Every so often, an email will pass through our inboxes that makes us question, is this real? We have encountered romantic proposal packages, ‘round the world jaunts aboard private jets, hotel stays in swanky penthouses, and more, all worth your offspring’s college tuition. Or a second mortgage. We rounded up a few of the most expensive, over-the-top packages because sometimes it is fun to imagine, what if? Or maybe you have a thick stack of G’s burning a hole in your wallet waiting to be spent.
Take, for instance, this luxury cruise from Six Star Cruises: Coming in at a whopping 1 million pounds (that’s $1,581,000), this trip cruises around the world for 124 days (which breaks down to 8,000 pounds a day). For UK residents, the voyage begins with a helicopter transport from your home to a London airport (in transit, enjoy caviar worth 4,000 pounds per kilogram and sip on 1,000-year-old tea leaves) before you board a private charter to Los Angeles. The ship stops in 28 locales, including French Polynesia, New Zealand, Tasmania, Australia, and South Africa.
If you’d rather travel by air than by sea, Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts has partnered with Starquest Expeditions to offer an around the world jaunt aboard a private jet. The 22-day adventure begins in Los Angeles and ends in London, and has layovers in Hawaii, French Polynesia, Australia, Bali, Thailand, India, and Egypt. Accommodations while on land are, of course, provided by Four Seasons. An on-board concierge will arrange tours, outings, spa trips, rounds of golf, and other services for the convenience of the passengers. The price tag? $66,950 per couple. The 2012 trips have filled up but you can be added to the waitlist!
For those who don’t have that many vacation days on their hands, extravagant stays in world-class hotels might satisfy your high roller taste. The Stafford London will be commemorating the hotel’s 100th anniversary this year, and what better way to celebrate than by dropping 100,000 pounds (or $158,000) on a few nights of pampered luxury? The Anniversary Package affords you three nights in the Guv’nor’s Suite or the Penthouse as well as a 10,000-pound dining credit to spend either on room service or at the hotel’s American Bar or The Lyttleton Restaurant. We’re not quite sure how one spends 10,000 pounds on food in three days, but good luck trying. Guests will also have a chauffeured Bentley, Jaguar, or Rolls Royce available throughout their stay. The package is available upon request throughout 2012.
And of course there are always the crazy penthouse suites that cost an arm and a leg without a special package. The Royal Suite at Hotel Plaza Athenee in Paris, for example, costs 22,000 euros per night (that’s nearly $30,000). This 4,840-square- foot, four-bedroom suite sleeps eight and is furnished with Parisian antiques, Italian marble mosaics, fresh flowers, and state-of-the-art technology like a video surveillance system and digital finger print entry on each door of the suite; it also has a room for private staff (like your bodyguard). For a Caribbean getaway, rent the Donna Karan-owned Sanctuary Villa at Parrot Cay in the Turks and Caicos, which can run you up to $30,000 per night for the 11-bedroom suite spread over two connected houses. Each house boasts a chef and two butlers. If you’re interested in an urban escape, the Presidential Suite at the Plaza in New York will run you $20,000 a night – but you also get to use the hotel’s Rolls Royce! And, if you’re not feeling quite classy enough for the Plaza, the $40,000-a-night Hugh Hefner Sky Villa at the Palms in Las Vegas might suite your taste. Complete with a full gym, Jacuzzi, pop-up plasma TVs, a glass elevator, rotating bed, and a Playboy art collection, this suite is all about indulging.
