How Overseas Weddings Went From Status Symbol to Social Misstep

Word on the street is that Dua Lipa and Callum Turner took a break from their seemingly endless vacations-the couple is known to travel frequently-to celebrate their nuptials over the weekend.

The pair married at Marylebone Town Hall in London, England, on May 31, but headed to Palermo on the Italian island of Sicily on June 5 for a larger ceremony.

The event-dubbed an “Italian Extravaganza” by the press-was a spectacle in fashion, floral arrangements and, of course, celebrities. Attendees included Mark Ronson, his wife, Meryl Streep’s daughter, Grace Gummer; Taylor Swift’s ex-partner Joe Alwyn, and even Donatella Versace.

But as the news hit the mainstream, public perception began to shift. Sicilian authorities reportedly shut down several squares and troubled locals with road closures, heavy police presence around the venue the couple are thought to have hired-Palazzo Valguarnera-Gangi-no-drone fly zones and non-disclosure agreements. Some locals responded in protest, with a sign reading “Palermo is not for rent” being stuck on walls.

The frustration spilled onto social media platforms, where people found the disruption to local communities to be distasteful at best.

The couple are well-liked-with Lipa boasting nearly 90 million Instagram followers and Turner frontrunner to be the next James Bond-but their weekend in Sicily has certainly raised eyebrows, and they are not the first notable couple to do so.

Kourtney Kardashian and Travis Barker shut down Portofino for their own celebrations in 2022, drawing sharp criticism from locals and tourism advocates who objected to spaces being privatized for the ultra-wealthy.

Most notably, Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez’s Venice wedding in 2025 triggered the loudest backlash of all. A chorus of protest from residents and city officials argued that the lagoon city’s already strained infrastructure could not absorb the disruption. Newsweek reached out to Dua Lipa, Kourtney Kardashian, and Jeff Bezos for comment via email.

The backlash to these overseas celebrity weddings comes amid a backdrop of negativity towards overtourism, which has made life difficult for residents in popular destinations and led to Airbnb crackdowns, price rises, pedestrian traffic, and loudspeaker bans. With the A-List now using their millions and billions to buy up public spaces, locals appear to have had enough.

And it’s not just celebrities. In 2025, one couple’s destination wedding in the Indian coastal city of Puri made headlines after it spilled into public spaces, causing controversy.

The destination wedding, once an enviable status symbol, has come to be seen as a social faux pas.

Calls For Accountability

“Celebrity weddings have evolved from private celebrations into PR moments,” PR strategist Estelle Keeber told Newsweek. “When celebrities choose destinations like Italy, they are aligning themselves with a lifestyle and image.

“The location becomes part of their brand.”

Yet, Keeber acknowledged how public sentiment, particularly among locals, has shifted.

“They are now aware of overtourism, environmental concerns, and the impact large-scale events have on communities,” she said. “What was once viewed as aspirational is now viewed through the lens of accountability.”

Stefanie Grassley, co-owner of Tuscan wedding venue Castello di Ristonchi, agreed. She told Newsweek that tensions have risen due to large, highly publicized events taking place in cities that already deal with overcrowding and tourism pressures.

“Residents become frustrated with media attention, security measures, traffic restrictions, and disruptions,” she said, emphasizing that celebrity weddings have really become the face of a larger conversation about overtourism.

“Concerns are about the feeling that public spaces are being used for spectacles that don’t benefit residents,” she said.

It May Not Be the End of Destination Weddings-Despite the Reputational Risk

The template for celebrity spectacle in Italy was arguably perfected by George Clooney and Amal Alamuddin, who married in Venice in 2014 in a multi-day celebration that effectively took over the city’s most storied canals. That same year, Kim Kardashian and Kanye West exchanged vows at Florence’s Forte di Belvedere, with operatic tenor Andrea Bocelli providing the soundtrack.

Since then, some celebrity weddings, such as Charli XCX’s Sicily marriage to The 1975 drummer George Daniel in July, have managed to go under the radar, suggesting the backlash isn’t universal.

Founder of luxury travel platform Luxatolls, Tym Lewtak believes that the public takes issue with weddings that “resemble big-budget movie productions,” which he said leave locals feeling disconnected from their hometowns.

Despite the tensions the trend has exacerbated, it doesn’t look like celebrities, or “normies” with well-lined pockets, will universally abandon the destination wedding anytime soon.

Nicola Whitfield, wedding style adviser and director at Whitfield & Ward, told Newsweek that the appeal of Italy, and of neighboring countries, lies in how it can offer the wedding party a “whole fantasy” in one place that spans pleasant scenery and food, and allows the couple to experiment with clothing styles or photography choices that may have looked like “too much” or clashed with the environment back home.

“It gives a sense of occasion before the wedding has started,” she said.

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This story was originally published June 9, 2026 at 9:10 AM.