Venice's Gritti Palace: Small-Scale Wedding Celebrations on the Grand Canal
Each room is distinct, blending Renaissance detail with modern comfort. Some have balconies overlooking the Grand Canal or Santa Maria della Salute; others open onto quieter side streets. Throughout the hotel, historic features remain intact: terrazzo floors, oil paintings, antique mirrors. The Club del Doge restaurant serves regional dishes on a terrace that faces the canal, while the Gritti Epicurean School offers hands-on cooking classes inside a restored kitchen. There's also a spa, intimate and candlelit, run in partnership with Sisley Paris.
For weddings, The Gritti Palace hosts both ceremonies and receptions, primarily for smaller gatherings. Events can take place on the restaurant terrace, in the Red Room, or within the suites themselves for private dinners. The staff offers planning support and access to a network of local vendors. While the hotel doesn't market itself as a large-scale wedding venue, it attracts couples looking for a refined, centrally located space with deep historical character.
Beyond great views, The Gritti Palace offers access to 'The Floating City' of Venice. The hotel's private Riva boat allows guests to explore the canals in classic Venetian style, whether for a quiet ride or a wedding-day arrival. Landmarks like the Peggy Guggenheim Collection, La Fenice Theatre, and Piazza San Marco are just a short walk away. From this location on the Grand Canal, the city feels close but never overcrowding. It's an ideal setting for a celebration centered around history, simplicity, and love.
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Time Business News
a day ago
- Time Business News
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National Geographic
6 days ago
- National Geographic
Why this ancient Crete city is worth a trip in its own right
This article was produced by National Geographic Traveller (UK). Travellers have long been drawn to Greece's largest island, both for the richness of its past and the beauty of its landscapes. In Chania, the two collide. Built on the site of an ancient Minoan settlement founded in 3650 BCE, the city lies surrounded by some of Crete's most impressive natural sites — from the vertiginous cliffs of Samaria Gorge National Park to the pink sands of Elafonisi, regularly voted one of the world's most beautiful beaches. Chania has changed hands many times over the centuries, and today its old town is punctuated by monuments left by Roman, Byzantine, Venetian and Ottoman conquerors. Take the 17th-century Mosque of Kioutsouk Hasan, the city's last surviving Turkish-era temple. Its pink domes are watched over by Firkas Fortress, which was created to fend off enemy ships back when Chania served as the Cretan capital under Venetian rule. 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National Geographic
25-07-2025
- National Geographic
The picturesque Spanish villages that tourists haven't found—yet
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Another hour north brings you to the Monastery of San Juan de la Peña, a unique sanctuary carved out of the mountain, now a museum. La Seo is home to a world-class collection of Flemish tapestries. Photograph By Dorothea Schmid/laif/Redux Explore medieval villages In the second half of the 20th century, Aragon struggled with the aftermath of the Spanish Civil War and World War II. 'Farmers couldn't feed their families, so they went to big cities looking for work at factories and many villages were nearly abandoned,' says Aragon-based Alba Cruells, whose company Spain Insights offers custom tours of the region. 'Today, the trend has reversed. People are returning to their ancestral homes, reviving the region, which sparked rural tourism.' One of the oldest Aragon villages, Alquézar retains much of its medieval looks. 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The Collegiate Church of Santa María la Mayor dates back to the ninth century. Photograph By Tolobalaguer/Shutterstock Indulge in local specialties One of the region's most famous specialties is frutas de Aragon, sweets made with candied pears, peaches, apricots, cherries, and plums, dipped in rich dark chocolate. The local lore states that Aragon was the first place in Europe where chocolate arrived from the New World, brought by the traveling monks, who perfected the recipe over the years. Stock up to take some home at Pastelería Fantoba in Zaragoza or browse the city's Central Market where you can also pick up Jamón de Teruel, Aragon's prized ham made from pigs raised in the mountainous Teruel region before curing for 12 months. (15 of the best Spanish food experiences) On the countryside, stop at Quesos Bal de Broto in Sarvisé for local cheeses and a tour of its aging cellar. 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Photograph By Nano Calvo/VWPics/Redux (Top) (Left) and Photograph By Francesco Bonino/Shutterstock (Bottom) (Right) Hike, bike, and fly From glacier-covered peaks to majestic waterfalls, the Pyrenees are spectacular. Ordesa and Monte Perdido National Park offers trails for all hiking levels as well as cycling and mountain biking routes. For a thrilling hike, take Ruta congosto de Entremón in Sobrarbe Geopark, where the paths, etched on the edges of forested cliffs, can be so narrow that you must hold on to ropes to keep walking. (8 of the best beach cities in Spain) Similarly exhilarating is a trek through the River Vero Canyon that begins outside of Alquézar and weaves through a network of passageways mounted on steep cliffs, overlooking gorges and waterfalls below. The Pyrenees-Mont Perdu area is a designated UNESCO World Heritage Site. Photograph by Francois Laurens / Hans Luca/Redux 'If you're uncomfortable with heights, these walks are probably not for you,' cautions local guide Guayo Mulero. But if you crave the adrenaline rush, try 'flying like a bird' over the mountains at the Tirolina-Ordesa zipline, Mulero suggests. It's said to be the longest in Europe and the fastest in the world with a speed of nearly 100 miles per hour. A nomadic New Yorker, Lina Zeldovich shimmied with belly dancers in Turkey, cooked a zebu stew in Madagascar, fished for piranhas in the Amazon, paddled away from a calving iceberg in the Arctic, sipped a drink made from a venomous snake in Peru—and always lived to tell the story. She is the author of the book, The Living Medicine, part of which takes place in Tbilisi, Georgia.
