Are you looking for a beautiful venue for your next event in Italy? Whether you are planning a corporate event involving business meetings, incentive programs and teambuilding – or a special occasion such as a destination wedding or anniversary – Italy offers many versatile venues for an unforgettable experience. Among the most requested Italian event destinations are Liguria and Tuscany, known for their breath-taking landscapes, genuine cuisine and a variety of activities on offer. And right between Liguria and Tuscany is a surprising haven called Gulf of Poets. Also known as Gulf of La Spezia, this place is off the beaten path yet easily reachable from abroad and conveniently located near Cinque Terre, Pisa, Milan and Parma.
Event Destination between Liguria and Tuscany
Portovenere is a small sea village with a rich history and wonderful mix of natural and manmade landscapes, characteristics that led UNESCO to include it in the list of World Heritage Sites. Portovenere enjoys a strategic location, surrounded by amazing attractions such as Cinque Terre, Forte dei Marmi and Florence in Tuscany, and Parma and Bologna in Emilia Romagna. The airports of Pisa and Genoa are respectively 95 km and 120 km away, while Milan can be reached with a 3-hour drive. Quite importantly, Portovenere is easily reachable not only by boat, but also by bus and by car – unlike other nearby villages where car transit is forbidden.
Team Building, Business & Leisure Activities
Many “bleisure” activities can be organized in and around Portovenere. Cooking lessons are great for creativity and teamwork. Groups can join local chefs to learn about seasonal food, traditional recipes, and to cook some homemade pesto.
Visiting wineries and vineyards is another great experience at any time of the year. During the visit, participants get to know about grape varieties, harvest techniques and wine tasting. They will surely be amazed to see what “heroic winemaking” is all about on the terraced hills of the Ligurian Riviera!
The Regional Nature Park of Portovenere, its Protected Marine Area and the neighbouring Cinque Terre National Park – all provide a peaceful nature haven where to practice sports and reenergize body and mind. Trekking, cycling, orienteering, sailing, mountain climbing, and diving are some of the sports activities that groups can enjoy in the area.
Wedding and Honeymoon Activities
Whether you choose the charming, picture-perfect Gulf of Poets for your destination wedding or for your honeymoon, there are plenty of fun activities for you as a couple and/or for your wedding guests.
Apart from cooking lessons, sports, vineyard visits & wine tasting (activities described in the paragraphs above), the area is ideal for culture, art & history-related activities. You can visit ancient castles that dot the Riviera between Cinque Terre and Lerici, meet local artisans and see them at work in their bottega (workshop), visit the marble quarries in nearby Carrara.
Romantic couples cannot miss an aperitif on board of a luxurious motorboat sailing around Palmaria Island at sunset. While for groups of families and friends, we recommend an unusual and surprising visit to the oyster farms in La Spezia.
Historic Event Venue in Liguria
Grand Hotel Portovenere is the ideal event venue for your corporate event, wedding or honeymoon between Liguria and Tuscany. The hotel’s historic building used to host the Saint Francis Convent in the XVII century. It was carefully renovated with special attention to maintaining the original architectural features and revisiting them in a modern way to ensure maximum comfort.
This historic venue (dimora storica) offers garage parking right in Portovenere’s city center and in front of the harbour where ferries depart for Cinque Terre. The hotel also features a panoramic restaurant with a customizable selection of menus for business meals, gala dinners and wedding parties.
At Grand Hotel Portovenere, business conferences can take place inside Sala Lerici, a meeting room that hosts up to 130 guests and can be set-up or divided to suit the needs of any kind of event. Other spaces for intimate meetings, wine tastings and cooking lessons, include the Magnolia Room and the Moby Dick Room.
With 49 rooms and suites, this seafront boutique hotel can accommodate groups that have chosen the Gulf of Poets for their Italian special occasion. The luxury suites – Suite del Castello and Suite dei Poeti – are perfect for newlyweds.
Make sure that your Italian event is simply unforgettable and inspiring by choosing the Gulf of Poets, a destination that was loved by many poets, writers and artists – including David Herbert Lawrence, Percy Bysshe Shelley, George Sand, and Lord Byron.
