Space hotels are something new. The first orbiting space hotel, Galactic Suite Space Resort (photos below), is on track to open for its first customers in 2012.

The cost of three nights on the Galactic Suite Space Resort (plus a two-month training course on a Caribbean island beforehand) will be $4.4 million US. At least 43 people have already reserved their place, with over 200 expressing an interest.


Guests would circumnavigate the globe every 80 minutes and see the sun rise 15 times a day. They would get around their “pod” rooms by wearing Velcro suits that stick them to the walls to enable them to crawl.

Forget about 5-star hotels. Don’t even think of 6-star hotels. For hotels to be considered as one of the world’s best luxury hotels, they must be rated 7-stars! Seven-stars rating seems to be the norm nowadays, with new hotels aiming to be part of the best-of-the-best hotels list. So which hotels made it to the “World’s Most Luxurious Hotels” rankings (existing and under-construction)? No, not the Ice Hotel in Japan and no weird hotels included in the list even.

1. Morgan Plaza Beijing (now called Pangu Plaza 7-Star Hotel, under-construction) – Morgan Plaza is a super-luxury 7 star hotel under construction in Beijing, China. The plaza will contain two pavilions, a temple, a Japanese restaurant and a 600 meter long corridor.


2. Burj Al Arab Hotel – Dubai’s seven star Burj Al Arab Hotel is located in the premier Jumeirah Beach area of Dubai.

3. Town House Galleria – in Milan, Italy is the world’s first seven-star hotel.

4. Flower of the East - (under-construction) biggest project on Kish Island in the Persian Gulf, Iran. The project was slated to includes three hotels to be finished by 2010.

5. The Centaurus hotel in Islamabad, Pakistan. The project is set to complete in 2010 with a 37-story, 7 star deluxe hotel, with two 21-story residential towers, a 25-story corporate office tower, and a 5-story shopping mall.

6. The Pentominium – (under-construction) a supertall skyscraper in the city of Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

7. ITC Grand Chola – (in Chennai, India, under-construction) Commercial facilities include restaurants, a health spa, banquet space, an exhibition space and underground parking for 1,000-cars.

8. The Royalties Castle in Davao Philippines.

Get some fun and stay in one of these weird hotels! Why be content in a typical hotel accommodation when there are some exquisite services offered in a very unusual yet memorable way?

Have you been to these weirdest/bizarre/strange hotels yet?

Giraffe Manor in Langata, Kenya – The five-room property is arranged so that roaming giraffes can poke their heads into any open window or doorway and lick guests with their sticky, prehensile tongues.


Das Park Hotel in Ottensheim, Austria – offers three 10-ton segments of drainage pipe, each 6.5 feet in diameter. You get a lamp, a mattress, a few sleeping bags, and a lockable door.

Harbour Crane at Harlingen – a port city an hour outside of Amsterdam, Netherlands. You and your guest can jump into the cockpit, seize the controls, and turn the 143,000-pound crane a full 360 degrees.

Dog Bark Park Inn – is a two-story, beagle-shaped B&B in Cottonwood, Idaho. And, yes, pets are allowed.

Hotel Everland – is a one-room inn that will be in Paris on the roof of the Palais de Tokyo museum through 2008. It offers heart-swelling views of the Seine, 100 feet below, and the Eiffel Tower, in the near distance.

The Marmara Antalya, in sunny Antalya, Turkey, features two dozen rooms in a building that slowly spins. Guests are rewarded with ever-changing views of the Mediterranean Sea.

The Hobbit Motel in New Zealand, near the Waitomo Caves, consists of two hillside burrows that are faithful replicas of the hobbit dwellings in J.R.R. Tolkien’s books—right down to the circular windows and doorways, red-and-beige walls, and camouflaged exteriors.

Out ‘n’ About Treesort & Treehouse Institute, just outside of Cave Junction, Oregon. Most of the rooms have modern conveniences such as sinks and refrigerators.

Wagon Stays in Christchurch, New Zealand, features rooms with queen-size beds, computer-controlled showers, flush toilets, fully equipped kitchens, and satellite TV.

Beckham Creek Cave Haven – Arkansas, USA. Totally secluded cave dwelling, with underground jacuzzis for relaxation.

White Pod Swiss Alps – The WhitePod Resort covers 20000 hectares of pristine nature in the heart of the Swiss Alps. No noisy bars. No busy streets.

I probably will try to stay in the Ice Hotel for a day, and for the sake of experience. Japan opened an ice hotel in the Alpha Resort Tomamu’s ice village, on Hokkaido Island. Like any other regular hotels, the ice hotel has dining rooms, bed rooms and bath rooms. The only difference is that the rooms are all made of ice.


If you are up for a cocktail at an ice bar or eat food on an ice plate, with a price of 80,000 yen (US $696) for two per night, then take a flight to Japan’s Hokkaido Island.

Enjoy the Ice Hotel photos.

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