Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchez tie the knot in Venice

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and journalist Lauren Sánchez were symbolically married on Friday in Venice, in a star-studded ceremony that drew sharp protests over the influx of VIPs into a city already struggling with the impacts of overcrowding.

The ceremony was the highlight of a weeklong celebration filled with famous guests — many of them prominent environmental advocates who showed little restraint as they descended on the canal city in private jets and mile-long superyachts.

The Aman, a renowned hotel housed in a Renaissance-era palace and chosen by the bride and groom, was fully booked. Rooms start at a minimum of €2,000 (about $2,340) per night.

According to the Italian press, Bezos, 61, and Sánchez, 55—already legally married in the United States—exchanged rings and vows on San Giorgio Maggiore island, opposite the Arsenal, the city’s former naval base.

According to media reports, the wedding took place in a large outdoor amphitheater, featuring a serenade by Matteo Bocelli, son of renowned opera singer Andrea Bocelli.

According to a report by Corriere della Sera, later picked up by AFP, the banquet was overseen by three-Michelin-starred chef Fabrizio Mellino, and the wedding cake was created by renowned French pastry chef Cédric Grolet.

Leonardo DiCaprio and Ivanka Trump among guests at grand Venetian wedding

Among the guests were reality TV star Kim Kardashian, Ivanka Trump (daughter of the U.S. president), Hollywood actor Leonardo DiCaprio, Queen Rania of Jordan, and host Oprah Winfrey.

When asked what he liked most about the city of canals, Bezos smiled beside his wife on a boat and said, “Look around! This city seems impossible — it can’t exist, and yet here it is,” in a video posted Thursday by La Repubblica.

A wedding amid local protests

Despite some public reluctance, local authorities defended hosting the wedding of the tycoon—one of the richest men in the world, with an estimated $215 billion in Amazon shares.

The region’s president, Luca Zaia, explained that Bezos will donate 3 million euros (about $3.5 million) to a lagoon protection association, Venice International University, and UNESCO.

“Eighty percent of the estimated 40 million euro ($46 million) wedding expenses will directly benefit our local businesses and residents,” assured Zaia, the far-right governor of the Veneto region.

The Ministry of Tourism estimated that the event’s “media visibility” could generate 895 million euros (about $1 billion) for the city, though it cautioned that this figure “requires empirical verification.”

Local leaders have distanced themselves from Bezos’s choice, emphasizing that it is separate from the over-tourism issues they’ve been addressing—such as implementing daily entrance fees for visitors.

Around 100,000 tourists stay overnight in the city during peak season, while tens of thousands more visit just for the day. Meanwhile, the local population continues to decline.

"No space for Bezos"

Some locals opposed the festivities for days under the banner of the collective “No Space for Bezos.” “Venice is not for sale,” activists shouted during a demonstration on Tuesday.

According to Venice’s prefect, Darco Pellos, the event did not require any additional police “reinforcements” beyond the usual summer season deployment.

Bezos isn’t the first celebrity to get married in Venice. Eleven years ago, American actor George Clooney and lawyer Amal Alamuddin tied the knot there.