Ryan & Ameya — An Indian-American Wedding at Grand Hotel Tremezzo
Two days on the western shore of Lake Como — a lakeside pizza welcome on the eve of the wedding, a Baraat procession at the gates of Grand Hotel Tremezzo on the wedding morning. Twenty guests, two cultures, one of the most cinematic five-star properties in Italy.
Plan a Celebration Like ThisRyan & Ameya, twenty of their closest people, Lake Como
"We didn't want a banquet of two hundred. We wanted twenty people who would actually remember they were here."
Ryan & Ameya's celebration was designed for an intentionally small guest count — twenty adults, both immediate families plus the closest friends. The brief came to ELLEFFEVENTS in early 2023: an Indian-American couple based in the United States wanted a wedding in Italy that honoured both heritages and stayed under twenty-five guests. Lake Como was the destination of choice because both families had spent time there in the past, and Grand Hotel Tremezzo was the only property that could host an Indian Baraat without compromise on either side.
The format was deliberately compressed into two days: a relaxed welcome on Friday evening, the wedding day on Saturday with a Baraat ceremony at the hotel's entrance. By the time guests had finished dinner on the wedding day, both families had eaten three meals together, met every relevant cousin, and spent most of forty-eight hours within twenty metres of the lake.
Indian warmth, Lake Como restraint
The colour direction held two stories without shouting either. Marigold orange and saffron for the Indian floral language — garlands, candles, the bridal palette. Lake-silver and ivory for the Italian context — linen, ceramics, and the soft palette that lets the lake itself be the centrepiece on the wedding-day terrace.
Floral design was led in-house by our atelier Lada Fiori — every petal, fabric and ceramic piece was sourced and styled by our team rather than out-housed. Italian ingredients, Italian wines, Italian pacing — but with the saffron and the dhol drums and the Baraat that the family had asked for from the first call.
Grand Hotel Tremezzo
Grand Hotel Tremezzo is the most cinematic five-star property on the western shore of Lake Como. Built in 1910 directly across the water from Bellagio, it sits between the lake and Villa Carlotta's botanical gardens, with a long terrace where the Bellagio promontory feels close enough to touch.
For a small Indian-American wedding, Tremezzo offered three things no other Lake Como property could match: a private terrace large enough for an outdoor ceremony, a hotel events team familiar with Indian-vegetarian kitchen requirements, and the political relationship needed to coordinate the Baraat procession at the property's entrance with local police. Accommodation for the entire 20-guest party was held inside the hotel.
How the celebration unfolded
A relaxed Italian welcome on the eve of the wedding, an Indian Baraat the next morning.
The Pizza Welcome
The welcome dinner the night before the wedding was deliberately informal — a lakeside pizza party at the property, with a rolling station and a wood-fired oven set up on the terrace. Italian wines, regional cheese, soft music. After fifteen flights' worth of jet lag and the arrival shuffle, the format was designed to break ice without asking for anything from anyone.
Welcome boards in white forex by Esmé Creation greeted guests at the entrance. By the end of the evening, both families had been at the same table for three hours, and the wedding-day social pressure had already evaporated. The next morning could be about the ceremony itself.
Welcome cocktails & pizza party · 30 June 2023 · Lakeside terrace
The Baraat & The Lakeside Ceremony
Saturday morning the procession began at the hotel's entrance. The groom arrived in a Baraat — the traditional Indian wedding procession — to dhol drums and the immediate family dancing alongside. Local police coordinated the brief slowing of traffic on Via Regina; hotel staff lined the entrance in white. The procession moved through the property to the ceremony location on the lower terrace.
The ceremony itself was conducted by the family's pandit, with the seven phera circumambulations performed in Sanskrit. Floral installations by Lada Fiori framed the lake behind the couple; the marigold and ivory palette held throughout. Dinner followed on the same terrace — five courses paired with regional Italian wines, a long single-table format, with the immediate families seated together.
Evening photography by Iris van Nes Photography. Wedding film by AG Studio Videography. The dance floor was open until late, with the lake quietly silver in the background for the rest of the night.
Baraat · 1 July 2023 · Ceremony & reception · Lakeside terrace, Grand Hotel Tremezzo
The Vendors Who Made It Possible
A small, deliberately curated team — every vendor selected for cross-cultural fluency.
ELLEFFEVENTS
Natalie Damaschin — full creative direction, vendor coordination, day-of execution.
Lada Fiori
In-house floral atelier — marigold installations, mandap florals, ceremony arch.
Esmé Creation
Welcome boards, name cards, ceremony stationery — bespoke design.
Rita Annunziata · Bellagio
Licensed Lake Como tourist guide — guest excursions and hospitality coordination.
In Photographs
Click any image to enlarge. Photography by Iris van Nes Photography.
Plan a Celebration Like Ryan & Ameya's
Cross-cultural weddings — Indian-Italian, Catholic-Hindu, Persian-American, Jewish-Italian — are a specialty. We have produced celebrations across Lake Como, Tuscany, the Amalfi Coast, Sorrento and Florence.
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