They cancelled our wedding without warning for asking questions, promised a full refund in writing, then kept half what was owed.
Title: Cancelled our wedding over polite questions, promised a full refund in writing, paid half, and only when we said we'd go public
Review:
We booked our May 2027 wedding at La Torre in November 2025, signed the venue's 12-page contract, paid our deposit to confirm the dates, and paid a further planner fee directly into the venue's account. For months we planned in full: transport, photographer, videographer, custom menu, save-the-dates, invites sent. Every payment met on time.
In May 2026 we flew out for a tasting before sending the next instalment of 11,500 euro. Several things gave us pause. We were charged 360 euro cash for a "private transfer" that turned out to be the owner driving us himself, undisclosed. Despite hours of prior calls, he had forgotten who we were and what we did. And our room was never mentioned as chargeable until an hour before we left, first put at 270 euro, dropped to 200 only when we questioned it. We were told in writing not to assume anything is complimentary unless it's in the contract. That became the standard he set and then failed himself.
Before sending the 11,500 euro, we emailed one courteous note raising these points. We praised the venue, said it had done nothing wrong on paper, and stated we wished to continue. The owner addressed none of it and cancelled our wedding outright. He emailed only me, not my fiancee, despite dealing with her throughout. She called twice and got no answer, only that he would continue in writing. A year and a half of commitment ended without a single conversation.
The contract gives neither party a right to cancel, and the venue's own terms state a wedding is strictly non-refundable and non-cancelable. He cancelled anyway, breaching his own contract, then promised twice in writing to refund everything.
We took Italian legal advice. Under Article 1385 of the Civil Code, the exact law the venue's terms invoke, a deposit of this kind must be repaid double by the party who breaks the contract. When we set this out, the promised refund vanished. He offered around 1,200 euro instead, deducting card fees the contract says don't exist, and withholding part of the planner fee for services that never took place. He called it final.
Then the money finally moved, and it's worth noting what moved it. Polite questions produced nothing. The law itself produced nothing; his refusal was "final." Only after we told him in writing that we would share this story publicly did he pay: 1,250 euro, four days later, exactly half of what Italian law provides. We have accepted it, in writing, as partial payment only. As of July 2026 the remaining 1,250 euro is still withheld.
Judge the facts yourself. A venue whose contract forbids cancellation cancelled our wedding over polite questions, ignored its own written refund promise, and returned half of what its own contract's law requires, only when publicity was on the table. In our experience, not a business to trust with your wedding, your money, or its word.