Bezos’ $76M Venice Wedding Ignites Fury Over “Billionaire Lockdown”
Tax protests erupt as tech titan and Lauren Sánchez host celebrities in canal city
VENICE, Italy — When Venetian police sealed off access to the Madonna dell’Orto church Wednesday for Jeff Bezos’ wedding setup, artist Marco Picchio watched workers unload generators where Tintoretto’s masterpieces once hung. “First they priced us out,” he muttered, gesturing at the $2,500/night Aman Hotel where Bezos’ guests will sleep. “Now they lock our city for a party.” This clash—between staggering wealth and a drowning community—exploded this week as the Amazon founder’s $76 million nuptials to Lauren Sánchez triggered canal blockades, parliamentary outrage, and a bitter question: Who owns Venice?
Grand Arrivals, Hidden Scaffolding
Bezos, 61, and Sánchez, 55, swept into Venice via helicopter from the $500 million superyacht Koru, dodging Greenpeace boats trailing “Tax the Rich” banners. Their first event—a Thursday welcome party at 15th-century Madonna dell’Orto—faced an awkward hiccup: the church facade is draped in construction scaffolding, invisible in the couple’s venue research. “Private function. No entry,” guards told tourists seeking Tintoretto’s tomb .
Nearby, security teams taped off canals after activists threatened floating protests. “We’ll flood waterways with inflatable crocodiles,” warned the “No Space for Bezos” movement, citing the wedding’s estimated 20,000 extra boat trips .
Security Costs Spark Parliament Fury
As Ivanka Trump, Kim Kardashian, and Leonardo DiCaprio arrived on private jets (95 expected at Marco Polo Airport), Italian Green MP Angelo Bonelli raged in Rome’s parliament chambers:
“Why should Italians pay to police a billionaire’s vanity? Venice is hostage to 90 private jets while citizens breathe generator fumes!”
Authorities haven’t disclosed security costs, but locals documented police boats, snipers on palazzo roofs, and cables “snaking like black spaghetti” over centuries-old stones . The couple did pledge €1 million to lagoon conservation—a gesture protesters called “a tip.”
Clip-Art Invites and Foam Parties
A leaked wedding invitation drew social media mockery for its clip-art butterflies and Comic Sans-esque font. “No gifts please,” it read, suggesting donations to Venice charities instead. Critics roasted the design as “Amazon-basic” and “Temu-chic” .
Pre-wedding festivities already saw Sánchez—a licensed helicopter pilot—hosting a foam party aboard the Koru. Guests including Kris Jenner bounced beach balls as Sánchez planned 27 outfit changes across events like Friday’s San Giorgio Maggiore basilica vows and a pajama gala .
Venice’s Soul on Display
At a Cannaregio café, gondolier Luca defended the wedding: “Clooney married here. Why hate Bezos?” But housing activist Federica Toninello gestured toward rising water stains on buildings: “We lose 1,000 residents yearly. Bezos drops $76M on a party while our homes crumble.”
The numbers sting:
- Only 50,000 locals remain in Venice’s historic center
- Average rent: €2,100/month—unaffordable for most Venetians
- Wedding costs could fund 10 years of flood prevention
Ceremony Shifts and “No War” Marches
Facing pressure, planners moved Saturday’s reception from Scuola Grande della Misericordia to the Arsenale shipyards—a fortress easier to guard. Activists pledged not to disrupt ceremonies but will march Friday under banners reading “No Bezos, No War,” criticizing his reported support of Donald Trump .
Tenor Andrea Bocelli’s son Matteo will perform at the basilica, where Sánchez may wear Dolce & Gabbana. “She wants drama,” a source said. “But Venice itself is the real drama now.”
The Bottom Line
For Bezos and Sánchez, this wedding crowns a five-year romance. For Venice, it’s a wake-up call about a city becoming a backdrop for billionaires—where even a €1 million “gift” can’t mask the inequality floating in its troubled waters.
— With reporting from Venice and Rome