Olivia + Connor’s long-weekend celebration at Masseria Amastuola

Wedding in Puglia at Masseria Amastuola, photography by Antonia Luca — Photography by Antonio Luca

Being well-travelled, having met in Greece back in 2010, and having lived in Australia and explored the world together, it was no surprise that UK couple Olivia and Connor chose a destination wedding. After getting engaged in Tulum, they narrowed it down to Greece, Mexico, and Italy— all places that held significance to them. But after a trip to Puglia, they fell in love with the region, their venue, and, of course, the Apulian people.

During that trip, they nearly cancelled their visit to Masseria Amastuola due to a spritz hangover, but as fate would have it, they made it—and it was there they knew they’d found the one. The venue’s natural beauty and warm, burnt orange tones became the inspiration for their wedding theme.

The Venue

“We visited five venues in Puglia with our wedding planners, scheduling the first four viewings for Saturday and the final one for Sunday morning. After indulging in far too many Aperol spritzes the night before, we were both extremely hungover and almost didn’t make it to our last viewing—Masseria Amastuola! Thankfully, we pushed through, and the moment we arrived we instantly fell in love with the Masseria and couldn’t believe that we would have the whole place to ourselves for the entire weekend!”

Why Italy?

“We both knew we wanted a destination wedding and I had always dreamt of getting married in Italy. Years ago I had saved some dream locations and one happened to be Puglia – so we booked a trip a few months after our engagement and we knew as soon as we arrived it was the perfect place for our wedding! And of course, it goes without saying—we both have a love for Italian culture.”

The Budget

“Add a contingency into your budget as there will always be something you haven’t thought about or absolutely can’t get married without! For us we decided to extend the invite for our Rehearsal Dinner the night before our wedding to all of our guests – I’m so glad we did as we got more time with all of our guests and we skipped all of the first time ‘hellos’ on our wedding day!”

Elegant white floral arch at Masseria Amastuola

Stand Out Moment

“There are so many moments I could list, but I think we agreed our ceremony was incredibly special. We decided to legally marry in Italy rather than marry in the UK first. I wasn’t sure whether I’d be nervous or overwhelmed beforehand, but standing there with Connor surrounded by our family and friends was a moment we will never forget. After we walked down the aisle together, we were greeted by a traditional Apulian band, which made the moment even more unforgettable!”

Advice For Future Couples

“Pre plan your wedding photo locations – I was asked to list locations but as I had a lot going on I didn’t really think too much about it and on the day we were both having such a good time and wanted to spend as little time away as possible, only afterwards I realised we didn’t get some pictures in all the locations I would have wanted.”

A Bump In The Road

“Our wedding week didn’t exactly start off smoothly—we lost all our luggage on the flight to Brindisi. It was every bride's worst nightmare, but thankfully, we carried our dress and suit in our hand luggage! It took four days for our bags to arrive, just in time for our family and friends to join us for the wedding weekend. While it was incredibly stressful in the moment, looking back, it made us appreciate the entire weekend even more.”

The Style

“I had a clear vision for our wedding day, and our incredible planners helped bring it all to life. I envisioned a wedding that was simple and elegant, with a timeless, classy feel. We also wanted to incorporate some traditional Apulian touches, like placing a Pumo on each of our guests’ tables, accompanied by a note explaining its significance—all in our signature wedding colour, burnt orange!”

Elegant white floral arch at Puglia wedding at Masseria Amastoula

Stand Out Suppliers

“Masseria Amastuola – for creating the most perfect wedding venue and all of the amazing team who went above and beyond to make our day so special and uniquely ours. A special mention to Chef Luigi, whose pasta was some of the best we’ve ever tasted! Sublimae – for being the best wedding planners and bringing our vision to life. Both Sam and Giacomo assisted us during the whole weekend to make sure everything ran smoothly.”

Inspo From La Lista

“I had seen La Lista articles of other couples' weddings – in particular a few venues in Puglia which were really helpful to get some advice and inspiration on styling!”