Bezos-Sanchez's wedding: 90 private jets to arrive in Venice
What's the story
Founder of Amazon, Jeff Bezos, and his journalist fiancée, Lauren Sanchez, have arrived in Venice for their upcoming wedding. The couple was spotted at the five-star Aman Venice Hotel on the Grand Canal on Wednesday. The lavish event, dubbed the "wedding of the century," is expected to cost between €40-48 million ($46-56 million) and will reportedly see around 90 private jets landing this week with A-listers from various fields, as per a Reuters report.
Lavish Wedding
90 private jets to land in Venice
The wedding celebrations are set to begin on Thursday night with an open-air party at the cloisters of Madonna dell'Orto, a medieval church in Cannaregio. To protect the guests from protesters, Venice City Hall issued an order on Wednesday, sealing off the area. On top of that, the guests will be arriving in personal jets likely assigned to them by the couple. A section of the locals are protesting against the billionaire couple using their city as a wedding prop.
Philanthropic gesture
Did Bezos and Sanchez secretly tie the knot?
Despite the criticism, Bezos has donated €3 million to three local institutions, including CORILA, UNESCO's local office, and the Venice International University. While the date and venue of the wedding remain undisclosed, some speculate that Bezos and Sanchez may have already gotten married in a private ceremony in the US. The second party is reportedly scheduled for Friday on San Giorgio island near St Mark's Square.
Final preparations
Main wedding event at Arsenale
The festivities will conclude on Saturday with the main wedding event at one of the halls of the Arsenale. This location was chosen for its security as it is inaccessible by land when connecting bridges are raised. Bezos, who is executive chair of e-commerce giant Amazon and ranked No. 4 on Forbes's billionaires list, proposed to Sanchez in 2023, years after his 25-year marriage to Mackenzie Scott ended in divorce.