Top
10 Most Expensive
Hotels:
No 10. Hotel
Meurice
Belle
Etoile Suite
$7,300 per night.
The most expensive Parisian hotel room is the Belle Etoile
Suite at the Hotel Meurice, located on the Rue de Rivoli.
The penthouse suite is reached via private elevator, where
it opens onto a marble entry hall. The entire suite is decorated
in a Charles X style - heavy drapery, intricate wood paneling
with gilt edges, chandeliers and murals.
No 9. The Ciragan Palace Hotel
Kempinski
Sultan's Suite
$7,500
per night
The Ciragan Palace Hotel Kempinski in Istanbul, located along
the Bosporus, was originally the home of the last Ottoman
sultans, and different incarnations of the property have been
built (and torn down) since the 16th century. The building
was bought by the Kempinski hotel group in 1986 and underwent
a renovation in 1991.
Today, the hotel comprises two structures (the actual palace
and the new hotel), and the Sultan's Suite is the most expensive
room there.
No 8. Regent Beverly Wilshire
Penthouse Suite
$7,500
per night
The Regent Beverly Wilshire is the grande dame of L.A. hotels
and happens to be the same age as the Academy Awards. Located
on the 14th floor of the Beverly Wing, the 5,000-square-foot
Penthouse Suite features three bedrooms, a wraparound balcony,
a formal dining room, living room, kitchen and den, and is
decorated with contemporary furniture. The master bathroom
has floor-to-ceiling windows, two glass-enclosed showers,
remote control toilet/bidet with a heated seat
No 7. The Fairmont Hotel
Penthouse Suite
$10,000
per night
The 6,000-square-foot Penthouse Suite at the Fairmont Hotel
on San Francisco's Nob Hill takes up the entire eighth floor
of the hotel and has three bedrooms, a dining room that holds
50 people, an eat-in kitchen and a two-story, domed library
with a ceiling painted with the constellations.
There is also a billiards room covered floor-to-ceiling in
Persian tiles, and four fireplaces inlaid with lapis lazuli.
The bathroom fixtures are made of 24 karat gold, and a secret
passageway is concealed behind the bookshelves on the library's
second floor.
No 6. Hotel Cala di Volpe
Presidential
Suite
$13,879 per night
The Costa Smeralda ("Emerald Coast"), on the eastern
coast of Sardinia, became famous during the 1960s when the
Aga Khan bought it and convinced his jet-set friends to start
building villas and a yacht club on the beautiful but previously
undeveloped island. The coast also served as the backdrop
to the 1977 James Bond film The Spy Who Loved Me.
The split-level Presidential Suite has three bedrooms, three
bathrooms and two sitting rooms. The highlight is the private,
outdoor saltwater pool on the second floor. The style is rustic
but luxurious, with whitewashed walls, exposed beams, thick
down cushions and wooden accents. The bed frames are wrought
iron, and the tiles are hand-painted ceramic. The suite also
has its own gazebo and solarium, as well as a DVD library
and Bang & Olufsen stereos.
No 5. Westin Excelsior
Villa La Cupola
$14,950
per night
Rome's "Villa La Cupola" suite within the Westin
Excelsior has all things Roman and excessive - a cupola, a
Pompeii-style Jacuzzi pool, frescoes and stained glass windows.
Located on the fifth and sixth floor underneath the cupola
of the hotel (which was made famous by Fellini's movies),
the suite covers 6,099 square feet and has an additional 1,808
square feet of balconies and terraces. While it only has two
bedrooms, five more can be joined to it.
The stained glass windows in the living room detail allegories
of a mythological figure paired with a modern one, such as
Atlas and Television, Hypnosis and Neurosis, Hermes and Marketing,
and Hermaphrodite and Fashion. The downstairs also has a private
kitchen, and the dining room features an antique Murano glass
chandelier, a private wine cabinet and an antique mosaic-tile-covered
dining room.
What really makes this suite over the top is a private cinema
with Dolby surround sound. Such luxury makes even the private
elevator that leads up to the fitness area and Jacuzzi - complete
with mosaic floors, vaulted ceilings and frescoes - seem ordinary.
The painted horizons on the frescoes were designed to match
perfectly with the real Roman one.
No 4. The Plaza Hotel
Presidential Suite
$15,000
per night
The 7,802-square-foot suite covers nearly the entire 18th
floor of the Plaza, with views overlooking Central Park. The
walls are covered in silk, the reception area has a 10-foot-wide
stained glass window and the hand-painted piano depicts scenes
from the French countryside.
The suite has five bedrooms, five and a half bathrooms, two
living rooms, a dining room, powder room and sauna. There
are also three marble fireplaces, a terrace and a 2,000-bottle
wine cellar (guests are charged extra for indulging). The
Presidential Suite also comes with the use of a secretary/butler
and the Plaza's chefs are at your disposal.
No 3. The
Martinez Hotel
Presidential Suite
$18,500
per night
The Martinez Hotel in Cannes likes superlatives and bills
itself as having the biggest, most expensive and only terraced
penthouse suite on the Cote d'Azur. Perhaps some of this is
Gallic swagger, but the price of the suites certainly makes
them one of the most expensive in Europe. Both penthouse suites
are 8,000 square feet and are decorated in the hotel's signature
Art Deco style, with streamlined furniture, silk and teak
parquet floors.
While many of the hotel's rooms are painted in bright colors
(peach, lime green), the penthouse suites are decorated in
muted, understated tones (brown, cream and tan). Each suite
has two bedrooms, a Turkish bath, kitchen, personal sauna
and views of the Lerins Islands as well as the entire Bay
of Cannes. The wraparound terrace is 2,000 square feet and
can comfortably hold 100 people. It also has a Jacuzzi. Technophiles
will appreciate the Bose plasma screen televisions and telephones
and the DVD library. A private butler is on call 24 hours
a day, and other amenities include use of a limousine, open
bar and the option to join both suites into one grand apartment.
No 2. President Wilson Hotel
The Imperial Suite
$23,300
per night
At the sleek, modern President Wilson Hotel in Geneva, security
takes as much precedence as luxury. Faster than you can say
the hotel's staff reassures guests that the security in the
Imperial Suite is among the best in the world, ideal for celebrities
or traveling heads of states who visit the United Nations
headquarters next door at the Palais Wilson.
The Imperial Suite, which takes up the entire top floor of
the hotel, is reached via a private elevator and has four
bedrooms, all of which overlook Lake Geneva. The suite is
decorated in a contemporary style, with marble and hardwood
floors, and the bay windows overlook Lake Geneva and Mont
Blanc. Off of the master bedroom is a dressing room as well
as a study, and the suite has five bathrooms, all with mosaic
marble floor, and a Jacuzzi and steam bath in the main bath.
The living room has a billiards table, a library and a cocktail
lounge with a view of the water fountain, and can accommodate
40 people. The dining room seats 26 people around an oval
mahogany table. For the security-conscious or merely the paranoid,
the Imperial Suite is also equipped with bulletproof windows
and doors.
No 1. The Atlantis
Atlantis
Bridge Suite
$25,000 per night
The Atlantis Bridge Suite has the distinction of being the
most expensive hotel suite in the world - a whopping $25,000
a night. Found on Paradise Island, Bahamas. The Bridge Suite
is located on top of a bridge that connects the two Royal
Towers buildings, so it overlooks the entire resort and marina.
The ten-room suite is decorated in red, black and gold (lots
of gold) and comes with its own butler, bar lounge and entertainment
center as well as 12-foot ceilings. The master bedroom has
a sitting area, his-and-hers closets, and hand-painted
. The bathrooms have chaise lounges, marble baths, and dolphin
fixtures. For those who are picky about their personal space,
there are two separate master bathrooms. The kitchen also
has its own entrance so the butler or cook never bothers you.
So, do you feel like spending $25,000 for one night?
