Cruise arrives in Rome ahead of wedding

Tom Cruise has flown into a Rome airport on a private jet, setting off a frenzy among media and fans anticipating the star's high-profile wedding to Katie Holmes.

Cruise arrived at Rome's small Ciampino airport from Los Angeles with 10 people, including his mother and his three children, airport officials said.

Cruise and Holmes are set to marry in an undisclosed Italian location on Saturday.

Speculation on the location has focused on Odescalchi Castle on Lake Bracciano, near the capital.

The romantic, 15th-century castle, with its halls and gardens, can host up to 1,400 guests.

Local officials and residents remain tight-lipped, and Bracciano's mayor has only acknowledged that authorities received a request to clear the square in front of the castle.

Some 100 fans mingled with photographers and camera crews in front of the Hassler, the luxury Rome hotel on top of the Spanish Steps where Cruise was said by airport officials to be staying.

An employee at the hotel's front desk, who refused to give her name, denied that Cruise was staying there.