George Clooney, Alamuddin wedding brings out the stars in Venice

There was no other news on the Rialto on Friday as A-list stars glided into Venice to celebrate the wedding of Hollywood hero George Clooney and human rights lawyer Amal Alamuddin.

The two-time Oscar winner and Kentucky-born Clooney, 53, is set to renounce his oath of bachelorhood and marry British-Lebanese barrister Alamuddin, 36, in a multi-day extravaganza in Italy's floating city.

A beaming Clooney and his bride-to-be took a water taxi on the Grand Canal on Friday, and more boats bearing blue flags printed with the initials "A" and "G" waited in the morning at Venice's airport to ferry early arrivals including Ellen Barkin, Clooney's co-star in "Ocean's Thirteen".

George Clooney, left, and his fiancee Amal Alamuddin arrive in Venice, Italy, Friday, Sept. 26, 2014. Clooney, 53, and Alamuddin, 36, are expected to get married this weekend in Venice, one of the world’s most romantic settings. (AP)

Tourists and Venetians alike clustered after dark on Friday on a pier next to the seven-star Aman Canal Grande Hotel, a fresco-filled palazzo which the pair reportedly reserved for an exchange-of-vows ceremony and reception on Saturday.

Among those hoping to catch a glimpse of one of the glamorous guests on a list rumoured to hold 150 names was Osmany Mena, 37, who was visiting Venice from Miami, Florida.

"They talked about Sandra Bullock, Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie. It would be cool to see any of them, all of them," Mena said, mentioning Clooney's co-star Bullock in the 2013 blockbuster "Gravity" and another recently married Hollywood power couple.

Local press said Matt Damon, star of "The Talented Mr. Ripley" and "The Bourne Identity", landed later in the day at the airport on Venice's long Lido island.

Alamuddin and Clooney, who vowed never to remarry after his 1993 divorce from actress Talia Balsam, posted legal notice of their plans to wed at a West London town hall in August, drawing a crowd of fans but no appearance from the couple.

Alamuddin has represented Ukrainian former prime minister Yulia Tymoshenko at the European Court of Human Rights, and WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange in extradition proceedings.

She has been dating Clooney since October 2013, according to media reports, and their engagement was confirmed when her legal chambers issued a statement in April to congratulate the couple.

Alamuddin also advised former United Nations secretary general Kofi Annan on the conflict in Syria, an issue about which Clooney has spoken publicly. Clooney also recently worked as an advocate for refugees in Darfur, Sudan.

Tequila and cigars: Clooney's stag party in Venice

George Clooney said goodbye to bachelorhood in Venice on Friday with a stag party at his favourite restaurant with a host of Hollywood chums.

The actor had swept into the floating city on Friday with his British fiancee Amal Alamuddin on a watertaxi dubbed "Amore", zipping up the Grand Canal to cheers from fans at the start of nuptials set to draw out over the weekend.

As evening approached and girls across the world sobbed, he set out in black tie for an all-boys do with friends to celebrate one of his last nights as a single man.

After shaking off paparazzi, Clooney headed to Da Ivo near Saint Mark's Square where his security detail was spotted lurking as the star and friends dined on the venue's prized Venetian and Tuscan delicacies.

He was then reported to have headed to the luxurious Cipriani hotel where he was set to sleep, but not before rounding off the evening with some shots and cigars.

The 53-year-old actor had 100 cases of his own tequila label flown in for his wedding and was expected to crack open bottles of the award-winning tipple at the stag party.

Clooney's Lebanon-born bride-to-be was spotted in a long red gown heading off to her own soiree at the fresco-adorned Aman hotel with close friends including Ellen Barkin -- who threw the 36-year-old human rights lawyer a hen party several weeks ago.

Matt Damon, Cindy Crawford and her husband Rande Gerber -- tipped to be Clooney's best man -- were just a few of the stars in Venice for the wedding, with Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie and musician Bono tipped to follow on Saturday.

'When I fall in love'

The couple are expected to be officially married in a civil ceremony on Monday, but will have to work hard not to succumb to a hangover before then with a party for 130 or so guests at a reception on Saturday.

The rich and famous will be escorted by police boats to the exclusive seven-star Aman resort within the 450-year-old Palazzo Papadopoli to keep over-excited Clooney admirers and hundreds of photographers at a distance.

They'll be met with lashings of fizz and canapes in the garden, an oasis sheltered from the bustle of the canal, before sitting down in the main library to a sumptuous five-course dinner, according to a source close to the hotel.

The Aman's restaurant will be turned into a nightclub where they'll dance the night away, with Lana Del Rey reportedly preparing to serenade the couple and Clooney dedicating the song "When I fall in Love" to Alamuddin.

A string orchestra and jazz trio are also expected to perform a number of songs, including the uber-romantic "Smoke gets in your eyes", a ballad made famous by The Platters in 1958.

Rome's former mayor Walter Veltroni, a long-term friend of Clooney's, will be performing the civil ceremony, which is likely to be held in the town hall, the stunning Ca' Farsetti 14th century palace opposite the Aman hotel.

Alamuddin moved to Britain as a three-year-old and her rights work has involved representing Wikileaks founder Julian Assange.
 

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