When you’re Jeff Bezos, founder of Amazon and captain of a $500 million yacht, you don’t just get married—you stage an international spectacle. From June 24 to 26, Bezos and his fiancée Lauren Sánchez, are set to tie the knot in a lavish, multi-day celebration in Venice, Italy. Expect gondolas, megayachts, A-list guests, and enough paparazzi to make the Venice Film Festival look like a humble affair. However, planning this massive event hasn’t come without its challenges, it seems. Venice might be a city with no bad angles, but even for the world’s richest, snagging the best vantage points in town isn’t always so simple.

When is Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez’s wedding?

The wedding will take place June 24 to 26, 2025, the city confirmed in a statement. Wedding rumors have followed Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez for months, hitting a peak in December 2024 with claims of a $600 million Aspen extravaganza set for December 28. Bezos set the record straight, bluntly posting on X, “This whole thing is completely false—none of this is happening.”

Where are Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez getting married?

The wedding will be in Venice, Italy, but the exact venue remains under wraps. Luca Zuin, a spokesperson for Venice’s mayor, told CNN that the ceremony would happen aboard Bezos’s $500 million superyacht, Koru, which will be anchored in the Venice lagoon. While that may sound like a picturesque wedding location, restrictions on large ships getting too close to Venice’s historic St. Mark’s square could impact the vessel’s view. What’s more, Bezos’ yacht, at 3,493 gross tons, is far below the 25,000 gross ton maximum for vessels entering the Venice lagoon, but it’s too large to be allowed anywhere near the Grand Canal, the Italian city’s most scenic waterway.

That said, speculation on the location persists. The Daily Mail quoted a friend of the couple saying the yacht won’t host the actual “I do’s,” though it might still host other festivities and will be anchored in the nearby Venetian Lagoon. Other reports have suggested the ceremony might take place at a restored open-air theater on a Venetian island.

Lauren Sanchez and Jeff Bezos are seen on Jeff Bezos’ yacht on June 12, 2023 in Portofino, Italy.

What’s the history behind the wedding location?

The couple celebrated their engagement in August 2023, with a party aboard Koru, off the coast of Positano. It’s fitting, then, that they’ll host the wedding in another Italian city. But Venice didn’t land the honor by chance. According to The Times, the city actively campaigned for the event. Morris Ceron, director general of the Venice Council, even enlisted Dolce & Gabbana designer Domenico Dolce to help sway Bezos and Sánchez. “Seven months ago, Domenico Dolce told me Bezos was getting married. I got to work to bring this marriage of the century to Venice—that’s how it started,” Ceron told Venice newspaper Il Gazzettino.

Who will oversee wedding decor?

The wedding decor for Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez’s upcoming nuptials in Venice is being orchestrated by the London-based event firm Lanza & Baucina, according to The Times. The firm has experience crafting high-profile celebrations, particularly in Venice. According to W, the firm produced Salma Hayek and François-Henri Pinault’s 2009 marriage in Venice.

Rachel Silva

Associate Digital Editor

Rachel Silva is the associate digital editor at ELLE DECOR, where she covers all things design, architecture, and lifestyle. She also oversees the publication’s feature article coverage, and is, at any moment, knee-deep in an investigation on everything from the best spa gifts to the best faux florals on the internet right now. She has more than 16 years of experience in editorial, working as a photo assignment editor at Time and acting as the president of Women in Media in NYC. She went to Columbia Journalism School, and her work has been nominated for awards from ASME, the Society of Publication Designers, and World Press Photo.