Guests have begun arriving in Venice for Amazon founder Jeff Bezos’s multimillion-pound wedding, which has had to find a new venue.
The billionaire will marry Lauren Sanchez in the Italian city this week, and the couple will mark the occasion with three days of celebrations costing up to €48m (£41m).
The venue where the couple will say their vows has been kept secret, but their wedding party has at the last minute been moved out of the city centre, Reuters news agency reports.
Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump at Venice airport on Tuesday. Pic: Reuters
Diane von Furstenberg. Pic: Reuters
It had been due to take place at the Scuola Grande della Misericordia but will now be held at the Arsenale, a source told Reuters.
The new venue is a 14th-century complex surrounded by water and impossible to reach by land when bridges are raised.
Amid the last-minute changes, guests, including Donald Trump’s daughter, have begun arriving in Italy.
Ivanka Trump and her husband, Jared Kushner, were seen boarding a water taxi at Venice airport on Tuesday, as was fashion designer Diane von Furstenberg.
The move comes after weeks of protests from some local residents and pressure groups, who say Bezos and his fiancee are not welcome in the city.
Read more: Why are activists protesting the wedding?
Anti-Bezos protests have been held in the city. Pic: Federica Toninelli
The leader of the ‘No Space for Bezos’ campaign said: “The news that Bezos has run away from the Misericordia is a great victory for us.”
The group has announced more protests for Saturday, believed to be the main day of celebrations, and pledged to make the event a “nightmare” for Bezos and his guests.