Hydropolis, Dubai: luxury underwater hotel
Dubai’s Hydropolis containing 220-suites will be the world’s first luxury underwater hotel. It is now scheduled to open in 2009. Hydropolis is located off the Jumeirah beach in Dubai about 66 feet below the surface of the Persian Gulf. It will also be a great architectural marvel because of its unique bubble shaped dome ceilings and Plexiglass walls which will enable visitors to see sea creatures such as different species of fish etc. This place when completed will be a wonderful attraction of Dubai. The place is a part of Dubai tours and is a great architectural wonder of Dubai.
The Hydropolis will have 3 sections namely the land station which is for welcoming guests, the connecting tunnel which will help in transporting people from the train to the main area of the hotel and the 220 suites within the submarine complex. The unique hotel will cover 270 hectares roughly the size of London’s Hyde park. The hotel would charge circa $5,000 per room per night. The Hydropolis is a self acclaimed 10 start hotel.
Currently under construction in Dubai, Hydropolis is not a project; it’s a passion for water and the sea,” says Joachim Hauser, the developer and designer of the hotel. Hydropolis is also the biggest construction projects of today. The land where the Hydropolis is situated belongs to His Highness General Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Crown Prince of Dubai, and was his last free beach property on this stretch of coast. The land station’s upper storeys will have many facilities, including a marine biological research laboratory, conference facilities and a cosmetic surgical clinic.
Once visitors come to the land station, on Dubai’s Jumeirah Beach, they can get to see a high-tech cinema presentation on the evolution of aquatic life and underwater architecture. The land station will be wave-shaped and it will house a conference center, Hydropolis staff, marine biology research labs, a cosmetic surgery practice and parking.
While the floor of the Persian Gulf, 66 feet (20 metres) under the surface of the water will have the 220 suites, the double domes of the hotel’s ballroom and the concert auditorium will break through the surface. The retractable roof of the ball room will enable visitors to have a glimpse of the beautiful coastline of Dubai and also the open-air events.
Even during emergencies the Hydropolis will be well-looked after. It will have a series of watertight doors that will allow management to close off sections of the complex in the case of a rupture. Even if there is a terrorist attack, the complex will have its own missile defense system.
The third and last section of the Hydropolis is the hotel itself. The hotel must not be missed during Dubai travel and is a great Dubai attraction. It is shaped like bubbles and the curves are designed in such a way to give maximum resistance against typhoons and pressure of sea water. There is also a pair of observation domes through which visitors can have an expansive view of the water and the creatures that live in it. They are large enough to emerge above the waves, and one dome’s retractable roof will allow people to be surrounded by the ocean while having a glimpse of the sky. Hydropolis reproduces the human organism in an architectural design. There is a direct analogy between the physiology of man and the architecture.
It will be a hotel where even those who do not know to swim or dive can experience the serenity and mystery of the underwater world. But you have to start planning and be prepared because the price tag for these facilities and opulence, is roughly about $5,500 per night! But then again, projects like these aren’t meant for the ordinary travelers who want to travel on a budget around the world. Most of the oil-rich Arab states including Dubai target only the big-spending tourists who get fed up of old offers in Europe and North America. The Emirate’s newest project the Hydropolis is a hotel complex unlike any other for it will be submerged in the Persian Gulf and will leave visitors enthralled during their visit to Dubai!