E-Tourism

Two Star? Four Star? Five Star? The really nice hotels think that’s not even a hotel. The real hotels are seven stars. If you are looking to live like a king, then you need to stay where kings stay. For the rich and famous, anything less would be unthinkable. So when you are looking to live like a king and have your entourage join in, consider these places. Room start at a measly $7,500 dollars a night. But hey, you’re worth it.

The Ciragan Palace Hotel Kempinski- Sultan’s Suite ($7,500 per night)
Ciragan Palace Hotel

Ciragan Palace Hotel

Located in Istanbul on the Bosporus, this hotel was originally the home of the Ottoman sultans and has been around since the 16th century. It was turned into a hotel in 1991. The hotel has two buildings- the original palace and the new hotel. If you ever dreamed of living like a king, this would be a place to go. It only costs 7,500 per night.

The Fairmont Hotel- Penthouse Suite ($10,000 per night)
Fairmont Hotel

Fairmont Hotel

Located at the Fairmont Hotel on San Francisco’s Nob Hill, this 6,000 square foot suite takes up the entire eighth floor. It has three bedrooms, a dining room and room for 50 people- enough for you and your celebrity entourage. There’s a pool table, fireplace, and a bathroom made of 24 karat gold. Coolest feature- a secret passageway is concealed behind the bookshelves on the library’s second floor.

Hotel Cala di Volpe- Presidential Suite ($13,879 per night)
Hotel Cala di Volpe

Hotel Cala di Volpe

The eastern coast of Sardinia became famous during the 1960s when a very rich man bought it and convinced his other rich friends to builds villas and yacht clubs. The area even served as the backdrop to the James Bond film “The Spy Who Loved Me.” This suite has three bedrooms, three bathrooms and two sitting rooms. The highlight is the private, outdoor saltwater pool on the second floor. Because for the price you are paying, you deserve a little privacy.

Westin Excelsior- Villa La Cupola ($14,950 per night)
Westin Excelsior

Westin Excelsior

Located within the Westin Excelsior on the fifth and sixth floor, the suite covers 6,099 square feet and has an additional 1,808 square feet of balconies and terraces. There is a private kitchen, a dining room with an antique Murano glass chandelier, a private wine cabinet. If that wasn’t enough, you get a private cinema with Dolby surround sound and a private elevator to the fitness area and Jacuzzi. This suite is true opulence and is a great way to impress your first date.

The Martinez Hotel- Presidential Suite ($18,500 per night)
Hotel Martinez

Hotel Martinez

The Martinez Hotel in Cannes bills itself as having the biggest, most expensive and only terraced penthouse suite on the Cote d’Azur. It has two bedrooms, a Turkish bath, a kitchen, a personal sauna, as well as a wraparound terrace that can hold 100 people. A private butler is available 24 hours a day. Pure luxury in one of the most expensive regions in the world.

President Wilson Hotel – The Imperial Suite ($23,300 per night)

The Imperial Suite is reached by a private elevator, has four bedrooms, and overlooks Lake Geneva. The suite has a study, 5 bathrooms with marble floor, a billiards table, a library and a cocktail lounge, perfect for entertaining the 40 guests this suite can hold. For those who need extra security or are simply paranoid, don’t worry- the suite is equipped with bulletproof windows and doors.

The Atlantis- The Bridge Suite ($25,000)
Atlantis Hotel

Atlantis Hotel

The Bridge Suite is located on top of a bridge that connects the two Atlantis Royal Towers giving you an excellent view of the hotel, marina, and islands. The ten-room suite is decorated in red, black and gold…lots of gold! For the price you are paying it should make you feel like a king! The room has its own butler and cook, who come in via their own entrance so they never bothers you. This place is the ultimate tropical island suite. In fact, it’s so luxurious you may never venture out of it.

Palms Casino Resort- Hugh Hefner Sky Villa ($40,000 a night)
Palms Hotel

Palms Hotel

Located on the 34th floor in the Fantasy tower, the Hugh Hefner Sky Villa has everything you need to feel like the ultimate playboy. There is an an outdoor Jacuzzi, living room, media room, dining room and bar, and, of course, an eight foot rotating bed for when you entertain all your playboy bunnies. This suite is the most expensive room in the world right now but, to live like “Hef” for the day, it might be worth it. Note: Playboy bunnies not included.

Everyone has a personal record for the amount they’ve spent on a hotel room. Whether it was for a one-off treat or just because everywhere else in town was full, most people have sampled a luxury hotel at one point or another. Sometimes it’s worth it, sometimes it hurts. In either case, when the bill came, you probably didn’t want to look!

But for the super rich, the cost of our so-called luxury accommodation is just part of the package. All around the world, luxury hotel suites are designed to cater to this elite, with every imaginable feature, priceless furnishings, lavish service, and a price to match. These boutique hotels are the playgrounds of the rich and famous when they travel abroad – celebrities, millionaires, pop stars, heads of state and royalty are the most frequent residents…Some of them pay and others are invited. Here are five of the most expensive luxury hotel suites in the world.

Presidential Suite, Hotel Martinez
Price: $18,500 a night

Cannes is Europe’s answer to Hollywood, so it’s no surprise that it contains a luxury hotel suite with this kind of price tag. Decorated in an Art Deco style, it measures 8,000 square feet in total. The wraparound terrace (which can hold over 100 people) is 2000 square feet on its own, and has views of the entire Bay of Cannes. Other features include a Turkish bath, personal sauna, 24 hour on call butler and a free bar – though breakfast is not included in your bill.

Guests at this famous hotel have included Jodie Foster, Francis Ford Coppola and Monica Belluci. One Saudi sheik liked the Presidential Suite so much that he wanted to hire it out for five years. The hotel, confident of being able to fill the suite in spite of its price, refused his request.

Imperial Suite, President Wilson Hotel, Geneva
Price: $23,000 a night

You pay for security as much as luxury at this famous hotel suite in Geneva. Positioned next to the United Nations Headquarters and designed for travelling heads of state, the Imperial Suite features bullet proof glass and bedside alarm buttons, and can only be reached by a private elevator.

With views of Lake Geneva and Mont Blanc, the suite contains five bathrooms, four bedrooms, a cocktail lounge, a library, its own Steinway grand piano and a mahogany dining table that can comfortably seat 26 guests. It costs approximately $23,000 a night. Breakfast is not included but the service can’t be argued with – when one guest requested a bed that could not fit in the lift, the hotel hired a crane to get it in the bedroom.

The Bridge Suite, Atlantis Hotel, Paradise Island
Price: $25,000 a night

The Bridge Suite sits on top of the bridge that connects the two Royal Towers in this resort on the aptly named Paradise Island. For $25,000 a night you get your own butler, entertainment centre, 50-foot bar lounge, marble baths and a décor described as conveying “regal majesty” by the hotel staff. For regal majesty, read lots of gilded mirrors and windows, golden sofas, and a ten-foot four-poster bed with hand-painted linen sheets. Subdued and tasteful it isn’t, but if you like to see some eye-watering opulence in your five figure luxury hotel suite, this may be the one for you.

Ty Warner Penthouse, Four Seasons Hotel, New York
Price: $30,000

This boutique hotel spared no expense when it came to furnishing the penthouse on its 52nd floor. Gold thread curtains, walls inlaid with mother of pearl, onyx bathroom floors, and even a shark skin coffee table are all part of the package here, along with stunning views over Manhattan and even a waterfall in the so-called Zen room. For those who like a little more than the standard room service, this luxury hotel suite comes with unlimited treatments from an in-house masseuse, a butler on 24 hour duty and a chauffeur driven Rolls Royce.

Hugh Hefner Sky Villa, Palms Casino Resort, Las Vegas
Price: $40,000

Perhaps it’s no surprise that Hugh Hefner’s name is attached to the ultimate in luxury hotel decadence. At a jaw dropping $40,000 a night, the Hugh Hefner Sky Villa is the world’s most expensive hotel suite, located (appropriately enough) in the Fantasy Tower of the Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas. Amongst the eccentric extras are an eight foot revolving bed with ceiling mirrors, an indoor waterfall, an exercise room, sauna, and a terrace pool projecting out over the edge of the Fantasy Tower with the Playboy Bunny logo stamped firmly in the centre.