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The celebration of Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez has divided a city that centuries ago set the standard for opulence.
June 25, 2025Updated 6:27 a.m. ET
Private jets soared above Venice’s archipelago, and towering superyachts slipped through its lagoon. Caterers baked buttery Venetian delicacies while protesters schemed. Bomb-sniffing dogs prowled the verdant island of San Giorgio Maggiore, in front of the Doge’s Palace.
Venice, the city built by merchants and tradesmen, girded itself this week for the nuptials of the doge of commerce of the digital age.
Jeff Bezos, the billionaire tech entrepreneur, newspaper owner turned jacked tabloid fixture and A-list mingler, was set to celebrate his wedding to the energetic broadcaster Lauren Sánchez in a city that centuries ago set the standard for sumptuous, flashy ostentation.
From Thursday and for three days, the frescoed ancient homes of bankers and tradesmen that made Venice rich, now emptied of their residents and brimming with scented orchids, were ready to be turned over to influencers, rappers, pop stars and Ivanka Trump — all among the expected guests.
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San Giorgio, where emperors once met with popes, would host the patron of Amazon.com.
City officials and business owners were proud, happy about the money and the prestige the event brings, and they welcomed the wedding, which was expected to stretch across several of the city’s islands, as a confirmation of Venice’s status as a world wonder.
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