# Billion Dollar Hotels The Mardan Palace Luxury Surpasses Larger Than Life Status By Andrew Robichaud | Published 2009-05-26 | World Source: Trend Hunter, https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/mardan-palace References: [bornrich.org](http://www.bornrich.org/entry/mardan-palace-europe-s-most-expensive-hotel-where-champagne-costs-25-a-glass/) & [mardanpalace](http://www.mardanpalace.com/) The gondola ride across the blue water pool takes 30 minutes. The Mardan Palace in Antalya, Turkey is [luxury beyond all meaning](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/post-hotel-residences). With 11 Italian restaurants, a 2,400 fish aquarium (yes you can swim with the fish), and [560 remarkable rooms](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/universal-helios-grand-hotel), most places on the planet fail to compare to its aura. The opening of the Mardan Palace brought a flock of “who’s who” including Richard Gere, Mariah Carey, Sharon Stone, and (OF COURSE) Paris Hilton. Russian billionaire Telman Ismailov has spent over $1 billion on the project and for only [$18,300 a night](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/michael-kors-x-montauk-yacht-club) you can enjoy the 9,000 tonnes of white sand imported from Egypt, the 500,000 crystals and 23,000 square meters of Italian marble. I’ve already made my reservations… ## Trend Insights (Trend Hunter) - Score: 5.1/10 - Popularity: 85% | Activity: 61% | Freshness: 8% - Audience gender: 30% men, 70% women - Primary generations: Millennial, Gen X - Top markets: North America, Europe, Asia ## Categories [Trend Hunter](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends) > [World](https://www.trendhunter.com/world) > [Hip Hotels](https://www.trendhunter.com/hiphotels) ## Key Themes ### Why This Trend Is Growing - **Luxury Hospitality:** The Mardan Palace sets a new standard for luxury in the hospitality industry, presenting opportunities for other hotels to innovate and provide extraordinary experiences for their guests. - **Experiential Tourism:** The Mardan Palace's unique amenities and attractions, such as swimming with fish and gondola rides, highlight the growing trend of experiential tourism, encouraging other destinations to offer immersive and memorable experiences to travelers. - **Opulent Resort Design:** The opulence and grandeur of the Mardan Palace's design and features open up opportunities for architects and designers to create lavish and larger-than-life resorts that cater to the ultra-rich. ### Industries Being Reshaped - **Hospitality:** The Mardan Palace's success showcases the potential for high-end luxury resorts to attract affluent clientele and stimulate growth in the hospitality industry. - **Tourism:** The Mardan Palace's unique attractions demonstrate the potential for the tourism industry to cater to the demand for exclusive, immersive experiences and create luxurious destinations. - **Architecture and Design:** The Mardan Palace's extravagant design and features present opportunities for architects and designers to create awe-inspiring and luxurious structures in the resort and hospitality sector. ## Related on Trend Hunter - [Opulent Hotel-Like Superyachts](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/bilgin-yachts.md) - [Luxe Turkish Boutique Hotels](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/the-bodrum-edition.md) - [Hyper-Luxury Submersible Superyachts](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/migaloo-m5-superyacht.md) - [Mansion-Topped Surreal Hotels](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/marison-heler.md) - [Opulent Culturally-Inspired Hotels](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/bulgari-hotel-tokyo.md) - [Billion-Dollar Yacht Concepts](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/gquest-goliath-series-gigayacht.md) - [Anti-Luxury Hotel Designs](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/chopard-1.md) - [Barbie-Themed Luxury Suites](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/beyond-limits-barbie-dream-suite.md) - [Hotel-Backed Luxury Experiences](https://www.trendhunter.com/trends/luxury-experiences.md)