Jeff Bezos, Lauren Sanchez to wed during three-day Venice extravaganza that's sparking local fury
Jeff Bezos and fiancée Lauren Sanchez's highly anticipated nuptials are just around the corner.
The 61-year-old billionaire and the 55-year-old former TV journalist will reportedly tie the knot during a three-day wedding extravaganza in Venice, Italy, next week with numerous high-profile guests, including celebrities, politicians and business leaders.
Bezos and Sanchez reportedly met in the mid-2010s and went public with their relationship in 2019 after Sanchez separated from Hollywood agent Patrick Whitesell and Bezos divorced his Mackenzie Scott.
The pair announced their engagement in May 2023 after Bezos proposed to Sanchez with a 30-carat pink diamond ring estimated to be worth between $3 million and $5 million.
Though the preparations have mostly been kept under wraps, Sanchez shared a glimpse of her wedding plans during a November appearance on "Today."
"I'm very excited about it, thinking about the dress. I have to say, I do have a Pinterest. I'm just like every other bride," Sanchez told hosts Savannah Guthrie and Hoda Kotb.
"I never thought at 54 — I'm going to be 55 — that I'd be an author, that I'd be getting married. I mean, life is just beginning," she added.
Bezos has denied any involvement in the wedding planning.
"Oh, God, no. Do I look that dumb?" he told Vogue in 2023.
In March, Sanchez's older brother Paul Sanchez shared his excitement over the upcoming nuptials with TMZ, which he compared to the royal wedding of the late Princess Diana and then Prince Charles.
"I think it's gonna be like a Princess Di thing," Paul said. "Just huge and fun and just a blast.
"I'm thrilled beyond belief," he added. "It's gonna be an amazing event. It's gonna be star-studded and fun."
However, the upcoming festivities have some Venice locals up in arms over fears of disruptions in a city already affected by mass tourism. Early protests have already been held, and some Venetians have posted banners decrying the event and Bezos on historic landmarks around the city. More demonstrations are expected during the celebrations.
Here's everything to know about what has been called the "wedding of the year."
In March, the city of Venice confirmed it would host the lavish affair.
At the time, Mayor Luigi Brugnaro said Venice is "mutually working and supporting the organizers to ensure that the event will be absolutely respectful of the fragility and uniqueness of the city."
City officials said it will be "easy" for Venice to "accommodate" the couple's nuptials "without any disruption whatsoever to the city, its residents and visitors," noting only around 200 guests "will have been invited" to the Amazon founder and his fiancée's nuptials.
Venice, home to sites like the Rialto Bridge, Doge's Palace and Saint Mark's Basilica, is home to about 50,000 people and gets around 20 million visitors yearly, mostly day-trippers from cruise ships or other cities.
Officials told NBC earlier this week that about 30 of the 280 water taxis have been reserved for the wedding festivities, and only three or four hotels will be used for the event.
According to the BBC, wedding organizers have booked the entire island of San Giorgio Maggiore, which is located across from Venice's famed St. Mark's Square.
People magazine reported that the official ceremony will take place on Bezos' $500 million yacht, Koru, which will be anchored in the Venetian lagoon.
According to Architectural Digest, Bezos first commissioned Koru in 2018, and it was delivered to the Blue Origin founder in 2023. At 417 feet long, Koru is the largest sailing yacht in the world, according to the outlet.
Koru is accompanied by a $75 million support vessel named Abeona, which features a helipad and a hangar.
Bezos proposed to Sanchez while aboard Koru in May 2023, she told Vogue in November of that year.
In August 2023, Bezos and Sanchez hosted a star-studded engagement party on Koru when it was anchored off the coast of Positano, Italy. Guests who attended the event included Bill Gates, Leonardo DiCaprio, Queen Rania of Jordan, Ari Emanuel, Kris Jenner and Tobey Maguire.
The exact dates for the wedding have not been revealed, though Luca Zuin, spokesperson for themayor of Venice, told CNN this week it will be held from June 24-26.
In a report published Friday, a source told the Daily Mail the island of San Giorgio Maggiore will be "'off-limits to visitors" from June 24-29.
In March, Puck News reported Bezos and Sanchez had mailed wedding invitations.
There is expected to be a star-studded guest list, with friends of the couple making appearances. Leonardo DiCaprio, Orlando Bloom, Mick Jagger, Jay-Z and Beyoncé, Kim Kardashian, Kris Jenner, Eva Longoria, Gayle King and Jewel are among the stars expected to attend, according to multiple reports.
In addition, Ivanka Trump and husband Jared Kushner are said to have been invited along with Joshua Kushner and wife Karlie Kloss and Fox Sports journalist Charissa Thompson.
In addition to Sanchez's brother Paul, members of the couple's family are also expected to be in attendance, including their children. Bezos shares three sons and one daughter with Scott, while Sanchez and ex-husband Whitesell are parents to son Evan, 18, and daughter Ella, 17. Sanchez also shares son Nikko Gonzalez with former professional football player Tony Gonzalez.
According to The Associated Press, Bezos and Sanchez are sourcing 80% of their wedding vendors locally.
Two historic Venetian companies will add artisanal touches to the celebration, including Rosa Salva, the city's oldest pastry maker that has been in business since 1876, and Laguna B, a design studio known for its distinctive handblown Murano glass prized by fashion and design clients.
Antonio Rosa Salva, the sixth generation in his family to run the business, said the wedding order of a selection of surprises for goody bags was an important recognition of his family's long tradition of baking Venetian specialties dating back nearly 150 years.
The pastries include the bussola buttery biscuit that was long a fisherman's staple and small zaletti cookies, made from the Veneto region's cornmeal, flavored with raisins and lemon zest.
However, the Daily Mail reported Rosa Salva would not be creating the couple's wedding cake.
According to the AP, Laguna B would not disclose what its master glassblowers on Murano have created for the wedding, but the company is known for distinctive glassware that at times features an undulating lip – no two alike.
Venetians have already staged protests in advance of the event with more expected during the proceedings.
Some locals have united under the protest group named "No Space for Bezos," according to the BBC.
The outlet reported Wednesday that protesters have posted anti-Bezos banners from the bell tower of the San Giorgio Maggiore basilica and the Rialto Bridge.
"Venice is being treated like a showcase, a stage," Federica Toninelli, a No Space for Bezos activist, told the BBC.
"And this wedding is the symbol of the exploitation of the city by outsiders," she added. "Venice is now just an asset."
Though most of the details surrounding the wedding have been kept secret, one Venice citizen said, "We have our moles," according to The New York Times.
According to the NYT, Toninelli said one of the wedding venues could be The Misericordia, a famed event hall.
"Bezos will never get to the Misericordia," she said during a protest. "We will line the streets with our bodies, block the canals with lifesavers, dinghies and our boats."
"We have to block Bezos. We have to block this idea of this city as a tourist haven that has driven up housing costs so that most ordinary Venetians can no longer afford to live here," she said, according to the NYT.
Despite the backlash, Mayor Luigi Brugnaro told The Associated Press Venice is taking pride in playing host to the celebrations.
"We are very proud,'' Brugnaro said. "I don't know if I will have time [to meet Bezos and Sanchez], 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.''
In a statement to NBC Wednesday, city hall officials said Venice is prepared for the festivities.
"The city is fully accustomed to hosting high-profile events of this nature and scale, including other celebrity weddings, international summits such as the G7 and G20, as well as traditional events like the Festa del Redentore and the Venice Biennale," the statement said.
"The celebrations, attended by 250 guests, will blend into the daily rhythm of a city that, with dignity and respect, welcomes thousands of visitors from around the world while safeguarding the quality of life for its residents, workers, and students.
"Protest initiatives are in no way representative of the majority of citizens, who are proud that Venice has been chosen as the wedding location".
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