The Dubai Mall

In the US, we think of shopping malls as places for teenagers to hang out and purchase things for more than they’d cost just about anywhere else, places to get our holiday shopping done and places to walk in comfort for exercise. Will the same be true of the most expensive shopping mall in the world? Only time will tell.

The Bawadi mall, part of the Bawadi project in Dubailand, Dubai, will be the world’s most expensive shopping mall—if it’s ever completed. The original plans called for the 4-million-square-foot mall to be finished in 2012 for $2.7 billion, although construction on the Bawadi project was, at the very least, slowed by the 2008 financial crisis.

If completed, the Bawadi mall will be more expensive than the US $1.3 billion, 9.58-million-square-foot New South China Mall in Dongguan, China, and larger than the 12.1-million-square-foot Dubai Mall, part of Dubai’s $20 billion Burj Khalifa complex.

While every medieval fortress is a treasure trove of history, some are such cultural icons that they are virtually priceless. England’s Tower of London and Windsor Castle are such landmarks, and merely suggesting a price tag for either of those would be unthinkable.

Not so is Bran Castle in Romania. Archduke Dominic von Habsburg, a New York architect and grandson of King Ferdinand I of Romania, put the castle up for sale in 2007. It is historically important as a the home of Romainian royalty, including Ferdinand’s wife, Queen Marie. It was seized by Romania’s communist regime in 1948 and only recently retroceded to Archduke Dominic.

You may know Bran Castle by a different name, after a more infamous occupant. It’s also called Castle Dracula.

Its association with Count Dracula is tenuous. The castle was briefly occupied in 1459 by Vlad III, the historical figure on whom Bram Stoker’s famous vampire was based.

While the Archduke’s original asking price was a mere $78 million, and even then he would only sell with the promise that the castle would be treated with due respect, the New York investment firm expected to sell it for over $135 million. That asking price would have made it the most expensive castle in the world.

The sale never happened, however, and the Archduke has instead turned Castle Bran into a museum dedicated to Queen Marie and the royal family.

Selling a Most Expensive home can take awhile and, especially in this day and age, may end up disappointing the seller. Dunnellen Hall, for instance, was originally listed at $125 million, but is now being offered for less than half that. With that in mind, we present these—the most expensive homes on the market.

Versailles (Windermere, Florida) – $100 million ($75 million as-is)

At 90,000 square feet, this magnificent work in progress has been dubbed the “largest single family home under one roof in America.” Featuring thirteen bedrooms and twenty-three bathrooms, no one living in or visiting this palatial estate will lack for privacy. It’s based on Louis XIV’s Versailles royal palace and is currently owned by Jacqueline and David Siegel of Westgate Resorts.

Eurasia Estate (Moscow, Russia) – $100 million

Located 15 miles from Moscow’s city center, Eurasia consists of an 11,700-square-foot mansion with a 91,000-square-foot recreation center. The recreation center features a pool, Turkish and Russian baths and a sauna to keep the water bill high. For visitors, there are two 4,000-square-foot guest houses on the property.

Tranquility (Lake Tahoe, Nevada) – $100 million

What could be more tranquil than watching movies in your nineteen-seat private theatre with the knowledge that you’re not paying taxes on your lavish estate? Located on a 210-acre stretch of land, Tranquility is being sold by Tommy Hilfiger co-founder Joel Horowitz. The mansion itself is 20,000-square-feet and features a 3,500-bottle wine cellar and an indoor swimming pool and atrium.

Fleur de Lys (Beverly Hills, California) – $125 million

This 45,000-square-foot home was modeled after the palace of King Louis XIV in Versailles. It was built over five years after Texas billionaire David Saperstein and former wife Suzanne secured five acres in the Holmby Hills section of Bel Air. It was put up for sale soon after Suzanne was awarded the estate in the couple’s divorce. The home features a fifty-seat screening room, nine-car garage and library of first-edition books.

Updown Court (Windlesham, Surrey) – $140 million

This courtly estate aims for a more sophisticated occupant with its ballrooms and grand entryways. Of course, the 103-room Updown Court also has all the basic amenities—a fifty-seat cinema, heated marble driveway, helipad and indoor spas, Jacuzzis and pools. If that isn’t enough for you, there are also 58 acres of gardens and woodlands.

Mansion on Avenue Foch (Paris, France) – $140 million

This 28,000-square-foot mansion was built in 1912 for the Duchesse de Montmorency and purchased upon her death fifteen years later by mining tycoon Antenor Patino. The mansion’s decor includes historically important elements such as 18th century wood paneling, marble fireplaces and an impressive ceiling painted by the famed French Post-Impressionist, Henri Rousseau. The mansion also boasts twelve bedrooms and bathrooms, crystal chandeliers, Corinthian columns, gilded moldings and marble floors.

The Manor (Los Angeles, California) – $150 million

This incredible mansion, built in 1988 for television producer Aaron Spelling, is the largest home in Los Angeles County. Located on the former site of Bing Crosby’s manor, which Spelling had demolished, the 56,500 square foot manor in Holmby Hills was the center of some controversy based on its shameless extravagance. The widowed Candy Spelling has now put the enormous estate on the market. The Manor has 123 rooms, including three gift-wrapping rooms, a gym, four two-car garages, a bowling alley, a pool and a screening room.

Villa Leopolda, France – $500 million

Originally built for the mistress of King Leopold of Belgium, this mansion overlooking the French Riviera has been said to be owned by several prominent people over the years, including Microsoft’s Bill Gates and Fiat Group’s Gianni Agnelli. Sketchy reports of a “mysterious Russian billionaire” said that he had purchased the villa it from the widow of a Lebanese banker who was killed in an arsonist’s fire in 2003. Now that billionaire has backed out of the deal—and lost his $50 million down payment.

The most important element of a vacation, aside from the destination, is the hotel where you spend your downtime. If you’re going to take a true luxury vacation, of course, it won’t do to have anything less than one of the most expensive hotel suites in the world.

Grand Resort Lagonissi in Athens, Greece – The Royal Villa
$32,000/night

Another three-bedroom suite, the Royal Villa has two pools—an indoor pool and a heated outdoor pool. The nearby marina and beach cement the fact that this suite is a swimmer’s paradise. Visitors will also have access to a private chef to accompany the fully equipped kitchen, a butler and even a pianist.

Hotel Cala di Volpe in Costa Smeralda, Italy – Presidential Suite
$34,000/night

Costa Smeralda—the “Emerald Coast”—in northern Sardinia, is home to many draws for the obscenely wealthy, not the least of which is this fabulous suite. The duplex suite has three bedrooms and as many bathrooms, an outdoor saltwater pool and a private gazebo and solarium.

Four Seasons Hotel in New York, USA – Ty Warner Penthouse suite
$35,000/night

With a carpet that’s so expensive that anyone who walks across it must wear special booties provided by the hotel, ample views of the nation’s largest city, a 700 square foot library and even a waterfall in its Zen room, this suite—which covers the hotel’s entire 52nd floor—is truly a luxury location. It’s named after the founder of Ty Inc., manufacturer of the popular Beanie Babies stuffed toys.

The Hotel Martinez in Cannes, France – Penthouse Suite
$35,000/night

This luxurious suite is located on the seventh floor of the Hotel Martinez, already a ritzy location with its Michelin-starred restaurant and prime location on the Croisette in Cannes. The suite itself consists of four bedrooms and an impressive terrace—complete with Jacuzzi—which commands an equally impressive view of the Mediterranean Sea.

Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas, Nevada – Hugh Hefner Sky Villa
$40,000/night

The City of Sin’s most expensive suite is appropriately named after the Playboy Mansion’s famed resident, and it shows in the 250-person capacity and the extravagant amenities. This suite houses a poker table, wet bar, full size gym with sauna and spa, and a balcony with a spectacular view of the Vegas strip as well as an equally spectacular infinity edge jacuzzi. All of this is centered around an 8-foot rotating round bed.

Hotel President Wilson in Geneva, Switzerland – Royal Penthouse suite
$65,000/night

If you’d prefer a secure suite to an extravagant one, look no further than Switzerland. The Royal Penthouse suite, renamed and repriced from the $35,000 Imperial Suite, boasts a private elevator, bulletproof windows, armored doors, surveillance cameras and even bedside panic buttons. Of course, it’s not all about security; the suite also features a number of period pieces and stunning views of Mont Blanc and Lake Geneva.

Taj Boston $6 million Hotel Suite in Boston, USA
$6 million/two nights

Less than 5 miles from Logan Airport and overlooking Boston’s majestic Public Gardens, Taj Boston will be king of the crop for a very limited time. On the weekend of October 15-17, 2010, the hotel’s presidential suite became the most expensive hotel suite in the world to comemmorate the new theatre complex at the Boston Conservatory.

Along with two nights in the 1,540 square foot presidential suite, the $6 million price tag included transportation to Boston on a private jet, limo service, a Jaguar XJ, an engraved Chistofle sterling silver platter, etched Tiffany Champagne flutes and a magnum of Cristal Rose Champagne. The guest also received two lifetime services–valet parking at the hotel and tickets to performances at the Boston Conservatory.

Perhaps the most remarkable feature of this expensive package is that the guest’s name will be engraved on the Conservatory’s new theatre.

Hardwood floors are not only affordable, they’re also easier to maintain and promote healthier indoor air than other flooring materials. If affordability isn’t an issue, though, maybe you should consider the most expensive wood flooring in the world.

Macassar ebony, also known as Calamander wood, comes from India, Sri Lanka, Indonesia and South East Asia. While it isn’t true ebony, it is procured from a related species. This visually striking wood is dark brown to black in appearance with orange-gold streaks. It’s a very dense wood, so no filler is necessary when finishing the wood, and it is less likely to split than other woods.

Flooring your home with this expensive wood will set you back around $150 per square foot. Compare that to the $8-$10 per square foot price of typical hardwood flooring!

If you’re remodeling your mansion and want your floor to have all the elegance of a royal palace, it would be hard to think of a tile more suitable than Pietra Firma’s LuxTouch, the most expensive tile in the world.

Pietra Firma takes floor tiling to new heights with this black marble creation. Each tile is inlaid with 95 brilliant cut diamonds in a sumptuous flower petal pattern surrounding a rich, black agate circle. Each corner is inlaid with abalone shell and mother of pearl, creating a stunning overall effect. Pietra Firma recommends walking barefoot on these luxurious tiles, as the diamonds are slightly raised for maximum tactile enjoyment.

The LuxTouch tiles are a limited creation and will only be used in five projects in the world. If diamonds aren’t your thing, Pietra Firma offers a variety of other precious stones to cater to your tastes—as they should, considering the price of the tiles. Every ten square feet of LuxTouch tiles costs $1 million.

Tokyo, Japan

What is the most expensive city in the world? Before you can even begin to answer that, you must first decide what “most expensive city” actually means. Several companies have done just that over the last few years and, due to the different methodologies used, compiled lists with surprisingly different results. We’ve compiled our own list of some of these surveys and the cities they’ve concluded are the most expensive cities in the world.

Mercer Cost of Living Survey, 2010
Highest-ranking city: Luanda, Angola

Mercer’s survey compares the costs of over 200 items in each of 214 cities. The survey covers the cost of housing, food, transportation and other essentials to help employers determine compensation for expatriate employees. This is the first of Mercer’s surveys to include African cities Luanda, Angola; Ndjamena, Chad and Libreville, Gabon. The high placement of these cities in the survey—Ndjamena placed third and Libreville placed seventh—can be explained by the fact that these areas, while rich in natural resources, are generally poor and expatriate employees must rely on newly built infrastructures. Other high-ranking cities on Mercer’s survey include Tokyo, Japan in second place; Moscow, Russia in fourth place and Geneva, Switzerland in fifth place.

Economist Intelligence Unit Cost of Living Survey, 2009
Highest-ranking city: Tokyo, Japan

Unlike Mercer’s, EIU’s survey disregards the cost of housing as it is usually provided by expatriate workers’ employers separately from their wages. The result is a list that may be more useful to the expatriate employees than to their employers. This list places Oslo, Norway in second place; New York City in third; London, England in fourth and Sydney, Australia in fifth. Luanda is notably absent from the top tier.

ECA International Cost of Living Survey, 2010
Highest-ranking city: Tokyo, Japan

ECA’s survey also disregards the cost of housing, as well as utilities, vehicles and schooling. In their survey, Oslo, Norway places second; Luanda, Angola places third; Nagoya, Japan places fourth and Yokohama, Japan places fifth.

UBS Prices and Earnings 2009
Highest-ranking city: Oslo, Norway

This report, published every three years by Swiss financial services firm UBS, is perhaps the most interesting report for those who aren’t relocating for work. By tracking the prices of a basket of goods and comparing them to wages, UBS calculates the purchasing power of citizens in 73 major cities around the world.

The basket consists of 122 goods and services, as well as apartment rent, based on consumer habits in western Europe. The wages are adjusted by working hours, social insurance contributions, taxes and other payroll deductions.

Their findings, excluding rent, place Oslo in the top position with Zurich and Geneva, Switzerland, occupying second and third place. Rent included, New York City is the most expensive in the world, followed by Oslo and Geneva. Mumbai, India, was the least expensive city in both cases.

In the US, we usually think of apartments as rental properties. The most expensive apartments, like condominiums, are purchased outright.

One Hyde Park penthouse – $220 million

The four penthouse apartments atop London’s most luxurious address sold well before its construction finished. The buildings, developed by Candy & Candy and funded by Qatar’s foreign minister, include eighty apartments designed by architect Richard Rogers. It features communal spas, squash courts, a private wine-tasting facility and a top notch security force staffed by former members of the British SAS. The building cost £1.5 billion (around $3 billion USD in 2008) to develop.

The most expensive of them, a six-bedroom penthouse, sold for £140 million (about $220 million) in 2010. The two-storey apartment has security features of its own, including bulletproof glass and a panic room.

La Belle Epoque penthouse – $308 million

This Monacan apartment is perhaps best known as the apartment where Lebanese banker Edmond Safra’s life was claimed in an act of arson perpetrated by his nurse. Despite its grisly past, the penthouse at Le Belle Epoque (literally “The Beautiful Era”) has become not only the world’s most expensive apartment but also the world’s most expensive private residence. Its noteworthy amenities include a game room with billiards tables and arcade games, a Jacuzzi and spa, cinema screens hidden in the walls, a two-storey library and a media room with chairs that convert into beds. Its security features include a panic room with reinforced glass and surveillance cameras.

Unless you’re going to school in your home town (and who wants to do that?), room and board will likely be a large portion of your college expenses. That’s not likely to change any time soon, either, as Forbes reports the price of freshman room and board has increased by 11% over the last three years. Some, of course, are more expensive than others. If you go to one of these top universities, expect to pay for the most expensive college dorm rooms in America.

Pomona College – $12,220

Freshmen at this private liberal arts college in Claremont, CA all live on its South Campus, where only one of the four residence halls on “Freshman Row” is air conditioned. Despite that, Pomona College ranked #13 on Princeton Review’s “Dorms Like Palaces” index.

Georgetown University – $12,750

This Jesuit university in Washington, DC is the oldest Catholic university in the US. Students at Georgetown University may choose between traditional dormitories and “villages” that are more like apartment complexes. Freshman students may lodge in Darnall Hall, Harbin Hall or New South Hall, where University mascot Jack the Bulldog resides with Father Christopher Steck. Freshmen may also opt for Village C’s West wing.

Sarah Lawrence College – $13,104

This former women’s college, known for its politically active students, offers a wide variety of housing options. In addition to the school’s four original dorms, there are three newer dorms designed by architect Phillip Johnson as well as a number of renovated private dwellings, apartment buildings, manor houses and even former maid’s quarters.

You might think gardens would escape the gold and diamond trend endemic to “most expensive” objects. You’d be wrong. While supremely expensive and completely organic gardens do exist, so too do gardens bejeweled for millions of dollars (or, in this case, euros).

Leonardslee Garden – $7.62 million

Leonardslee Garden in West Sussex is a lush, 225-acre property filled with beautiful flower gardens, wallabies, lakes, waterfalls and one-of-a-kind trees. The gardens are filled with rhododendrons, camellias, magnolias and azaleas and the forty-strong mob of wallabies, many of them albinos, keeps the gardens from being overgrown with weeds.

The garden has been owned by the Loder family since Sir Edmund Loder bought the estate in 1889 and it has been open to the public for 101 years. That all changed in 2010, however, when Robin Loder, representing the fifth generation of Loders to tend Leonardslee, sold the gardens for a grand sum of £5 million—US $7.62 million—to an anonymous buyer who wished to discontinue public access to the gardens.

This isn’t the first part of the original estate to be sold, as the Loders sold the Italianate manor in the 1980s. It’s currently for sale at £2.75 million—US $4.2 million—and it’s been speculated that the same billionaire has set his sights on that property as well.

Ace of Diamonds – over $31 million

The Chelsea Flower Show, held annually by Britain’s Royal Horticultural Society, is the world’s premiere horticultural event. Over the course of five days in May, some of the most fantastic floral and vegetable gardens, as well as tree exhibits, are on display on the Royal Hospital Chelsea grounds. The 2010 show was no exception and included the most expensive garden in the world.

Designed by renowned landscape gardener David Domoney, the Ace of Diamonds plot is the ultimate fusion of plant life and precious gems. The garden boasts both plants named after jewelry and jewelry inspired by plants, including such plants as ‘Juniperus Emerald Spreader’ and ‘Pulmonaria Opal’ alongside jewelry such as a daisy shaped ring set with a rare $5 million blue diamond.

It’s great to be able to provide your pooch with the trappings of luxury, but what happens when you leave home for that 12-day cruise from Barcelona to Venice? Well, if you happen to live in the San Francisco Bay Area, you can lodge your canine companion at the most expensive boarding kennel in the US.

Owners who choose to board their dogs at the Pooch Hotel in Sunnyvale, Calif., have four different options that run from $50/night to $100/night. Both the Presidential (9’ by 9’ for $75/night) and Palace Suites (12’ by 10’ and 20’ by 15’ for $100/night) are equipped with flat panel televisions, webcams and luxury bedding. The Palace Suites are located in their own wing, in case your pampered pup is shy or elderly, and have the added luxury of raised bedding.

The Pooch Hotel also offers swim, treadmill and underwater treadmill sessions, as well as six week classes, holistic diet consultations and aromatherapy baths at the “Spaw.”

The Hamptons—that easternmost stretch of Long Island catering to the financial elite—have just seen a record set, as a recent rental is the most expensive in the area’s history. Is this the most expensive rental home in the US?

If not, it’s pretty close.

Sandcastle, an 11.5-acre estate with a 31,000 square foot main house, has been rented to an anonymous family for two weeks. Aside from the main house’s nine bedrooms and 11.5 bathrooms, Sandcastle also holds a guest house, pool, tennis courts, bowling alley, movie theater and even a half pipe.

The couple has paid $500,000 for their two week stay—or over $35,000 per day. The estate that may be America’s most expensive rental home, owned by New York City’s Corcoran Group, is also for sale at $49.5 million.

Looking for an expensive place to moor your super yacht? Well, look no further than the Italian Peninsula, home of the most expensive marinas in the world.

Three Italian marinas—Capri, Porto Cervo and Portofino—topped Wealth Bulletin’s list of the world’s most expensive marinas. While the prices tend to fluctuate, especially during these times of economic upheaval when a third of the world’s super yachts are for sale, these three marinas have maintained the highest average prices to moor boats over 24 meters (or 78 feet).

Capri, Italy – €2,900 (US $3,910) per night

This expensive marina peaks during the Rolex Capri Sailing week in May and can berth up to ten super yachts. Capri has been a luxury destination since the time of the Roman Republic.

Porto Cervo, Italy – €2,500 (US $3,371) per night

This northern Sardinian marina can berth up to sixty super yachts, peaking in June and September for the Deluxe Fair and Maxi Yacht Rolex Cup regatta, respectively. It was founded by the Aga Khan in the 1960s and the village was designed by renowned architect Luigi Vietti

Portofino, Liguria, Italy – €2,350 (US $3,169) per night

This small fishing village is home to yet another Rolex event—the Portofino Rolex Trophy in May. It can berth only six super yachts at a time and space must be booked well in advance.

Whether or not the Boston Red Sox are the most successful team of the decade may be questionable, but one thing is for sure—they’re certainly the most expensive team to see at home.

A recent Team Marketing Report has surveyed the Fan Cost Index of Major League Baseball teams and, after being overtaken in 2009 for the first year since 2001, Fenway Park is once again at the top of the chart.

The Fan Cost Index is the total price for a typical family of four to see a game. The FCI includes the price of two children’s tickets, two adult tickets, four small soft drinks, four hot dogs, two small drinks, two programs and parking. Fenway Park’s FCI was $334.78, making it the most expensive park to see a game.

The Cubs’ Wrigley Field came in at a close second with $329.74, while Yankee Stadium placed third at $316.32.

Fans of the Red Sox aren’t paying for the most expensive tickets, however, as the average price of a ticket at Wrigley Field $52.56, a scant few cents more than Fenway Park’s average ticket price of $52.32.

Do you think your rent is too much? Well, you might think again after seeing rental prices in the most expensive rental markets in the United States. Compiled by the Center for Housing Policy, an affiliate of the National Housing Conference, the report ranks 210 metropolitan areas in the US by the fair market rent of a two bedroom apartment.

Topping the list was San Francisco, California, where the monthly fair market rent for a two-bedroom apartment is $1,760. In fact, three of the four highest-ranked areas were in California—Santa Cruz and Santa Ana ranked third and fourth, respectively.

Second place went to Honolulu, the Hawaiian capital, where a two-bedroom apartment goes for around $1,704. New York City’s place on the list was perhaps most surprising, as it ranked a low thirteenth place at $1,359.

The top ten most expensive rental markets in the US are listed below.

For over half a decade, Business.com reigned as the world’s most expensive domain name after its 1999 sale for $7.5 million. That was shortly after the site was founded by former Walt Disney Internet Group chairman Jake Winebaum and Earthlink founder Sky Dayton. The domain retained its record until 2006, when Match.com founder Gary Kremen decided to get out of the adult entertainment industry and sold Sex.com for $14 million (or $12 million, depending on who you ask) in 2006.

While the current market for internet domains is nowhere as solid as it was during the dot-com peak, the market remains strong and is experiencing solid growth. Each year tens of millions of dollars are exchanged during the resale of domains.

The record for most expensive domain name ever sold changed hands again in late 2009, when internet marketing firm QuinStreet purchased Insure.com for $16 million. Other top dollar domain sales of 2009 include Toys.com, purchased by Toys ‘R Us for $5.1 million in March of 2009, and Candy.com, sold for $3 million in June of 2009.

Enough with the preamble, though—check out the world’s top ten most expensive domain names:

1. Insure.com, sold to QuinStreet for $16 million in 2009.
2. Sex.com, sold for $12-$14 million in 2006.
3. Fund.com, sold for $9.99 million in 2008.
4. Porn.com, sold for $9.5 million in 2007.
5. Business.com, sold for $7.5 million in 1999.
6. Diamond.com, sold to Ice.com for $7.5 million in 2006.
7. Beer.com, sold for $7 million in 2004.
8. Israel.com, sold for $5.88 million in 2004.
9. Casino.com, sold for $5.5 million in 2003.
10. Toys.com, sold to Toys ‘R Us for $5.1 million in 2009.

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Luxury gadgets, clothing and food are all well and good, but let’s face it—history is written by the land barons. Real estate put the feud in feudalism, made legends of early explorers and put Donald Trump on primetime television. So where is the most valuable land in the world?

The world’s most expensive real estate market, according to a recent survey by the Global Property Guide, is Monte Carlo. Named “Mount Charles” after Prince Charles III of Monaco, Monte Carlo is a northern district in the city-state of Monaco and is home to the Opéra de Monte-Carlo, the renowned Hôtel de Paris and the greater portion of the Curcuit de Monaco, where Formula One drivers race in the Monaco Grand Prix.

Real estate in this land of luxury cost an average of $47,578 per square meter, according to the Global Property Guide’s 2009 report.

Monte Carlo was followed by Moscow, Russia at less than half that price—$20,853 per square meter—and London, England at $20,756 per square meter. New York City placed 6th on the list at $14,898 per square meter.

Global Property Guide’s full top ten list is as follows:

1. Monte Carlo, Monaco – $47,578
2. Moscow, Russia – $20,853
3. London, England – $20,756
4. Tokyo, Japan – $17,998
5. Hong Kong – $16,125
6. New York, USA – $14,898
7. Paris, France – $12,122
8. Singapore – $9,701
9. Rome, Italy – $9,166
10. Mumbai, India – $9,163

Things have been a little quiet on the Dubai front lately, but that doesn’t mean they’ve given up on expensive creations. The recently completed Dubai Fountain, for instance, is the most expensive fountain in the world.

The construction of the fountain by WET Design, the same company that designed the only slightly less impressive Fountains of Bellagio in Las Vegas, was announced in June, 2008, and the announcement was followed by a contest to name the fountain. The fifteen entrants who suggested “Dubai Fountain” split a prize of 100,000 dirham (US $27,226).

The Fountain itself is set in Burj Dubai Lake in the Downtown Burj Dubai development project which also includes the supertall skyscraper Burj Dubai and the Dubai Mall. Dubai Fountain is over 900 feet long and can spray jets up to 500 feet high. The fountain can spray as much as 22,000 gallons of water in the air at any given time, which can be visually enhanced by 6,600 WET superlights and 25 color projectors. The fountain can be set to music, including the Swahili song Baba Yetu from the popular video game Civilization IV and top Arab dance song Shik Shak Shok.

The Dubai Fountain cost $217 million to build.

Russian billionaire Telman Ismailov opened a hotel this month that is being widely proclaimed as the most expensive hotel in Europe. As it’s situated along the Mediterranean Sea in transcontinental state of Turkey, there seems to be some confusion surrounding the hotel’s continental status.

That didn’t stop a gaggle of A-list celebrities—including Sharon Stone, Mariah Carey and Richard Gere—from attending Mardan Palace in Antalya’s grand opening. The £1billion-plus (over US $1.6 billion) hotel was inaugurated with a bang as Tom Jones opened for Carey, Paris Hilton made an obligatory appearance and one prominent actress stumbled over the name of neighboring country Azerbaijan.

Housed in this veritable temple of decadence, you’ll find a spa with real snow in one of its rooms, gold-plated mirrors on the floors of the bathrooms, 23,000 square meters of Italian marble, remote controlled toilets and the centerpiece—a pool and sunken aquarium that must be crossed by gondola.

As to the question of geography, the coastal province of Antalya is actually located on the Asian side of the Turkish Straits, the conventional border between Europe and Asia.

Suites at this most luxurious hotel can cost over $18,000 per night—certainly enough to keep the riff-raff out.

BusinessWeek has put together a list of fifty of “The Most Expensive Suburbs to Live in Now” for 2009. The list features the most expensive suburb in each state rated by median home price, median property tax and cost of living, each compared to the state average. Of course, “compared to the state average” doesn’t fly with the luxe standard of living that you’re used to reading about here, so we’ve picked out the ten suburbs with the most expensive median home prices.

Note that these aren’t necessarily the top ten most expensive suburbs in the US; only one suburb is listed in any given state.

Wellesley, Massachusetts – $899,000

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Located about half an hour west of Boston, the old-money town of Wellesley is the home of Babson College and, of course, Wellesley College. Wellesley High School also claimed 70th best public high school in the US in 2007.

Highland Park, Texas – $937,500

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Five miles north of Texas, Highland Park is the home of the Dallas Country Club and is the 41st wealthiest city in the US—19th if you only count cities with populations of 1,000 or more.

Millburn, New Jersey – $960,000

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Despite the bad rap that Jersey usually gets, this opulent suburb of NYC is only considered the 53rd best place to live in the state by New Jersey Magazine. It’s known for The Mall at Short Hills, a high-end mall across from the town’s Hilton Hotel, and its proximity to the South Mountain Reservation.

Great Falls, Virginia – $1,028,000

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North of Washington, DC, Great Falls is the home of the 800-acre Great Falls Park which overlooks the Great Falls of the Potomac. I think I’m beginning to see a pattern here.

Winnetka, Illinois – $1,060,000

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This Chicago suburb is located on the shores of Lake Michigan. It’s notable as the home of both the Hadley School for the Blind, a long distance learning center for the vision impaired, and the family from those dreadful Home Alone movies.

Darien, Connecticut – $1,145,000

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Home of one of the top ten libraries in the US, Darien is just short of an hour away from New York City. CNN rated it one of the top ten best places to live in America in 2005.

Scarsdale, New York – $1,230,000

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Speaking of New York, this suburb has been home to Yoko Ono, wife of John Lennon, West Wing writer and creator Aaron Sorkin and gangster/Las Vegas resort developer Bugsy Siegal.

Paradise Valley, Arizona – $1,650,000

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Paradise Valley, a suburb of Phoenix, is famous for being the namesake, if not the home, of several organizations, including Paradise Valley Community College, Paradise Valley Mall and Paradise Valley Golf Course.

Travilah, Maryland – $1,295,000

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Travilah is an unincorporated area Northwest of Washington, DC. Surprisingly, its claim to fame is its really expensive mansions. Go figure.

Atherton, California – $3,800,000

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I’m sure you’re all shocked that the most expensive suburb is in California. This wealthy community’s notable residents include Google Chairman and CEO Eric Schmidt, former EBay CEO Meg Whitman and retired football player Jerry Rice.

What could be more useful than a USB stick made of gold?

Actually, don’t answer that.

White Lake’s golden USB flash drive is, at least, sure to make an impression. Custom made with either fourteen- or eighteen-karat gold and maybe even some diamonds thrown into the mix, the most expensive USB drive is guaranteed to suit your individual personality—and by “personality” I mean “the gaping hole in your wallet.”

You can own this expensive flash drive for around $2,800 without diamonds or $3,500 with them. In fact, White Lake is so sure that you’ll want this revolutionary device that they don’t even bother to mention its storage capacity.

Luckily, White Lake’s offering has been trumped by a newer and more original flash drive—the Mnemosyne. This 16GB flash drive defies the standard USB stick format, instead taking the form of a puzzle cube. The drive was hand-crafted from solid aluminum and buffed to a mirror finish by the fine people at Italian/Japanese design firm Toshi Satoji Design. The 3” cube is aptly named after the Greek titan and personification of memory.

The world’s most expensive USB flash drive can be purchased from Japanese-language seller Solid Alliance for the hefty price of 1 million yen (US $10,685).

The Emirates Palace hotel in Abu Dhabi may or may not be a profitable enterprise, but it’s certainly an impressive one. Costing over three billion dollars to build, the Emirates Palace is the most expensive hotel ever built. The hotel is, reportedly, intended to raise Abu Dhabi’s profile among international travelers.

And what a profile it has! This enormous hotel is lined with more gold than the cache at Fort Knox. The remainder of this expensive hotel’s façade is made of imported marble. In fact, the only part of the hotel we can safely assume isn’t made of one precious material or another is its mile-long private beach.

The hotel also boasts a nearly 200 foot high atrium, a highly advanced conference center and its own waterfall. The least expensive rooms in the world’s most expensive hotel are the Palace suites, which are each equipped with three bedrooms, a dining room and living room and go for over $700 a night.

In point of fact, the government of Abu Dhabi doesn’t refer to Emirates Palace as a hotel at all. To them, it’s a national landmark. Its name says all you need to know. In every sense of the word, it’s a palace.

The true measure of an expensive home isn’t how much it cost to build or how much you’re selling it for. After all, who cares how expensive a home is if no one is buying? All of the following homes have passed the test of the real estate market with flying colors. They truly are the most expensive homes in the world.

Donald Trump’s Palm Beach mansion – $100 million

The Donald takes pride in having sold this beautiful 68,000-square-foot mansion at a time when the real estate market is doing poorly. Trump purchased the mansion—and the seven acres of beachfront it sits on—in 2004 for less than half of what he sold it for.

Lakshmi Mittal’s Kensington Palace Gardens mansion – $103 million

Steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal was widely reported to have purchased this property on one of London’s most exclusive streets for £70 million ($126 million at the time). As it happened, the Indian tychoon paid only £57,145,967 for the mansion—still enough to put the mansion on the list of the most expensive houses ever sold.

Victorian Villa, West London – $159 million

Purchased in February of 2008 by a Ukrainian businesswoman, this five-story Victorian villa was used as a girls’ school until it was purchased by developers in 2006. The luxurious residential dwelling has over ten bedrooms and an underground swimming pool. It also includes a gym, a sauna, a theatre and a panic room to be used in case of emergency. It was sold for £80 million (almost $159 million US), displacing the Kensington Palace Gardens home of Lakshmi Mittal as the most expensive house ever sold. With Mikhail Prokhorov supposedly reneging on a deal to purchase La Leopolda, below, it has retained that title.

La Leopolda, France – $750 million

Originally built for the mistress of King Leopold of Belgium, this mansion overlooking the French Riviera has been said to be owned by several prominent people over the years, including Microsoft’s Bill Gates and Fiat Group’s Gianni Agnelli. Sketchy reports of a “mysterious Russian billionaire” said that he had purchased the villa it from the widow of a Lebanese banker who was killed in an arsonist’s fire in 2003. Now it seems that the billionaire intends on backing out of the deal, possibly due to the financial crisis.

Being filthy rich probably isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. Imagine how much trouble it is planning which beach to lounge at, which ultra-luxury vehicle you’re going to drive that day and any other ways you may need to display your wealth that day, lest those around you forget their place.

Résidence Supérieur – $280,000 annually

Consultant-turned-“Lifestyle Designer” Richard Nilsson’s Résidence Supérieur Black Card membership allows its holder to access to a host of services—including private jets, butlers, fleets of luxury cars, Michelin-class chefs and more—based in the Résidence Supérieur resorts. Each of their properties are owned or designed by Résidence Supérieur to ensure that members get only the best of the best.

Villa Oxygene, the original Résidence Supérieur property in Super Cannes, was designed by one of France’s most distinguished architects and includes four luxury bedrooms, a garden house and, of course, a decently large swimming pool. Other Résidence Supérieur properties include Necker Island—one of the British Virgin Islands—and The Lodge in the Verbier ski resort in the Swiss Alps.

Best of all, cardholders need only give six hours notice to access any of these properties. It may be one of the world’s most expensive club memberships but, hey, can you really put a price on “Extreme Luxury?”

Richman’s International Millionaire’s Club Charter Corporate Platinum Membership – around $507,000 per year

The Hong Kong-based RS Management Limited has stepped up to the plate with the appropriately named Richman’s IMC. While Richman’s IMC offers an Individual Silver membership for a mere $250,000, its Charter Corporate Platinum Membership is priced at $15.2 million for 30 years. Membership in this ultra-exclusive club affords access to a host of luxury services—from Richman’s mega yachts and yachthotels to VIP membership at Richman’s partner country clubs, golf clubs, gentlemen’s clubs, resort hotels, etc. Members can even own and race horses at the Royal Nanjing Jockey Club in Nanjing, China.

Members also have the peace of mind that comes with a confidential concierge and problem resolution service, personal bodyguards, 24-hour international emergency medical service and a $1 million credit line.

Oh, and they also have access to “personal companions.”

(via PR-Inside)

We all know that some dog owners are a bit too attached to attached to their canine companions—bringing them to family gatherings, restaurants or even that unexpected visit to your place. So what happens when a person like that also happens to be a surgeon who can afford to drop nearly $400,000 on a whim? You get something that may just be the world’s most expensive kennel.

Designed by architect Andy Ramus, the lavish doghouse will be attached to the owners’ exclusive Gloucestershire estate. At about a quarter of the home’s size, the kennel will be spacious enough to accommodate more than just the pair of Great Danes who are destined to live there. Unfortunately for them, a retinal scan will prevent them from having friends over. It’s sad to think that the dogs will only have each other as company when they sleep on their sheepskin-lined, temperature controlled beds, relax in their 18-inch spa, listen to their $230,000 sound system, retrieve food and cold, filtered water from self-cleaning bowls filled by automatics dispensers or vegetate in front of their 52-inch plasma television.

It’s true what they say—it’s lonely at the top.

So how much is this puppy palace going to cost its owners? The luxury kennel is being built for £250,000—that’s over $384,000!

If you think “most expensive trailer park” sounds laughable at best, then you need to check out these luxury trail—uhm, mobile home parks in Malibu. Located in the same areas as the multi-million dollar homes of celebrities, these two parks both include homes that sell for over $1 million.

The Paradise Cove mobile home park started as an RV camp, but was expanded to the current 271-unit park in the early 70s. The park includes a guard house, a small clubhouse, an RV storage area, a playground for children and, of course, both tennis and basketball courts. Paradise Cove is also home of the Paradise Cove Beach Café, a restaurant that boasts its own beach and cove.

Paradise Cove pier

The Point Dume Club, named for the bluff on which it resides, is a guarded and gated community with 297 units, a pool and both tennis and basketball courts. It was built in 1970, with streets carefully laid out to give residents some of the best views in California.

A mobile home in Paradise Cove can be purchased for up to almost $1.4 million while one in Point Dume was reportedly sold for $2.2 million. Luckily for the buyers, owners of mobile homes in the world’s most expensive trailer parks don’t pay property taxes.

When future archaeologists study the remains of the 21st century, our stadiums may be some of the most some of the most visited historical sites. Like the Colosseum of Rome, these structures aren’t just places of human struggles for the entertainment of the masses; they’re also works of art. Currently, London’s Wembley Stadium is the most expensive stadium in the world.

Completed in March 2007, the most expensive stadium was built on the site of the original Wembley stadium, which was also known as the “Home of Football.” Construction on the stadium began in 2003.

It was built by Multiplex from designs by HOK Sport and Foster and Partners. It seats 90,000 people, making it the structure with the third highest capacity in London.
Of course, the most remarkable feature of the new Wembley Stadium is the Wembley Arch, which spans 1040 feet. That arch, in fact, is the longest single span roof structure in the world.

Funded by a number of organizations—Sport England, Wembley National Stadium Limited, The Football Association, The Department for Culture Media and Sport and The London Development Agency—the world’s most expensive stadium cost over $1.5 billion to build. Afterwards, it was handed over to The Football Association and has hosted not only football but also musicians like George Michael, Madonna, Metallica, Muse and the Foo Fighters.

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Despite everything you’ve heard about the housing market, the residents of these swanky streets aren’t sweating it. That’s because they live on the most expensive residential streets in the world. A recent survey by Wealth-Bulletin places the following five streets at the top of the list.

5. Avenue Montaigne, Paris – $5,046 per square foot.

Site of the French capital’s most exclusive shops, Avenue Montaigne is one third of the “Golden Triangle,” along with Avenue Champs-Elysees and Avenue Georges V (Paris’ former most expensive street).

4. Kensington Palace Gardens, London – $7,196 per square foot.

Parallel to the royal family’s Kensington Palace, this street is capped at either end by an embassy—one Russian and one Israeli—which is perfect for any security conscious billionaire. Lakshmi Mittal, a steel magnate, is apparently one such billionaire. He owns two houses in Kensington Palace Gardens, one of them being the most expensive house ever sold when he purchased it at £57 million (US $111 million) in 2004.

3. Fifth Avenue, New York City – $7,500 per square foot.

Fifth Avenue in 1918

The third most expensive street in the world runs from Washington Square to Harlem and divides Manhattan’s East/West streets. It is representative of New York’s upper crust, having been rated as the most expensive shopping street in the world. In 2005, press baron Rupert Murdoch purchased one of the Plaza Apartments attached to Plaza Hotel for $44 million.

2. Severn Road, Hong Kong – $11,200 per square foot.

Hong Kong’s most expensive street lies on the top of Hong Kong Island in the city’s most affluent district, The Peak. A $38 million apartment purchased by a Chinese businessman earned this street its place on the list. The street is named after a British colonial administrator, Claud Severn, who spent 1911-1925 as Colonial Secretary of Hong Kong.

1. Avenue Princess Grace, Monaco – $17,750 per square foot.

The world’s most expensive residential street was named after former Monacan princess and iconic black and white film actress Grace Kelly. Residents of Avenue Princess Grace can expect to meet Middle Eastern elites, Russian billionaires and members of the Monacan royal family. The price was set by a $41 million, four bedroom home.

Israeli billionaire Lev Leviev, ranked 278th richest person in the world in 2006, is relocating to London with his wife Olga and two of their children. Why do we care? Well, the Northwest London house into which Mr. Leviev is moving just happens to be Britain’s most expensive new home.

Located on the same private street in Hampstead where stars Lulu and Ringo Starr have owned homes, the house was designed by architect William Bertram, who was coaxed out of retirement for the job. Unfortunately for him, Mansour Namaki, for whom the house was designed, decided to move to Regent’s Park instead.

Hampstead

The house itself is 17,000 square feet and includes such luxuries as an indoor swimming pool decorated in gold, a cinema, a hair salon, a gym and even its own nightclub. Lest you worry about the Levievs and their guests aching from walking through such a massive house (and we know you do worry), the house includes a six-person elevator. Security is also not an issue, as the house is protected by a $100,000 armor-plated door, 25 infra-red cameras and a 24-hour security barrier between the outside world and the road on which the house is located.

What was the crucial factor in Mr. Leviev’s decision to throw down £35 million on the most expensive newly-built house in Britain? It’s within walking distance of a synagogue. In fact, there are three nearby synagogues, the Garden Suburb Synagogue in Norrice Lea being the closest.

Want to spend a day at the most expensive golf course in the world? You’ll have to go to Las Vegas to do so. Designed by Tom Fazio, one of only two such designers to win the Old Tom Morris Award from the Golf Course Superintendents Association of America, Vegas’ Shadow Creek is open only to guests of MGM Mirage Resorts.

So what does a $500 visit to Shadow Creek include? For starters, you’ll be transported by limo to and from the course. At the course, you’ll find your personal caddie ready to guide you through the world’s most expensive golf course. The holes themselves include steep hills, sharp turns, high ridges and, of course, Shadow Creek itself. The 18th hole is designed to include nearly all of the elements of the previous seventeen in a par five, truly making it the ultimate golf experience.

And, hey, maybe you’ll win back your $500 at one of those casinos that Vegas is so famous for having.