If you've ever wanted to make a noise complaint about a neighbour's loud and obnoxious party, you can probably empathise with the residents of Venice, Italy this week. Jeff Bezos' upcoming nuptials to fiancee Lauren Sanchez are due to take place around the city of canals in the coming days, and residents are furious with billionaires and hangers-on turning the city upside down in the lead up.

Locals have rallied around a campaign simply titled "No Space For Bezos", which sought to stand up to the mega-billionaire and his new partner.

The event space inside Misericordia, Venice.

The Bezos/Sanchez wedding was set to take place in the Cannaregio district of Venice at Scuola Grande della Misericordia in the north-western quarter of Venice. Scuola Grande della Misericordia is a 16th-century Renaissance building (like a lot of Venice, really), which is now being offered as a lavishly-refurbished event space for the right price.

Along with essentially closing large swathes of a popular district to the public for a very non-public interest event, the wedding has brought with it a raft of celebrities, businessfolks and other ultra-wealthy individuals who have reportedly taken over the small and historically tourist-hostile city.

For example, the 'Koru' - Bezos' $250 million, 127-metre long super yacht - has reportedly anchored up at the port of Venice for the duration of the celebrations. And it's likely that the support vessel - the 75-metre 'Abeona' (complete with helipad and ostensibly a floating hotel) - is likely anchored nearby.

And speaking of vessels, it's also reported that the water taxis - vital to Venetians looking to go about their days in the city - are all out of action for public use. Why? Because they've all been rented for the wedding, of course.

Locals have been flying protest banners from bridges and campaigning in the streets to get the couple to pack up out of Venice altogether. Even Greenpeace got in on the act this week.

Teaming up with the anti-billionaire protest group "Everyone Hates Elon" (catchy), they unfurled a massive 20-metre banner in St Mark’s Square, reading: “If you can rent Venice for your wedding, you can pay more tax”.

Speaking from Venice, Greenpeace campaigner Clara Thompson criticised the billionaire class more broadly, saying: “While Venice is sinking under the weight of the climate crisis, billionaires are partying like there is no tomorrow on their mega yachts. This isn’t just about one person — it’s about changing the rules so no billionaire can dodge responsibility, anywhere.” Thompson argued that global tax reform is urgently needed to ensure the super-rich contribute their fair share, calling for “fair, inclusive tax rules” to be developed at the UN level.

The Greenpeace ship Arctic Sunrise was also stationed at the Port of Venice over the weekend to highlight the group’s broader campaign targeting fossil fuels and wealth inequality. According to Greenpeace, taxing billionaires like Bezos could fund climate action, affordable housing, public transport, and insulation initiatives — all critical as cities like Venice face mounting environmental threats.

Thankfully, Reuters now reports that the Bezos/Sanchez wedding has now been moved to a more 'private' location and not in the middle of someone else's city. The wedding will now reportedly take place in a hall of the Arsenale, which can raise its bridges to be completely cut off from the outside world during the ceremony.

Perhaps locals might respond to this news by simply destroying the bridges once they're raised.