Villa Crespi can be hired in full for corporate or private events of up to 70 guests, and smaller groups of up to 15 can book a private room for a business lunch or dinner. The villa is a five-star relais with 14 suites and a restaurant led by chef Antonino Cannavacciuolo, on the shore of Lake Orta at Orta San Giulio, in the province of Novara in Piedmont.
Seminars and company events
The events offer is built around the table. Companies book a lunch or a dinner, either in a private room set up to their brief for up to 15 people or with exclusive use of the whole villa for up to 70. Exclusive hire covers the restaurant rooms and the 14 suites, which suits a board retreat, a client dinner or an incentive group that wants the house to itself. Requests are sent as private or corporate, lunch or dinner, and the events team then shapes the program. The villa also has a wellness area for guests who stay overnight, which helps on a two-day board meeting.
Weddings and receptions
Private celebrations follow the same two formats: an intimate meal for up to 15 in a private room, or the whole villa for up to 70. A couple who books the villa in exclusive use has all the suites for family and close guests and the restaurant kitchen for the wedding meal.
Rooms and capacities
The villa does not publish a list of event rooms with individual capacities. The figures it gives are up to 15 guests in a private room and up to 70 with exclusive hire of the entire property, restaurant rooms included. Table layouts are agreed with the events team.
Accommodation
There are 14 suites in the villa. With exclusive hire, all of them are reserved for the group, so speakers, executives or the wedding party can stay on site.
Catering
All food comes from the villa's own kitchen, led by Antonino Cannavacciuolo. The restaurant received Michelin stars in 2003 and 2006 and its third star in 2022, and Villa Crespi joined Relais & Châteaux in 2012. Event menus are set with the kitchen.
History and setting
The textile industrialist Cristoforo Benigno Crespi built the villa in 1879 and named it Villa Pia after his wife. After travels in Asia, he wanted a house that recalled the Moorish buildings of Baghdad, which explains the minaret and the decorated arches. The villa later stood empty until 1999, when Cinzia Primatesta and Antonino Cannavacciuolo restored it and opened it as a luxury hotel. It stands above the lake at the edge of Orta San Giulio.
Getting there
The villa is at Via Fava 18 in Orta San Giulio. Orta-Miasino station is the nearest railway stop, on the line between Novara and Domodossola, and Milan Malpensa Airport is about an hour away by car. Milan itself is about 90 minutes by road.
