E-Tourism

The Wealth Bulletin has compiled a new list of the World’s Top Ten Most Expensive Hotel Rooms, and the first and second both cost over $30,000 per night. And despite glum economic prospects, demand for these costly suites is as strong as ever, with waiting lists stretching from now until the end of December. Also worth noting is the appearance of Dubai (the Burj Al Arab’s Royal Suite, above) and Moscow hotels on the list, which would have been unheard of just a couple years ago.

Here are the Top 10:

1. Ty Warner Penthouse, Four Seasons, New York; $34,000 per night

2. Royal Penthouse Suite, President Wilson Hotel, Geneva; $33,000 per night

3. The Presidential Suite, Hotel Cala di Volpe, Costa Smeralda, Italy; $21,000 per night

4. Royal Suite, Burj Al Arab, Dubai; $18,000 per night

5. Royal Armleder Suite, Le Richemond, Geneva; $17,500 per night

6. The Ritz-Carlton Suite, The Ritz-Carlton, Moscow; $16,500 per night

7. The Royal Suite, Four Seasons George V, Paris; $16,000 per night

8. The Imperial Suite, Park Hyatt-Vendôme, Paris; $15,500 per night

9. Brook Penthouse, Claridges, London; $10,000 per night

10. Penthouse Suite, Hotel Martinez, Cannes; $9,300 per night

Most of us have simple demands when it comes to travel lodging– a bed, a
bathroom, a TV and wi-fi. There are others, however, whose demands far eclipse
the simple convenience of your basic hotel room. When the world’s most wealthy
travelers take a vacation for their own, they are treated to suites that cover
entire floors of a hotel building, rooms that include a personal butler, hell–
some even come with their own private helicopter. Take a peek into the
experience of the world’s most wealthy travelers. Here are 10 of the most
expensive hotel rooms in the world.

10. $15,500 a night – Imperial Suite, Park Hyatt-Vendôme

Paris, France

Situated on the second floor of the Park Hyatt-Vendôme’s Haussmanian building is
the hotel’s 750 square-foot Imperial Suite. Thise pricey suite has high
ceilings, a dining room, kitchenette and bar. When visitors tire of toiling,
they relax with an “In Suite Spa” that comes outfitted with a steam room,
Whirlpool and built-in massage table.

9. $16,000 a night – Royal Suite, Four Seasons George V

Paris, France

The George V in Paris boasts a pair of “sumptuous” Royal Suites that each come
with private terraces and rooms filled with antique furniture. Each suite has a
marble entrance, a full kitchen, a sauna and a separate bathroom for guests. The
expensive 2,600 square-foot suites are split into separate spaces for sleeping
and entertaining, both of which also have a private office.

8. $17,500 a night – Royal Armleder Suite, Le Richemond

Geneva, Switzerland

Le Richemond’s Royal Armleder Suite reopened in 2007 after an extensive
restoration of the hotel’s seventh floor, which the luxury suite occupies the
entirety of. The suite is bedecked in gold, mosaics and parquet floors and has a
300 square-foot terrace with stunning views of Geneva and the nearby Alps.

7. $18,000 a night – Royal Suite, Burj Al Arab

Dubai, United Arab Emirates

A two-story suite that centers around an epic staircase, Burj Al Arab’s Royal
Suite has Carrara marble floors, mahogany furniture and a master bedroom with a
rotating four-post canopy bed. Guests enjoy Hermes bathroom products, Faubourg
fragrances, their own private elevator and cinema and for a bit extra– a
chauffeur driven Rolls Royce or helicopter.

6. $18,200 – Ritz-Carlton Suite, The Ritz-Carlton

Moscow, Russia

Floor-to-ceiling windows outline the Ritz-Carlton Suite at the hotel chain’s
Moscow location. Imperial furniture fills the 2,500 square-foot suite, which
comes with a heated floor, a grand piano and a library. The suite has views of
the Kremlin, Red Square and St. Basil’s Cathedral and visitors get to enjoy five
meals a day and their very own KGB-approved autonomous energy supply system and
secure telecommunications array.

5. $25,000 a night – Bridge Suite at The Atlantis

Paradise Island, Bahamas

The 10-room Bridge Suite at Bahamian resort The Atlantis fills the entire space
linking the hotel complex’s two flagship towers. Forbes reports the suite has
hosted guests including Oprah and Michael Jackson. [pic via flickr]

4. $33,000 a night – Royal Penthouse Suite, President
Wilson Hotel

Geneva, Switzerland

President Woodrow Wilson reportedly suffered from high blood pressure, so it’s
safe to assume he would have appreciated a stress-free stay at President Wilson
Hotel’s Royal Penthouse Suite. Consuming the entire top floor of the hotel, the
four-bedroom suite can hold up to 40 guests in its cocktail lounge and is said
to be the best digs for heads of state wanting to make an impression when
they’re in town on United Nations business. [pic via guardian uk]

3. $34,000 a night – Ty Warner Penthouse, Four Seasons

New York

The Ty Warner Penthouse practically floats in Manhattan. Floor-to-ceiling
windows surround all sides of the massive suite, surrounding guests in
360-degree views of the city skyline from atop Manhattan’s tallest hotel. The
nine-room suite has walls inlayed with mother of pearl, gold and platinum-woven
fabrics, and the room itself includes a private butler, unlimited global calling
and TVs programmed to receive every channel in the entire world.

2. $40,000 a night – Hugh Hefner Sky Villa, Palms Casino Resort

Las Vegas

Hugh Hefner’s Playboy-themed suite at the Palms Casino resort has a $700,000
jacuzzi that cantilevers out above the Las Vegas strip. The 10,000 square-foot,
two-story suite comes with around-the-clock butler service and (of course) a
rotating bed set beneath a mirrored ceiling.

1. $50,000 a night – Royal Villa at Grand Resort
Lagonissi

Athens, Greece

The Grand Resort’s Royal Villa gives the world’s most exclusive guests a private
version of everything imaginable. The only other people lucky guests have to see
while secluded in their heated pool, steam room or private beach is the suite’s
dedicated butler, chef and pianist.

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.