Villa Arrigo, near Naxxar in Malta, has carried three names since it was built in 1887: Villa Garcin, then Villa Agius, and now Villa Arrigo. The house has outlasted each of them, and for a wedding it is hired as a whole, with its glass walled marquee and its gardens, to one couple at a time. A civil ceremony can be held in the grounds and Osborne Caterers sets up a kitchen for the day. The three names are the short version of how a nineteenth century family house became a Maltese wedding venue.
A house that changed hands and names
According to MaltaToday, Cesare Garcin built the villa in 1887 and it was known first as Villa Garcin, later sold and renamed Villa Agius, and then renamed Villa Arrigo. By the time MaltaToday described it in 2019 it was an events venue for receptions and dinners.
The Arrigo family took the house on a lease in 1986 and has run it as an event venue since. The name that has lasted therefore belongs to a tenancy as much as to an owner, and a couple booking today is dealing with a house that has been hosting receptions for a long time rather than a recent conversion.
The villa is described as colonial style. In the room above, a chandelier hangs over a patterned carpet, a gilded mirror stands beside the fireplace, and framed paintings line the walls.
San Pawl tat-Tarġa and Naxxar
Villa Arrigo stands at San Pawl tat-Tarġa, one of the zones of Naxxar. The town also holds Palazzo Parisio, an eighteenth century palace built by Grand Master Manoel de Vilhena, and a chapel of the Shipwreck of St Paul stands in the same zone as the villa. Palazzo Parisio is the town’s baroque palace with gardens; Villa Arrigo is more than a century younger. The Malta Atlas places the villa among the country villas near Naxxar, and the Mdina and Central Malta Atlas covers the towns and places to stay in the same part of the island.
What has happened to the gardens
The gardens have been the subject of planning applications. In July 2019 MaltaToday reported that the Planning Authority had approved a zoning application for a new road off St Paul’s Street to serve residential plots on the villa’s grounds. The developer’s architect said that no development was planned near the wedding hall, which lies within Naxxar’s urban conservation area. In February 2021 MaltaToday reported that the Planning Authority had approved six villas on a 3,000 square metre plot that formed part of the gardens, subject to a nature permit, and that the scheme involved uprooting trees and removing planters, fountains and reservoirs. A separate application reported by MaltaToday in May 2020 proposed demolishing part of the existing wedding hall, adding an extension and building an underground car park, a catering kitchen and a power sub-station beneath the gardens; Naxxar council asked the Planning Authority to weigh the heritage and visual sensitivities of the villa and San Pawl tat-Tarġa. The outcome of that application is not confirmed. Couples should ask the venue which parts of the gardens shown in these photographs are unchanged.
The marquee, the villa and the gardens together
The marquee, the villa and the gardens are hired together, and a wedding’s flow between them is arranged with the venue. The marquee stands beside the villa and takes dinners and receptions. It is a white structure with a draped ceiling, a chandelier and glass walls on its long side, and in the photograph below it is set with cream sofas, upholstered armchairs and a round table dressed in white, with the garden visible through the glass.
The courtyard beside the marquee, the paved terrace with outdoor seating and the white garden arches are the outdoor spaces between the marquee and the villa, so guests can step from the glass walls onto stone and lawn.
Gardens, citrus and a fountain among olive trees
The gardens run around the marquee and the villa. A lawn with citrus trees lies below a stone stair, a fountain with a stone balustrade stands among olive trees, and clipped hedges line the paths to the marquee.
The venue holds a civil ceremony licence and offers ceremonies under its canopy or in the shaded garden. Which a couple chooses is a question of weather and preference, to settle with the venue. For the steps a civil ceremony involves in Malta and the time of year to marry, the Malta Atlas has the detail.
Osborne Caterers and a kitchen built for one event
Osborne Caterers provides the kitchen and staff for each event, and the hire includes seated and buffet meal facilities and an alcohol licence. Because the venue is hired to one client at a time, the kitchen is dedicated to that wedding in the same way as the villa, the marquee and the gardens. Receptions can be tailored to the couple or arranged as an all inclusive event, and the menu and format are agreed with the caterer.
Planning a wedding at Villa Arrigo
Capacity is up to 150 guests seated and up to 300 standing. The figures are not broken down by layout, so a couple should confirm the number for the marquee arrangement they want. The price is on enquiry. The hire includes the exclusive use of the villa, the marquee and the gardens, the dedicated kitchen and staff, seated and buffet meal facilities, an alcohol licence and a civil ceremony licence.
There is no guest accommodation on site, so a wedding party stays in hotels elsewhere on the island. Malta International Airport is about 20 to 25 minutes away by car, and St Julian’s, Sliema and Valletta are 15 to 25 minutes away. The same site is used for parties and business meetings, so ask early which dates are free. A 3D virtual tour of the villa and gardens is available online, which suits couples planning from abroad.
Five questions settle most of the planning at the first enquiry: the price, the seated number for the layout a couple wants, which dates are free, where the ceremony is held when the weather is uncertain, and what the all inclusive option covers compared with a tailored reception.
Who Villa Arrigo suits
Villa Arrigo suits a couple who want the whole of a Maltese wedding in one place: a civil ceremony in the garden, dinner in the marquee and a dedicated kitchen, with the villa’s rooms alongside. The standing figure of 300 leaves room for a large evening reception. The principal consideration is practical: there are no bedrooms, so guests need hotels, and the price is given only on enquiry.
Ready to plan? Check your date at the Villa Arrigo profile, or browse weddings in Malta.
