Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez launch Venice wedding festivities amid security shifts and rising protests
Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez arrived in Venice on Wednesday, marking the start of their highly anticipated three-day wedding celebration. The couple touched down via helicopter before transferring to a water taxi, waving to onlookers as they approached the exclusive Aman Venice Hotel on the Grand Canal. Sánchez, radiant in a sleeveless black dress and stilettos, flashed a smile to the cameras, while Bezos opted for a casual black polo and white trousers.
The festivities, estimated to cost €40-48 million ($46-56 million), will include a Thursday welcome party at Madonna dell'Orto's cloisters, a Friday black-tie ceremony on San Giorgio Maggiore island featuring a performance by Matteo Bocelli, and a Saturday reception at the Arsenale—a medieval shipyard complex. Over 200 A-list guests, including Ivanka Trump, Jared Kushner, Oprah Winfrey, and Leonardo DiCaprio, are descending via 90+ private jets, heightening security concerns and logistical tensions in the historic city.
The wedding's opulence has ignited fierce protests across Venice, with activists decrying the event as a symbol of wealth inequality and overtourism. Under the banner 'No Space for Bezos,' a coalition of housing advocates, environmentalists, and anti-cruise ship groups staged dramatic demonstrations: unfurling a giant banner in St. Mark's Square depicting Bezos laughing beside the text, 'If you can rent Venice for your wedding, you can pay more tax,' and floating a life-size Bezos mannequin clutching dollar bills down the Grand Canal.
Threats to blockade canals with inflatable crocodiles forced the couple to relocate their Saturday reception from the Scuola Grande della Misericordia, a 16th-century landmark in the crowded Cannaregio district, to the Arsenale, a fortified island accessible only by boat. Activists hailed the venue change as a victory, though they plan a 'No Bezos, No War' march on Saturday. Mayor Luigi Brugnaro dismissed the protesters as 'a few dozen seeking attention,' while Governor Luca Zaia revealed Bezos donated €1 million to Venice's lagoon research as a peace offering.
Local tensions underscore a deeper clash between Venice's identity as a living city and its reliance on tourism revenue. Longtime residents like Nadia Rigo lamented, 'We who were born here have to ask [the wealthy] for permission to board a ferry,' citing housing shortages and overcrowding exacerbated by events catering to elites.
Yet businesses defend the wedding: Antonio Rosa Salva, whose bakery prepared 200 gift boxes for guests, noted weddings comprise 30% of his annual sales, while hotel associations highlighted a recent tourism slump. Wedding planners Lanza & Baucina emphasized efforts to minimize disruption, hiring local workers and booking only 30 of Venice's 250 water taxis.
Despite these measures, the Aman Hotel faced criticism for 'booting' long-booked guests to accommodate Bezos's entourage, though it covered relocation costs. As temperatures near 90°F, the city braces for a weekend where glittering celebrations and grassroots dissent will test Venice's future as a 'global stage'.
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