Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez's wedding sparks protests in Venice

Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez are not unanimously welcomed by Venice.

Protests emerged earlier this month ahead of the couple's upcoming wedding nuptials. Signs, posters, and stickers went up around Venice's historic center with slogans like "No Space for Bezos." The protest banner also featured a rocket image in a nod to his Blue Origin space tourism company.

Other landmarks such as the Rialto Bridge and Venice's iconic St. Mark’s Square also became a target amid the citywide protests.

This week, protesters also called out Bezos to "pay more taxes." One such sighting was at St. Mark’s Square, also known as Piazza San Marco, displaying a giant banner with a picture of the billionaire laughing alongside the words, “If you can rent Venice for your wedding you can pay more tax.”

Greenpeace, the global environmental organisation behind the demonstration, shared a video of the banner being laid out on Instagram, writing in the caption, "Jeff Bezos pays his staff poverty wages and dodges tax. No wonder he can afford to shut down half of Venice for his wedding this week. Tax billionaires NOW."

The criticism comes amid growing concerns over overtourism, which many Venetians argue has led to the displacement of residents and damage to historic sites.

Meanwhile, City hall officials say the protests "are in no way representative of the majority of citizens, who are proud that Venice has been chosen as the wedding location."

"The city is fully accustomed to hosting high-profile events of this nature and scale, including other celebrity weddings, international summits such as the G7 and G20, as well as traditional events like the Festa del Redentore and the Venice Biennale," the publication told NBC in a statement.

The officials assured regular taxi and water transports would continue during the wedding festivities, which are reportedly set to kick off on Tuesday, June 24.

Only about 30 of the city's 280 water taxis have been reserved, and only three or four hotels will be utilised for the wedding, the officials added.

Mayor Luigi Brugnaro, is also "very proud" to host the wedding and said he hoped to have an opportunity to meet Bezos, 61.

“I don’t know if I will have time, or if he will, to meet and shake hands, but it’s an honor that they chose Venice. Venice once again reveals itself to be a global stage," he told The Associated Press.