Montalto at Monticello

Hosting a wedding at Montalto means full access to a private mountaintop and intimate, intentional historic spaces. It means having a stunning, versatile canvas to reveal your desired design and theme.

Sitting at 1,278 feet and rising 410 feet above Thomas Jefferson’s beloved mountaintop home, Monticello, Montalto is part of the Carters Mountain range. The Montalto house — now a private event venue — was named “Repose.” The gracious 11,000-square-foot home delivers a deep connection with the property’s history alongside a brilliant 360-degree panorama.

Enter the private gated road and climb the mountainside to unsurpassed elegance and exclusivity. Arrive at the 1908 American country home recently redecorated in timeless draping and furnishings. Gather around the distinctive parlor fireplace on original heart pine floors for a welcome reception cocktail hour. Snap exquisite photos in the richly designed, windowed conservatory and drift out onto the multi-level terrace where copious natural light makes for gorgeous photography. Wander the perennial gardens surrounding the home and smell the redbuds and lilacs.

Flow from the panoramic ceremony field to the generous tent field reception space, taking in all of Charlottesville, Monticello, UVA and Blue Ridge Mountain sunsets that captivate and demand a breathless moment of pause.

Make the venue your own. Bring in a band for dancing on the terrace overlooking twinkling city lights. Arrange posh lounge areas in the front and backyards. Host a small family wedding inside the home. Toast your wedding party on the balcony surrounded by mountain vistas. Bring in champagne towers, dessert displays and sacred cultural traditions. Montalto is your private all-encompassing wedding destination.

As a Site of Conscience, Montalto is committed to engaging their guests with a deeper understanding of Monticello’s history as a plantation. Out of respect for the enslaved men, women and children who lived and labored here, they do not allow private, non-educational events on the West Lawn, Mulberry Row or elsewhere on the Monticello mountaintop.

Pulled Quote: “On the day of your wedding, it’s just you, your vendors, your guests and your onsite representative,” says Event Operations Supervisor Catherine Smith. “It feels like your own home. It’s not a ballroom, not a barn. It is a house. Someone lived here for a point in time and it still has that feeling. It feels really cozy. Very private. Very homey.”