Hydropolis Underwater Hotel

Under construction in Dubai, and scheduled to open in 2009, the world’s first underwater luxury hotel includes three elements: a land station, where guests are greeted, an underwater tunnel where people are taken by train deep underwater, and the leisure complex, which contains restaurants, bars, meeting rooms, and 220 luxury suites.

The hotel is situated 66 feet below the surface of the Persian Gulf, just off Jumeira Beach in Dubai. Reinforced by concrete and steel, its Plexiglass walls and bubble-shaped dome ceilings will enable guests to see fish and other sea creatures.

The land station has 120 meter woven, semicircular cylinder arches over a multi-story building. On the lowest level passengers board a noiseless train propelled by fully automated cable along a modular, self-supporting steel guideway to Hydropolis. The upper stories of the land station house a variety of facilities, including a cosmetic surgery clinic, a marine biological research laboratory and conference facilities. On the lower levels are the staff rooms, goods storage and loading areas, and hotel and parking areas.

The land station also includes a restaurant and high-tech cinema screening the evolution of life in the ocean and the history of underwater architecture. As a finale, the screen will open to reveal the real-life Hydropolis. A viewing platform at the front opening of the spanning roof will allow views of the architecture as well as the light shows of Hydropolis.

The hotel charges around $5,000 per room, per night.