World's Most Expensive Christmas Tree
Valued at $11 Million
If you happen to be an oil rich country with more money than you know what to do with, then a Guinness World Record might be in your future.
The Emirates Palace hotel in Abu Dhabi is planning to have the Christmas tree in their lobby certified as the World’s most expensive.
According to general manager Hans Olbertz, the tree itself is worth a paltry $10,000 while the jewelry that serves as ornamentation brings the value to just over $11 million.
Along with stars and lights, all kinds of fancy jewelry adorn the 43 foot tree. There are also bracelets, necklaces and watches along with precious stones (181 in total) including diamonds, pearls, emeralds and sapphires. The tree is in the center of a sumptuous lobby, which is reportedly decorated with gold leaf.
Each year the hotel has a tree, Mr. Olbertz confessed in an interview with thd AP, but this year’s endeavor was designed as a marketing effort to promote the oil-rich United Arab Emirates (UAE).
How About the Current Record?
According to the Guinness website, the most expensive Christmas tree to date was in Piaget Japan, valued at $10.8 million in 2002. That particular tree included only 83 pieces of jewelry.
Christmas spirit is not rare in the United Arab Emirates, which is officially Muslim but hosts a huge foreign population. Malls are full of carolers, Santas and piped-in yuletide songs.
No snow – unless your visiting Abu Dhabi’s
indoor skiing park – which of course is the largest in the Middle East, and open all year round.
7 Stars, Really!
The hotel, which claims to be a seven-star destination, earlier this year introduced a package for a seven-day stay priced at a mere $1 million.
Besides your room you get a private butler and a chauffeur-driven Maybach luxury automobile at their disposal during their stay, as well as a private jet available for trips to other countries in the region. It wasn’t clear, however, if you had to pay for fuel.
Just in case you don’t have enough spare charge available, in May the hotel opened a gold vending machine, becoming the first location outside of Germany to install "gold to go."
