, which will include some wine, beer, water, and snacks.

Those staying any of the other nearby accommodations that they have booked directly:

- You will not be required to provide us with the $150/night  cost, as you will be directly paying for your own accommodation. 

- We will also be treating you to dinner and drinks at Laticastelli each night.

- You are welcome to join for all activities and excursions, and as long as your accommodations are within the nearby radius, our shuttle will also be available to you in the mornings and evenings as well.

Items that are not included in your room reservation/stay, regardless of your hotel location:
- Lunch, which can be at the Laticastelli restaurant, or off premises, depending on what your plans are going to be. We didn't want to arrange any lunchtime plans just yet, as we don't want to commit people to too many activities up-front.
- Non-standard drinks during dinners (aka top shelf or special cocktails), which can be paid for on your own bill.
- Drinks and food outside of the continental breakfast and scheduled dinners.
- Scheduled activities on the hotel grounds, like cooking classes, wine tasting, rum and cigar tasting, etc..
- Excursion activities listed above, like wine tasting, etc.

We are not requiring a black-tie dress code for the wedding; guests are welcome to dress in their favorite suits and gowns, however as it is a Tuscan summer wedding, we do have some recommendations. 

Traditional colors would be beige, tan, khaki, white, rose, light green, and brown.

For the men, if you are not going to wear a tie/bow-tie, we do ask that you accompany your shirt with a jacket/blazer. 

The weather will likely be warm, and cooler as the night continues, so make sure you are prepared for both in your attire. 

-Monday night, Pizza Night, Dress attire casual.

-Tuesday night, Rehearsal Dinner, Dress attire is semi-formal/garden chic (dress shirt and khakis for men).

-Wednesday night, Wedding, Dress attire is formal, but not black-tie.

-Thursday night, Tuscan BBQ, Dress attire is casual/garden chic.

Italy is beautiful, we all know this, so if you are thinking about taking some extra time to travel while you are there, we have some recommendations:

Other Italian cities:

Siena - Though we have not been there yet, Siena is a medieval city located only 30 minutes from our hotel. There is no airport or high speed trains from here, however it is not far from Florence, which has both.

Florence - One of Italy's most beloved cities is only a 1hr 15min drive from the hotel. The Arno (river), architecture, history, wine, etc., you pretty much can't go wrong here. Florence also has an international airport, as well as high speed trains to Rome, Bologna, Venice, and Pisa. 

Rome - At 2hr 15min drive, the history of Rome is within your reach. Though it is a very busy city, we found it to be wonderful. In the western world, 300 years is old. In Rome, 3,000 years is old. We would not recommend going for less than 2 nights, as there is so much that you will want to see (The Colosseum, Roman Forum, Spanish Stairs, Pantheon, Vatican, Trevi Fountain, and more).

Venice - The amazing floating city of romance. The best way to get there would likely be driving 1hr 14min to Florence, and then taking a direct train to Venice, which would be about 2hr 15min.

Pisa - We all know the tower, and as cheesy as it is, you know you would enjoy taking the classic photo of you holding it up! Pisa is also a mere 2hr 15min drive from the hotel.

The Amalfi Coast - If you are in for a larger journey, we can't say enough good things about the Amalfi Coast. The picturesque scenes and villages are amazing, and you have quite a few beaches down below to enjoy on the hot summer days. Be warned, travel restrictions have been put in place due to the crowds this summer, so if you plan on going here, best to do it by taxi/train.