Palazzo Confalone Wedding

Palazzo Confalone dates to the late 13th or early 14th century and stands on Via San Giovanni del Toro, one of the quietest streets in Ravello. It takes its name from the Confalone family, who moved here from nearby Scala around 1384 and shaped the building over the following centuries. The palazzo operated for decades as Hotel Palumbo before its current incarnation. Today it has 10 guest rooms spread between the main palazzo and Villa Confalone just 20 meters away, a stone courtyard with medieval arches, a panoramic terrace overlooking the Gulf of Salerno, and a dining room with a frescoed vault and a large stone fireplace. The first time I walked through the entrance, years before I ever photographed a wedding here, I remember thinking it felt more like a private home than a hotel. That quality has never changed.

Among the five main wedding venues in Ravello, Palazzo Confalone is the smallest, the most private, and the most affordable. It is also the one I recommend first for elopements and micro weddings, because the spaces feel naturally complete with 2 people or 30. At the larger venues, a small wedding can feel like a private dinner in the corner of a resort. At the Confalone, a small wedding feels like the palazzo was built for exactly this purpose.

The Courtyard

The interior courtyard is the heart of the Confalone and the space that defines its character. Stone walls, medieval arches supported by ancient marble columns, mosaic-tile floors, and a sense of enclosure that separates you from the rest of Ravello completely. The courtyard is where most ceremonies take place: the couple stands under one of the arches, guests sit on either side, and the medieval architecture does all the work. I have shot ceremonies here where the only setup was two rows of chairs and a small table for the celebrant, and the photos look like they were taken in a private chapel.

From a photographer’s perspective, the courtyard is one of the most reliable spaces I work in. It stays in shade for most of the day, which means soft, even light without the harsh shadows that plague open terraces at midday. The stone walls act as natural reflectors, bouncing warm tones back onto faces. I can shoot from any angle inside the courtyard and get a clean background of arches and columns. The light shifts throughout the day, but it never becomes difficult. In the morning, a cool directional glow enters from the east. In the afternoon, the warm westerly light filters through the upper openings and creates patterns on the stone floor. Even on an overcast day, the courtyard looks good.

A couple from Dublin married here in late October with 18 guests. The ceremony started at 4 PM in the courtyard. The light was low and golden, entering through the arches at a steep angle, and it caught the stone columns in a way that made them glow. I shot the exchange of rings from behind the arch on the far side, using the stone as a natural frame, and the resulting image has a quality that looks like it was lit by a Renaissance painter. It was not. It was just the courtyard at the right hour.

The Confalone’s Imperial Table at Sunset

The panoramic terrace extends from the palazzo over the garden, with a wide view of the Amalfi Coast: Minori, Maiori, Capo d’Orso, and the open sea. This is where the reception dinner happens for most weddings: a long imperial table (or smaller round tables for larger groups) set against the coastline at sunset.

The terrace faces south-southwest, which means it catches the full arc of the afternoon sun and the golden hour. In June, the golden window opens around 7 PM and the light wraps around the stone balustrade, warming the table settings and the guests’ faces. In September, this shifts to about 6:15 PM. In October, around 5:30 PM. I build the dinner timing around these numbers so that the first course arrives as the light is at its warmest, and by the time the coffee comes the coast below has started to light up for the Blue Hour portraits.

The terrace seats up to about 60 guests for dinner. For larger groups, the space gets tight. For 20 to 40 guests, a single imperial table running the length of the terrace with the coast behind it is the setup I photograph most at the Confalone, and it is one of the strongest dinner compositions I get at any venue in Ravello. Everyone faces each other, the conversation flows down the table, and every seat has the same view.

The Dining Room

The dining room is the indoor reception space and the winter wedding option. Frescoed vault on the ceiling. Terracotta floors with inlaid majolica tiles. A large stone fireplace on the main wall. Period furniture and the warm, accumulated texture of a room that has been in continuous use for four centuries.

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I photograph the dining room primarily by candlelight and firelight. The frescoes on the vault pick up the warm tones from below, and the stone fireplace, when lit, casts a glow across the room that no artificial lighting can replicate. For getting-ready shots, the rooms upstairs have tall windows and antique furniture that create a backdrop with real historical depth. For a late-evening scene around the fireplace, with the couple seated on the old chairs and the fire dying down, the images have a Rembrandt quality: dark edges, warm center, faces lit by the last of the flame.

The dining room is also why Palazzo Confalone works for winter weddings, a detail that no other Ravello venue page mentions because most venues close in November. The Confalone stays open, and the frescoed room with the fire burning is a setting for December or January celebrations that the open-air terraces of the other venues simply cannot offer.

Fewer Rules, More Flexibility

The large Ravello venues operate with mandatory buyouts, fixed catering rates, specific access hours for terraces, and strict curfew rules. Palazzo Confalone is different.

You can hold symbolic, Protestant, and Jewish ceremonies directly in the palazzo: in the courtyard, on the terrace, or in the dining room. You are not limited to a single ceremony location. Acoustic and light amplified music on the terrace can continue into the late evening, typically until around 11 PM to midnight depending on the volume and the season. The staff works with your specific requests on timing, layout, and flow. If you want dinner at 9 PM instead of 7:30, or the ceremony indoors instead of on the terrace, the Confalone accommodates it without complicated negotiations.

Civil ceremonies take place at the Ravello Town Hall, a three-minute walk. Religious ceremonies can be held at the Church of San Giovanni del Toro, also within walking distance, or at the Duomo in Piazza Duomo. The proximity of all three ceremony options to Palazzo Confalone is a practical advantage: the transition from ceremony to reception takes five minutes on foot, which is enough time for me to shoot the couple walking through the streets of Ravello.

Elopements and Micro Weddings

This is the venue I recommend first for elopements in Ravello. The courtyard, the terrace, the frescoed dining room, and the 10 rooms between the palazzo and Villa Confalone create a setting where two people feel as naturally at home as thirty do. There is no sense of renting a corner of a 150-person resort.

For an elopement: ceremony in the courtyard at 4 PM, portraits on the terrace and through the streets of Ravello (including a stop at Villa Rufolo, two minutes away), and private dinner in the dining room by the fireplace. The entire evening belongs to you. The palazzo feels like your own private house in Ravello for the night.

For a micro wedding of 15 to 30 guests: ceremony in the courtyard, aperitivo on the terrace, dinner at a single imperial table with the coast behind it. The format is simple, the logistics are minimal, and the atmosphere is warm and personal. No external planner is strictly necessary for the smallest events: our internal team can handle the coordination alongside the photography. For groups above 20, a dedicated planning service helps with timing, vendor management, and day-of logistics.

The Most Accessible Price Point in Ravello

No competitor website publishes specific pricing for Palazzo Confalone. Here are the ranges based on what I see across the weddings I photograph here.

• Accommodation: 10 rooms (7 in the palazzo, 3 in Villa Confalone nearby), rates vary by season. A block booking is negotiable and typically more affordable per night than the five-star hotels.
• Venue and event fee: approximately 8,000 to 15,000 euros depending on the season, the day, and the spaces used. This is the lowest entry point of any established wedding venue in Ravello.
• Catering: approximately 180 to 280 euros per person for a multi-course dinner with aperitivo, wine, cake, and coffee. The palazzo has its own restaurant and kitchen.

Budget Ranges

• Full wedding (40 to 60 guests): 45,000 to 80,000 euros total.
• Elopement (2 people): 5,000 to 10,000 euros before photography and vendors. Includes ceremony, dinner, and 1-2 nights’ accommodation.
• Micro wedding (15 to 30 guests): 25,000 to 50,000 euros total including all core vendors.

These are the lowest ranges of any Ravello venue. For the full cost comparison, see our wedding in Ravello guide. For general budgeting, read our budget wedding in Italy page.

What Couples Want to Know About Confalone

How many guests can Palazzo Confalone accommodate?

The terrace seats up to about 60 for dinner. The courtyard holds a similar number for a ceremony. The palazzo has 17 rooms for overnight guests. For weddings above 60, consider Villa Eva or Hotel Caruso.

Is Palazzo Confalone good for elopements?

It is the best elopement venue in Ravello. The courtyard and terrace work for two people as naturally as they work for fifty. The costs are proportionate to a small event, and the 10 rooms mean your closest guests can sleep on site. I recommend it ahead of every other venue in Ravello for elopements and micro weddings.

Does the venue stay open in winter?

Yes. The frescoed dining room with the stone fireplace makes Palazzo Confalone the only established Ravello venue that works for winter celebrations. Most other venues close between November and March. If a December or January wedding appeals to you, this is the place.

What is the music curfew?

Acoustic and light amplified music on the terrace can typically run until around 11 PM to midnight depending on volume and season. The dining room extends the evening further indoors at lower volume. For a full dance party past midnight with a DJ, Villa Eva is the only Ravello option. For an evening with acoustic guitar by the fireplace, Palazzo Confalone handles it naturally.

Can we have a civil ceremony at the palazzo?

Civil ceremonies take place at the Ravello Town Hall, a three-minute walk. The Church of San Giovanni del Toro is also within walking distance for religious ceremonies. Symbolic, Protestant, and Jewish ceremonies can be held at the palazzo itself. For the legal process, see our guide for foreigners.

How does it compare to the bigger venues?

Palazzo Confalone is smaller, more affordable, and more flexible. Cimbrone has the Terrace of Infinity but costs three to four times as much. Caruso has 50 rooms and a larger kitchen. Villa Eva has the rooftop and the late-night party. Palazzo Avino has the Michelin restaurant. The Confalone’s advantage is intimacy: the medieval courtyard, the personal scale, the fireplace, and the feeling that the entire palazzo is your private home for the evening.

A Handful of Confalone Weddings

Every wedding at Palazzo Confalone has its own character depending on whether the couple chose the courtyard or the terrace, the season, and the size of the group. Here are some of the weddings I have photographed at this venue.