My husband and I were married on August, 4th, 2011 in the beautiful Villa Cipressi. This review is LONG overdo! From the moment we arrived at the hotel, we were in awe of the beauty, tranquility and enchantment of the Villa. If it had not been for our FABULOUS wedding planner, Federica Nascimben with the Italian Wedding Event, we would NEVER had known about this romantic and perfect location for our wedding!

Here are some of the details:
ROOM: Absolutely BREATHTAKING! Highly recommend staying in one of the view rooms on the second floor. We would stand for hours staring out the window...the mountains, the Lake, WOW! Yes, there are many weddings that take place (as ours did), but the staff is very respectful in helping to keep the wedding seperate from the hotel guests...also, if they do have a wedding and have to close down the restaurant...there is SO many delicious restaurants within walking distance...not to fret!

FOOD: WOW. The wedding meal was superb...probably one of the best meals we have had...ever...and definitely for a wedding caterer. We had the traditional Italian wedding cake that was unlike anything we had seen, and so incredibly delicious! Our guests raved. Yes, the meal is very long, but it is Italy...savor and enjoy!
Breakfast was perfect...consisting of cereals, fresh pastries, coffee, granola, yogurt. Sit on the patio and bask in the sun, or stay inside on a rainy day and enjoy the view!

GROUNDS: The most well-kept hotel grounds I have stayed in..perfectly manicured with a gorgeous garden below to wander through and get lost in your own thoughts.

LOCATION: RIGHT in the center of Varenna! It was perfect for strolling through town and for a little longer walk to wander along the waterfront.

STAFF: We were lucky to have Federica Nascimben assist with all our needs prior to our arrival as our planner, but the staff was beyond helpful! We had a few issues with our videographer who we brought with from the states and his equipment didn't all make the flight...the front desk staff assisted in calling the airlines for us and helping with the transportation issues. AMAZING!

THE WEDDING: Of course, I'm biased because it was my own, but I can't imagine hosting a wedding in a more serene and lovely location. Guiseppe and Diane from Blessings From Italy officiated our wedding in the gardens of the Villa. It was spectacular. Following a lovely ceremony, we had a fabulous cocktail party up on the patio with delicious appetizers and drinks! This was followed by dinner, then dancing. My only complaint is the dancing started so much later because the dinner is very long...and we had to stop music by midnight (which is good for being a guest at the hotel!)

Overall, a fairy tale experience.

I had my wedding at villa cipressi in early October. I planned my whole wedding using tripadvisor and never having been there I was quite anxious reading some of the reviews.... Once I got there I was relieved! The place is amazing, the staff sooo nice, and restaurant delicious.

Rooms: Allot of the wedding party stayed at the hotel myself included. Our rooms all had views that were amazing; rooms were very clean, and huge! The bathrooms not fancy but were clean, new appliances, and nice hot water! For the wedding night we changed rooms to the Manzoni suite also amazing.

Food: Amazing food, make reservations for the restaurant it can get full. Outdoor view is beautiful. Breakfast that is included is very typical continental breakfast... bread, coffee, cereal. They did have hard boiled eggs.

Staff: Amazing, very accommodating.

Wedding Day: Everything went very well and the ballroom was very pretty, food amazing. I had read the reviews about music being a problem in the past ... My only criticism is I had a DJ come to play music during dinner and since he was set up in another room and he was not allowed to play until dinner was over. Mind you dinner was very long there are many courses which is not a bad thing but when there is no music it seems quite longgg. We had to use an iPod to play during dinner even though the DJ was being paid and waiting in the second room. So I wasted my money to have him there early. When the dessert was put out the DJ was allowed to play so he only played for end of the night. They put many tasty desserts out but took them away so fast I was not able to sample anything. Davide did let us play music alittle longer than expected which was much appreciated. All and all I had a great time and would definitely recommend this as a wedding venue! Maybe just use and IPod instead of hiring a DJ.

We found the many reviews that describe this as a "convention" and/or "wedding destination" hotel to be misleading. Perhaps because we visited mid-week, in mid-October, we felt at all times as though we were enjoying a solid 3 or 4 start hotel. We observed only one wedding reception and it was not at all disruptive. A dinner in the hotel's dining room was among the best during our Lake Como stay. The front desk was attentive and provided reliable recommendations on dining in Varenna. The location is quiet, the views spectacular (our room had a small balcony and looked out directly over the terrace and the lake), the breakfast better than most. Unless you are travelling very light, get a taxi from the RR station. Varenna worked well for us as a base. Certainly Belagio offers more of everything (shops, dining, etc.), but the boat service is frequent and reliable, and we never regretted returning to peaceful Varenna at the end of the day.

We stayed here as guests for 7 nights during May 2011 & also had our wedding here on 30 May 2011.

As a hotel, Villa Cipressi is professionally run with very friendly staff & management. The rooms are more than adequate & superior to many other Hotels I have stayed in when in Italy. Breakfast is simple but more than adequate and the food served in the restaurant (when open - either in the afternoon or the evening) is simply superb. The hotel is set in its own steeped gardens which are wonderful to walk around. The only thing that we thought it lacked were bar or restaurant facilities for guests who weren't attending the weddings held there, as when a wedding occurs this takes over the catering facilities. However this should not really be a problem as there are plenty of alternatives in Varenna, only a short walk away.

As a wedding venue - all I can say is that this venue is second to none. We were blessed with fantastic sunshine all day & were able to sit outside in the main courtyard & immediate surrounding area. We noticed that one or 2 other weddings were not so fortunate in getting the weather, however the Hotel seem used to this & are able to make alternative arrangements in-doors.

The food provided to us for the wedding meal was simply fantastic, featuring the finest selections of hors d'oeuvre I have ever encountered. This was followed by a 7 course sit down menu of the highest quality. Service by the staff throughout the whole day was really first class and superbly organised . The hotel provides a wonderful atmosphere (that really has to be experienced to be believed) with a truly stunning view across Lake Como across to the Bellagio area (which is just at a wrong angle to get a view of). We really couldn't ask for any more from Villa Cipressi & needless to say we were completely blown away by the experience.