Jeff Bezos wedding: Jordan's Queen Rania, Kim Kardashian among celebrity guests

Celebrations kicked off for Amazon tycoon Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchez's wedding on Friday, in a sumptuous, secluded ceremony attended by celebrity friends on an island in Venice's lagoon.

The tech magnate, 61, and his fiancee, 55, kicked off a three-day wedding celebration Thursday with guests including Kim and Khloe Kardashian, Oprah Winfrey and Orlando Bloom.

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Venice, home to the oldest film festival in the world, is used to VIPs whizzing around in speed boats, and happily hosted the star-studded nuptials of Hollywood actor George Clooney in 2014.

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Bezos and former news anchor and entertainment reporter Sanchez are staying at the Aman hotel, a luxury 16th-century palazzo on the Grand Canal with a view of the Rialto bridge.

They will exchange vows at a black-tie ceremony on the island of San Giorgio Maggiore, according to Italian media reports.

The wedding itself is expected to take place in a vast open-air amphitheatre on the island, which sits across from St Mark's Square.

The newlyweds will then be serenaded by Matteo Bocelli, the son of famed opera singer Andrea Bocelli, the reports said.

Sanchez is alleged to have prepared 27 outfits to wear during the festivities.

Italian designer Domenico Dolce -- half of the duo Dolce & Gabbana -- was seen leaving the Aman hotel on Thursday, possibly following a fitting.

Celebrity guests

Wedding guests snapped by paparazzi as they hopped into boats included Jordan's Queen Rania, US football player Tom Brady, American fashion designer Spencer Antle, singer Usher, and Ivanka Trump -- the daughter of US President Donald Trump.

The guests reportedly lunched together Thursday in the gardens of Villa Baslini, on the islet of San Giovanni Evangelista.

The celebrations are set to end Saturday with a party likely at the Arsenale, a vast shipyard complex dating back to when the city was a naval powerhouse.

Venice's oldest pastry maker Rosa Salva is baking 19th-century "fishermen's biscuits" for party bags which will also contain something by Laguna B, renowned for its handblown Murano glass.

Some locals say the A-list guests and their entourages bring good business but critics have accused billionaire Bezos of using the UNESCO site as his personal playground.

At least 95 private planes requested permission to land at Venice's Marco Polo airport for the wedding, the Corriere della Sera said.