Extreme hotels: do you fancy a stay in the lowest, smallest, highest, coldest or most expensive hotel rooms in the world?
Nuremberg, 11. March 2009 - Have you ever considered spending the night in a hotel underwater, in the ice or on top of the world? Perhaps you would simply prefer pure, unadulterated luxury? The online hotel reservation service www.hotel.info is currently reporting on the world's extreme hotels, in conjunction with a competition to win a trip to the most expensive hotel on the planet, the luxury "Emirates Palace" Hotel in Abu Dhabi, worth around €3,000.
The "Deepest Hotel in the World"
Let's start off at the bottom: Ask a person to think of the lowest hotel in the world, and most will mention the lodges situated around the Dead Sea - and while they might be right, geographically speaking, we want to tell you about another establishment, "Jule's Undersea Lodge". It is located almost exactly 12 meters below the surface off the Florida coast at Key Largo. The hotel has been created on the ocean bed out of a former undersea research station. While you will remain dry in your bed at night in this underwater accommodation, you will get wet arriving: the only way in is by diving! Since the Undersea Lodge only has two rooms, it could also compete for the title of "smallest hotel in the world".
The "Smallest Hotel in the World"
This title is closely contested by several hotels. Two of these are mentioned here, but if the prize were to be awarded on the basis of the number of rooms alone, then the "Grand Hotel de Kromme Raake" in the northern Dutch village of Eenrum is a clear winner. The Guinness Book of Records claims this as the smallest hotel in the world, but its levels of comfort and cosiness are truly "grand". Amazingly, it manages this feat in a space covering just a few square metres, with just one double room. The former grocer's shop was renovated by the hotel's founder and two artists in the Art-Deco style, creating a Grand Hotel that first opened in 1989.
However, if you want a miniature hotel to call your own, even just temporarily, then "Eh-häusl" in the Bavarian town of Amberg may be right up your street. Apart from its size, one of the peculiarities of this establishment is the lack of staff. In fact, once you collect your room key, the luxury hideaway including a reception room with a fireplace, a living room and a floor given over entirely to a jacuzzi, is yours and yours alone. But what about the name, "Eh-häusl"? Well, back in 1728, the town authorities demanded that any couple wishing to get married must be able to prove that they owned property. To comply with this demand, a cunning entrepreneur built over a 2.5 metre gap between two houses, building a wall at the front and back, and topping it off with a roof - the result was a house that did everything to satisfy the demand for evidence of property. If you wanted to get married, you simply bought the house, tied the knot, then sold the house again. Ever since, the popular name of the house has been "Eh-häusl, which in the local Bavarian dialect means "little marriage house". While its purpose is no longer to enable penniless couples to marry, the name has stuck.
The "Coldest Hotel in the World"
Was the first too wet, and the second too small? How about a really nice crisp night in the "Ice Hotel" in northern Sweden - probably the coldest hotel in the world? This short-lived construction, created completely out of the ice, opens its chilly door in November each year, remaining open until the strengthening Spring sun has melted every last room in May. Once the temperatures in northern Sweden slide back below zero with the onset of winter, the cold work of building this unique ice hotel starts again. Forget stone and concrete, the only material used in its construction is the frozen water from nearby Jukkasjärvi. 3,000 tons of snow and ice are used in the creation. Everything is frozen, the 45 double rooms and 15 suites, and even the chairs, tables and lobby. Yes, even the beds are crafted from ice! Despite cosy reindeer skins and thick sleeping bags, at -5°C only the warmest thoughts help ensure that you have not become part of the icy furniture by morning.
The "Highest Hotel in the World"
At a vertiginous height you will find the top-most rooms of the highest hotel in the world, the "Burj al Arab" in Dubai. The "Ryugyong Hotel" in the North Korean capital Pyongyang was intended to reach 330 meters in height, but the construction was never completed and has never been used. Now the "Burj al Arab" is about to be overshadowed by the "Rose Rotana Suites" in the already completed Rose Tower, also in Dubai. The tower is located on Sheikh Zayed Road and reaches an amazing 333 meters to the tip of its spire, thus becoming the world's tallest building that is used exclusively as a hotel. The hotel is opening this year.
The highest hotel rooms in the world, however, are located in the 55th to 88th floors of the 421 meter Jin Mao Tower in Shanghai, China. The 50 lower floors are used as office space. The top 38 floors are home to the 5-star "Grand Hyatt Hotel", with its 555 rooms. The hotel has an atrium that starts on the 53rd floor and reaches up to the 87th floor, which houses the hotel's largest suite, covering 285 square meters. Measuring 152 meters in height and 27 meters in diameter, this is the largest atrium in the world. The world's longest laundry chute sends dirty washing down to the basement from the 52nd floor. This all makes the tower the world's highest building containing hotel rooms. However, since it also contains office space, the distinction of being the world's largest hotel remains with the " Burj al Arab " in Dubai for the time being.
The "Most Expensive Hotel in the World"
The title "Most Expensive Hotel in the World" is claimed by two hotels that know no limits but that could simply not be more different. The first is the "Wynn Las Vegas" in the American gaming metropolis of the same name. The main attraction of this temple to enjoyment is not in the stay itself but in the casino, the entertainment and the many outlets for food and drink. The casino at the "Wynn" covers an impressive 10,000m square meters given over gambling. Nineteen restaurants are dotted around the hotel complex to make sure you do not go hungry. The hotel even has its own shopping mall, with shops from Chanel, Dior and Gaultier as well as Ferrari and Maserati dealerships, inviting you to dip into your pocket. An 18-hole golf course in the middle of the desert city is a must for golfers whilst the Wynn theatre can accommodate 2,000 guests. 2,700 luxury rooms provide breathtaking views of the city lights thanks to generous glass windows.
Authentic Arabian style awaits you at the "Emirates Palace" in the desert city of Abu Dhabi, with marble, gold and crystal as far as the eye can see in the hotel which opened in 2005. This palace of hotels graces the coast for a length of an incredible 1,000 meters. The luxury Kempinski hotel claims seven stars for itself ignoring the international standards that traditionally stop at five. You simply cannot miss the superlatives here, as at the Wynn, with gilded ceilings, 140 lifts and 150 staff employed exclusively to polish the 110,000 square meters of marble and over 1,000 chandeliers each night. Entertainment and luxury food and drink can be obtained from every one of the 20 restaurants and bars. The "Emirates Palace" also has the world's largest hotel suite. For an incredible 35,000 dollars a night, the 1,200 square meters of living space can be yours.
If one decides the title of "Most Expensive Hotel in the World" on the basis of what it cost to build, then the "Emirates Palace" wins - estimates put the cost of construction of the Arabian temple of luxury at three billion US dollars whilst the "Wynn Las Vegas" cost a "mere" 2.5 billion in contrast. However a comparison of the two hotels is unfair. Whilst the "Emirates Palace" is like a luxury dream from 1001 Arabian Nights, the "Wynn Las Vegas" is typically American with its brash entertainment and consumption.
Prize draw
To enter the current www.hotel.info prize draw to win a trip to the most expensive hotel in the world worth a total value of around €3,000, click on this link:
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