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Times
a day ago
- Entertainment
- Times
Jeff Bezos's three-day wedding party in Venice gets under way
Jeff Bezos arrived in Venice on Thursday night and lavished praise on the lagoon city that has been blighted by days of protest over his star-studded, three-day wedding party. 'We love Venice, look at this!' he told The Times, waving his arms around him as he sped down the Grand Canal in a water taxi beside his bride-to-be Lauren Sánchez. 'It can't exist and yet here it is!' the Amazon tycoon added as he passed The Times's boat. Bezos, 61, and Sánchez, 55, a journalist, were on their way to the first party of their nuptials — an event dubbed by locals 'Jeff in Venice'. The event was being held behind a police cordon at the 14th-century cloister of Madonna dell'Orto, where guests took cover when a violent thunderstorm and downpour drenched Venice during the evening. Officers on jet skis patrolled the canals of the surrounding Cannaregio district to keep out protesters who claim the 'wedding of the century' has helped turn Venice into a theme park for the famous. After weeks of speculation about the guest list, Bill Gates, Kim and Khloé Kardashian, Oprah Winfrey, Tom Brady, Queen Rania of Jordan, the singer Usher and the actors Orlando Bloom and Leonardo DiCaprio arrived on Thursday. They joined President Trump's daughter Ivanka and her husband Jared Kushner, who earlier visited Venice's Jewish ghetto. Before Bezos and Sánchez left the Aman Hotel on the Grand Canal, a Bezos lookalike posed for selfies with tourists. Two well-dressed women in a water taxi came alongside a boat containing photographers and handed over ice creams and cold water. 'From Jeff and Lauren,' said one of the women. The Italian designer Domenico Dolce was seen arriving at the Aman on Thursday afternoon, raising speculation that fashion duo Dolce and Gabbana are dressing Sánchez for the wedding's central event on Friday — a party in an open-air amphitheatre on the Venetian island of San Giorgio Maggiore. The island is ideal for a wedding party. When the Vatican decided to enter Venice's architecture Biennale exhibition, it commissioned ten architects to build avant-garde chapels among the trees, including one by the British architect Norman Foster. The couple will round off the weekend with a party on Saturday at Venice's former shipyard — the Arsenale, which is set to be filled with 80,000 roses, according to Italian media. Elton John and Lady Gaga are said to be among the performers at a concert during the weekend. Extinction Rebellion staged a protest in St Mark's Square on Thursday afternoon, in which an activist unfurled a banner stating 'The One Per Cent Ruins The World', a reference to Bezos's estimated $224 billion fortune. The activist was later detained by police. • I flaunted it like Lauren Sánchez! My day dressing as Bezos's bride Over at the supporters' club of local football team Venezia, a group of men enjoying mid-morning glasses of white wine with ice said they did not agree with the protests. 'Why shouldn't they get married? For us it's meant more police, less rubbish and fewer pickpockets,' said gondolier Roberto Orio, 63. 'My only gripe is I wasn't invited,' said retired postman Livio Cappello, 68.
Fox News
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Fox News
Jeff Bezos, Lauren Sanchez celebrity wedding guests take Venice by storm
The stars are aligning for Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez. On Thursday, celebrities such as Orlando Bloom, Tom Brady and more were seen boarding various water taxis at various luxurious hotels in Venice, Italy ahead of the couple's extravagant wedding celebrations. Sanchez gave onlookers a wave as she boarded a boat with her soon-to-be husband by her side outside the Aman Hotel. Vanity Fair reported on Wednesday that the first event of the Bezoz-Sánchez wedding will be a kick-off party in Cannaregio. The outlet noted that the wedding party has water cabs ready to escort guests to the Italian city. A city ordinance has already been sent out, blocking off traffic from 6 PM to midnight between Madonna dell'Orto and nearby streets, the outlet reported. The party is reportedly being held in the Sant'Alvise complex, which is a 14th century church, monastery, and Barco. Per Vanity Fair, Bezos will be escorted by 10 bodyguards during the kick-off party and the Italian government has recruited reinforcements to maintain the privacy and safety of all attendees amid recent protests. On Wednesday, the soon-to-be newlyweds were seen out and about in Venice. According to multiple reports, the couple decided to change one of their wedding venues in Venice because of security concerns and possible protests. The couple had planned to hold a wedding party at the historic Scuola Grande della Misericordia in the Cannaregio section of the city, but are now said to be moving it to the harder-to-reach Arsenale, a former shipyard, which is completely surrounded by water and only reachable by boat when connecting bridges are raised, BBC News and Reuters reported. A number of other celebrities are invited to the wedding festivities, which remain a secret but have been expected to kick off on Thursday and end Saturday in the picturesque Italian city. Despite ongoing protests from local Venetians, Mayor Luigi Brugnaro told The Associated Press that the city is "very proud" to be hosting the couple's wedding.
CBC
3 days ago
- Business
- CBC
Celebrities join protesters in Venice ahead of Bezos-Sanchez wedding
Social Sharing Billionaire Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and former journalist Lauren Sanchez arrived in Venice on Wednesday — kicking off what is expected to be a weekend of lavish wedding festivities for the couple, attended by some of the world's top celebrities and drawing the ire of locals and protesters, who view it as a crass example of the huge disparity between the one per cent and everyone else. Bezos and Sanchez waved as they arrived at the dock of the Aman hotel, a five-star hotel on the Italian city's Grand Canal, with two security boats in tow. Some 90 jets are expected to arrive at local airports ahead of the weekend event. About 200 guests are expected, among them Ivanka Trump and her family, Mick Jagger, Oprah Winfrey, Katy Perry and Leonardo DiCaprio. Venice City Hall issued a directive on Wednesday cordoning off the area — isolating guests from activists who have been protesting for weeks that the celebrations will turn the city of gondolas and palazzi into a private amusement park for the rich. "There's only one thing that rules now: money, money, money, so we are the losers," Venice resident Nadia Rigo said. Festivities will kick off on Thursday night with an open-air gathering in the cloisters of Madonna dell'Orto, a medieval church in the central area of Cannaregio known for its lively nightlife, a source close to the matter told Reuters. The date and venue of the wedding itself are still unknown, and some have speculated that Bezos, 61, and Sanchez, 55, may already have tied the knot in a private ceremony in the United States. Protesters have also been in the city all week. Activists argue that the Bezos-Sanchez wedding exemplifies broader failures in municipal governance. Chief among their concerns is the lack of investment in affordable housing and essential services. City officials have defended the wedding. Mayor Luigi Brugnaro called the event an honour for Venice, and the city denied the wedding would cause disruptions.
Globe and Mail
3 days ago
- Business
- Globe and Mail
Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchez arrive in Venice for marathon wedding party
Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and his journalist fiancee Lauren Sanchez arrived in Venice on Wednesday ahead of three days of lavish VIP parties in the romantic lagoon city to celebrate their wedding, despite protests from locals. Around 90 private jets are set to land in local airports this week, bringing A-listers from showbusiness, politics and finance to the widely-dubbed 'wedding of the century' that will cost Bezos an estimated €40-48 million ($63.6- to $76.2-million). The couple were spotted by a Reuters reporter entering the exclusive Aman Venice Hotel on the Grand Canal, where many of the celebrities will stay. How much will Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchez's wedding cost? The celebrity affair in Venice, by the numbers Festivities will kick off on Thursday night with an open-air gathering in the cloisters of Madonna dell'Orto, a medieval church in the central area of Cannaregio known for its lively nightlife, a source close to the matter told Reuters. Venice City Hall issued a directive on Wednesday cordoning off the area, isolating guests from activists who have been protesting for weeks that the celebrations will turn the city of gondolas and palazzi into a private amusement park for the rich. 'There's only one thing that rules now: money, money, money, so we are the losers,' said Venice resident Nadia Rigo. 'We who were born here have to either move to the mainland or we have to ask them for permission to board a ferry. They've become the masters.' The date and venue of the wedding itself are still unknown and some have speculated that Bezos, 61, and Sanchez, 55, may already have tied the knot in a private ceremony back in the United States. Bezos's Venice wedding party moved to isolated area on security concerns Most of the estimated 250 guests are expected to arrive in time for the second party, which the source said is slated for Friday on the small island of San Giorgio, in front of the famed St. Mark's Square with its 99-metre-high (108 yard) bell tower. San Giorgio island is home to the Cini Foundation, which organises international cultural and political meetings in an ancient monastery dating back to the year 1000, with a maze in the garden. Outside the exclusive Aman Venice Hotel on the Grand Canal, where many of the guests will stay, workers erected a striped canvas canopy with side walls on a floating wharf to protect guests from prying eyes and photographers' long lenses. Celebrations will conclude on Saturday with the main wedding bash to be held at one of the halls of the Arsenale, a vast former medieval shipyard turned into an art space in the eastern Castello district. Opinion: As Jeff Bezos prepares for a grand Venice wedding, locals are pushing back harder than ever Surrounded by water and impossible to reach by land when connecting bridges are raised, the hall is considered a safer site than a previous location choice for the final party, a former medieval religious school in Cannaregio. Bezos, executive chair of e-commerce giant Amazon and no. 4 on Forbes' billionaires list, got engaged to Sanchez in 2023, four years after the collapse of his 25-year marriage to Mackenzie Scott. The couple's decision to marry in Venice follows other celebrity weddings in the floating city, such as that of U.S. actor George Clooney and human rights lawyer Amal Alamuddin in 2014.
Fox News
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Fox News
Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez arrive in Venice as wedding festivities begin
Print Close By Christina Dugan Ramirez Published June 25, 2025 Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez 's wedding festivities are officially underway. On Wednesday, the soon-to-be newlyweds were seen arriving at the Aman Hotel in Venice, Italy via water-taxi. As she stepped off, a glowing Sanchez turned to the crowd to give a quick wave. JEFF BEZOS, LAUREN SANCHEZ TO WED DURING THREE-DAY VENICE EXTRAVAGANZA THAT'S SPARKING LOCAL FURY According to multiple reports, the couple decided to change one of their wedding venues in Venice because of security concerns and possible protests. The couple had planned to hold a wedding party at the historic Scuola Grande della Misericordia in the Cannaregio section of the city, but are now said to be moving it to the harder-to-reach Arsenale, a former shipyard, which is completely surrounded by water and only reachable by boat when connecting bridges are raised, BBC News and Reuters reported. CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR THE ENTERTAINMENT NEWSLETTER A number of celebrities are invited to the wedding festivities, which remain a secret but are expected to kick off on Thursday and end Saturday in the picturesque Italian city. Ivanka Trump and Jared Kushner arrived in Italy on Tuesday ahead of the festivities. The couple traveled by boat from the Marco Polo airport in Venice to the St. Regis hotel. Trump wore an off-white cropped top with a matching long skirt. The outfit featured red-orange detailing. The arrivals spark resemblance to George Clooney and wife Amal's Venice wedding in 2014. The power couple were famously photographed riding a water-taxi ahead of their nuptials, which included an impressive guest list of A-list celebrities. As guests continue to arrive for the Bezos-Sanchez wedding, more and more Venetian citizens have voiced their frustrations over the event that could possibly pose a threat to a city that is already impacted by mass tourism. However, despite the ongoing backlash , the couple's wedding planners told Fox News Digital that Bezos and Sanchez specifically instructed them to minimize the disruptions to the best of their ability out of respect to the locals. "As event organizers who have been working in Venice for over 24 years, we feel obliged to set the record straight given the misinformation, untruths and misunderstandings circulating about the Bezos wedding," the team at Lanza & Baucina Limited said in a statement. "From the outset, instructions from our client and our own guiding principles were abundantly clear: the minimizing of any disruption to the city, the respect for its residents and institutions and the overwhelming employment of locals in the crafting of the events. LIKE WHAT YOU'RE READING? CLICK HERE FOR MORE ENTERTAINMENT NEWS "Rumors of 'taking over' the city are entirely false and diametrically opposed to our goals and to reality," the statement continued. "No exaggerated quantity of water taxis or gondolas have ever been booked, the number of taxis reserved being proportionate for the number of guests. Before the recent news of protests arose, we had worked for there to be minimal negative impact or disruption to the lives of Venetians and the city's visitors. "We have always acknowledged the wider debate and critical issues surrounding the city's future, and from the outset our client has been honored to support the city and its all-important lagoon through non-profit organizations and associated projects," the statement concluded. CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR THE ENTERTAINMENT NEWSLETTER Mayor Luigi Brugnaro told the Associated Press that the city is "very proud." "We are very proud," Brugnaro said. "I don't know if I will have time [to meet Bezos and Sánchez ], or if he will, to meet and shake hands, but it's an honor that they chose Venice. Venice once again reveals itself to be a global stage." CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP Fox News Digital's Emily Trainham, Lauryn Overhultz and Brie Stimson contributed to this post. Print Close URL
