A Multi-Day Sorrento Wedding Celebrating Community
August 10, 2026
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Imagine flying to Italy to celebrate a loved one’s wedding and discovering that you are a featured part of the main event. At the ceremony, tucked under your seat is a customized card bearing your name. Before the couple’s vows are wrapped up, you might even find yourself standing before the crowd to read a cherished story about your relationship with them. That was the reality for every guest when Emily and Carl tied the knot in Sorrento, Italy. Partnering closely with their planner, the couple designed a multi-day celebration around a single guiding premise: stepping into their future while expressing gratitude to the community that helped shape them.
How It All Started
Emily and Carl’s story began on a high school recruiting trip for the University of Alabama swim team. Sparks flew right away, and they left the football stadium holding hands. They went on to spend four years as Division 1 teammates at Alabama. Though post-college life eventually pulled them to opposite corners of the globe, their bond stayed resilient. A decade into their journey together, Carl proposed at the top of a mountain in New Zealand.
Selecting Sorrento
When wedding planning began, Carl and Emily asked themselves: “What’s a bucket list destination on the water that is known for incredible food?”
The Amalfi Coast stood out as the obvious answer.
“With our family spread out all over the country and even the world, our wedding was going to be a destination wedding for our guests no matter what,” Carl explains. “So we decided to express ourselves and our love of travel through our location.”
Pulling off a seamless overseas celebration calls for major expertise, which led the couple to Irene Cencetti of Fairytale Italy Weddings. Her guidance proved essential early on. While Emily and Carl initially looked at Positano, Irene suggested Sorrento as an ideal alternative. It offered the classic Amalfi Coast magic alongside far simpler logistics and manageable, flat terrain, easier for lugging suitcases around.
Finding the Magic at Villa Zagara
With Sorrento confirmed, Irene presented a curated selection of top venues. During a live FaceTime tour of their top choices, Villa Zagara immediately stole Carl and Emily’s hearts.
The private estate paired sprawling gardens and greenhouses with sweeping views of the water. What sealed the deal was the property’s twinkling fairy-light tunnel, which matched their central theme: “the lights of our lives.”
A Week Built for Connection
Long before guests gathered at Villa Zagara, the weekly itinerary was curated around meaningful interaction. Each gathering expanded on the last, gradually growing from an intimate core group into a 50-person celebration.
Festivities opened with a joint bachelorette yacht outing and a casual movie night featuring everyone’s favorite candy, followed by an intimate bridal luncheon at Ristorante ‘o Parrucchiano la Favorita honoring the women in Emily’s life. The group then gathered at the Grand Hotel Capodimonte for a welcome dinner framed around an “Amalfi Coast sunset meets Italian Vogue” aesthetic. During a candlelight session, guests stood up to introduce themselves and recount how they first met the bride and groom.
The intentionality continued on the morning of the wedding. Emily arranged individual first looks with her close friends sequentially, starting from her oldest friendship. As each friend finished her moment, she joined the group nearby to watch Carl’s first look, joining in to count down “3, 2, 1” as he turned to see his bride.
Details with a Clear Purpose
Every aesthetic element served both a sentimental role and a functional purpose:
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Illustrated Keepsake Fans: Custom watercolor fans by stationer Stephanie Tara featured a map highlighting every event location from the week. Finished with the phrase, “Life is an adventure best traveled together,” they offered a meaningful souvenir and a way to stay cool during the ceremony.
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Wishing Lanterns: Cards in the welcome bags asked guests to write personal vows and wishes. These notes were placed onto paper lanterns floating in the pool at cocktail hour.
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DIY Tambourines: The couple and their party hand-painted custom tambourines that doubled as place cards for dinner and musical instruments for the reception. Many guests now display them as home decor.
A Unique Ceremony Honoring Past, Present & Future
Set against Villa Zagara’s historic backdrop, the couple skipped standard traditions and invited their three siblings to co-officiate a three-part ceremony representing their past, present, and future.
During the “past” segment, guests reached under their seats for custom cards highlighting a core value (friendship, authenticity, adventure, growth, or fun) and a personal story with the couple. Selected guests were invited to stand and share their card aloud.
For the “present” portion, the maid of honor and best man delivered a reading of E.E. Cummings’ poem “I carry your heart with me,” softly modifying the line to, “I carry your light. I carry it in my heart.”
During the “future” section, Carl and Emily exchanged personal vows. After sealing the ceremony, the couple remained at the top of the aisle to personally hug all 50 guests before proceeding to cocktail hour.
An Illuminated Reception
Guests later gathered beneath Villa Zagara’s canopy of fairy lights for an Italian-style family feast. Set among greenery and lemon trees, the atmosphere brought the week’s illumination theme to its full realization. Between heartfelt toasts, guests shook their custom tambourines to keep the energy going, carrying the dinner seamlessly into a night of dancing while a live painter captured the scene on canvas.
The Couple’s Planning Advice
Looking back on their journey, Emily and Carl emphasize the importance of making an in-person site visit. Traveling to Sorrento a year prior allowed them to complete their menu tasting, hair and makeup trials with Jimena Puy, engagement photo session with Enrico Capuano, and floral consultations with Labflor.
They also advise couples to stay adaptable when working across cultures. “Figuring out the attitude of your vendors is really important,” they advise. “Some vendors may be a lot less responsive if they come from a different culture. We struggled adjusting to that initially… However, you have to learn to be okay with having some patience for your vendor’s point of view and don’t let it stress you too much.”
Vendors: Photography: Enrico Capuano; Wedding Planner: Irene of Fairytale Italy Weddings; Venue & Cake: Villa Zagara Sorrento; Welcome Dinner Venue: Grand Hotel Capodimonte; Bridal Luncheon Venue: Ristorante ‘o Parrucchiano la Favorita; Florist: Labflor; Stationery: Stephanie Tara; Hair & Makeup: Jimena Puy; Bride’s Gown: Monique Lhuillier; Content Creator: Lauren Ladouceur; Live Painter: Monja Paint Your Dreams; Music: Amalfi Coast Wedding Music Service
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