George and Amal Clooney’s Wedding in Venice, 2014
Water taxis on the Grand Canal, a sixteenth-century palazzo, an Oscar de la Renta gown of French lace and a cream trouser look at the town hall. The destination wedding, polished.
George Clooney, who had not married since the early 1990s, married the British-Lebanese human rights barrister Amal Alamuddin in Venice over a long weekend in late September 2014. It was a destination wedding in the grand manner, staged across a city that has hosted brides for centuries, and it was run with a precision that made every public moment look effortless: the arrivals by water taxi, a wedding photograph released through a magazine, and a civil ceremony at the town hall two days later.
| At a glance | |
|---|---|
| Date | Saturday, September 27, 2014 (private ceremony); Monday, September 29, 2014 (civil ceremony) |
| Place (ceremony) | Aman Canal Grande, Palazzo Papadopoli, Venice; civil ceremony at Ca’ Farsetti, Venice’s town hall |
| Reception | At the Aman Canal Grande |
| The dress (designer) | Oscar de la Renta |
| Guests | Family, including the bride’s father, Ramzi Alamuddin, and the groom’s parents, Nick Clooney and Nina Bruce, and friends including Matt Damon and Luciana Barroso, Cindy Crawford and Rande Gerber, Emily Blunt and John Krasinski, Bono, Anna Wintour and Bill Murray |
| Officiant | Walter Veltroni, former mayor of Rome |
The couple
Clooney had been married once before, to the actress Talia Balsam, from 1989 to 1993. Alamuddin, a barrister at Doughty Street Chambers in London, had built a career in international law and human rights. They became engaged on April 28, 2014; the ring was an emerald-cut diamond, estimated at around seven carats, set in platinum between tapered baguettes. That August they obtained their marriage licenses in London, at the register office of the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea.
The ceremony
The couple arrived in Venice on Friday, September 26, and traveled around the city in water taxis marked “Amore.” The wedding itself took place on Saturday at the Aman Canal Grande, a hotel in the Palazzo Papadopoli, a sixteenth-century palace on the Grand Canal that had opened as Aman’s first Italian hotel in 2013. The ceremony was conducted by Walter Veltroni, a former mayor of Rome and a friend of the groom’s. Clooney’s spokesman confirmed that day that the couple “were married today in a private ceremony in Venice, Italy.”
On Monday the couple returned for a brief civil ceremony at Ca’ Farsetti, the town hall. Amal wore a cream Stella McCartney trouser look with navy trim, a matching clutch and a wide-brimmed hat.
The dress
The gown was a custom design by Oscar de la Renta, in French lace hand-embroidered with pearls and diamanté, with an off-the-shoulder neckline and a full circular train. “George and I wanted a wedding that was romantic and elegant,” Amal said when the dress was revealed, “and I can’t imagine anyone more able than Oscar to capture this mood.” De la Renta died on October 20, 2014, less than a month after the wedding.
The groom wore a black Giorgio Armani tuxedo, with cufflinks from the bride engraved with his name in Arabic. Over the weekend Amal also wore Alexander McQueen, Dolce & Gabbana and Giambattista Valli couture. For more of the gowns that defined their moment, see our guide to celebrity wedding dresses.
The reception
Dinner at the Aman was a five-course meal that included lobster and wild mushrooms, followed by a four-tier Art Deco cake, and the party reportedly went on until about five in the morning. A wedding photograph was released through People; otherwise the evening stayed private.
Why it mattered
Venice made the case for the modern destination wedding: fly a small group somewhere beautiful, spread the celebration over several days, and give each day its own setting and its own look. It also made the civil ceremony stylish. Amal’s cream trousers and hat gave brides a second, practical outfit to aspire to, and the idea of a separate, smaller legal ceremony, often in a town hall, is now a familiar pattern for couples marrying abroad. The couple welcomed twins, Ella and Alexander, in June 2017. For other Italian celebrity weddings, see Chrissy Teigen and John Legend on Lake Como, Kim Kardashian and Kanye West in Florence and, in Venice again, Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez.
Borrow the idea
Understand the paperwork first. Marrying legally abroad means meeting that country’s requirements, usually with documents prepared months in advance. Many couples marry legally at home and hold the celebration abroad. Our guide to destination weddings covers the trade-offs.
Plan a second outfit for the town hall. A tailored trouser suit or jumpsuit in cream or ivory, with a hat or a structured bag, is chic, comfortable and wearable again.
Give the weekend a rhythm. Welcome drinks, the ceremony and a relaxed day-after gathering let guests who have traveled far feel it was worth the trip. See the reception timeline.
Choose a hotel that can hold the whole weekend. A single property with a garden, a dining room and enough bedrooms for your closest guests removes most of the logistics of a destination wedding. Ask about exclusive use for the ceremony day and a room block for the rest.
Arrive by water, or by something memorable. A boat, a vintage car or a walk through the old town with your guests can be the photograph everyone remembers.
Written and edited by the Today’s Weddings editors. How we research and check what we publish is set out in our editorial standards. Spotted something wrong? Tell us.
