Wedding Traditions in Puglia

Are you looking for a truly authentic destination wedding? Have you always dreamed of romantic European nuptials surrounded by your closest family and friends? In Puglia, you can create a beautiful combination of age-old traditions, haute luxury, and an unbeatable position facing the sea. As you piece together the details of your beach wedding destination, we’d like to share some of our beautiful, age-old traditions.

With its laid-back, family-oriented lifestyle, Puglia offers some of the warmest hospitality in Europe that will leave both you and your guests with memories of a weekend you will never forget. 

In Puglia, family is synonymous with everything. Literally. This region is home to rich, timeless traditions–starting, of course, with the food. The abundance is always tasteful but never over the top. This southern region of Italy is a culinary capital for people worldwide in-and-of itself: fish, pasta, wine, you name it. Now imagine an entire wedding weekend with these delectable Italian delicacies at every gathering that will leave your guests to fantasize of the cuisine for years to come. Practically impossible to find anywhere else and you’ll see that our hospitality traditions are among the best in the world.

In Puglia, weddings are a very significant milestone in life. One week before the wedding, locals love to hold the ‘Addio al nubilato e celibato’, essentially a farewell to singlehood. Friends and family of the bride and groom are invited to dance and feast, a tradition as fundamental as lunching together. 

The night before, while the bride is preparing for the next day’s big event with her closest tribe, at some point the groom arrives with his best friends and begins to serenade outside her window. This is the traditional Serenata, a final declaration of love by the groom to the bride. It is quite the scene and usually attracts uninvited neighbors and passersby to join the romantic moment, clapping and joining in song. The next day, as the bride leaves her parents’ residence to become “Mrs.” dressed in her white gown, she cuts a white ribbon at the door, a symbol of her leaving her home behind and the start of a shared life with her chosen one.

Being such a family-oriented region, Puglia boasts a charming tradition of local townspeople passing by the church where the service is held to bless the newlyweds and join in on the party. A destination wedding doesn’t get more authentic or down-to-earth than that.

When it comes to event expertise, you should know that Puglia is an international hub for high-profile weddings and private events which means that there is no lack of event planners, grand talent and access to special services.

Of particular note is the tradition of “Festa in Piazza,” where various local Apulian delicacies are lined up on tables in the center of the wedding reception to form a sort of mini food market. It is an unforgettable gastronomic experience. Finally, would a wedding be without letting loose on the dance floor? But this isn’t your typical top-40 DJ; the dancing traditions of the Puglia region of Italy go back centuries and include unique folk music known as the “pizzica” or “tarantella”, which you can seamlessly weave into any part of your wedding weekend. While the music players, local dames dressed in long skirts and traditional accessories take to the floor and dance until the last beat. No one remains outside this circle.

Want more information about Coco Beach?

Call us weekdays during working hours at +39.392.5440077 or email us to start planning your dream beach wedding in Puglia.