Jeff Bezos Marries Lauren Sánchez in Lavish Venetian Wedding
Amazon founder Jeff Bezos has officially tied the knot with former television anchor and media personality Lauren Sánchez in a luxurious wedding ceremony held on the picturesque island of San Giorgio Maggiore in Venice, Italy.
The highly anticipated event, which took place on June 27, 2025, drew an elite crowd of global celebrities, tech moguls, and royals, solidifying its place as one of the most extravagant weddings of the year.
The ceremony unfolded in the stunning 16th-century Basilica di San Giorgio Maggiore, with guests ferried across the Venetian lagoon in private boats. Sánchez, dazzling in a custom-fitted Dolce & Gabbana mermaid-style gown said to have taken over 900 hours to complete, walked down the aisle as operatic singer Matteo Bocelli serenaded the couple.
The wedding was followed by a series of multi-day celebrations across Venice, each more spectacular than the last.
Among the roughly 200 high-profile attendees were Oprah Winfrey, Leonardo DiCaprio, Bill Gates, Kim Kardashian, Queen Rania of Jordan, and former Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi. Performances from Lady Gaga and Elton John lit up the evening festivities, which included a Gatsby-themed party, a pajama brunch, and a farewell gala at the historic Venetian Arsenal, transformed for the occasion with over 80,000 roses.
The estimated cost of the three-day celebration ranged between $50 and $56 million, not including donations made to local causes.
In response to criticism over extravagance and environmental strain on the fragile lagoon city, Bezos reportedly contributed €3 million towards Venetian preservation efforts and pledged additional funds for environmental research in the region.
Despite the glamour, the wedding was not without controversy. Local activists protested the disruption, waving banners that read “No Space for Bezos” in reference to both the billionaire’s space ventures and the concerns over the wedding’s impact on Venice’s overcrowded and vulnerable ecosystem.
Nevertheless, city officials defended the event, citing its economic benefits and the global spotlight it brought to the city.
The Bezos-Sánchez wedding marks a new chapter for the couple, who got engaged in 2023 and have since been regular fixtures at global philanthropic and cultural events. As the festivities wind down, the newlyweds are expected to retreat aboard Bezos’ $500 million superyacht for a honeymoon cruise along the Mediterranean.
With the glamour, guest list, and sheer scale of its execution, the Bezos wedding has not only captivated international media but also reignited broader conversations about wealth, spectacle, and responsibility in an increasingly unequal world.
