Burj al-Arab

The Burj al-Arab (Arabic "tower of the Arabs") is a luxury hotel in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. At 321 meters (1,053 feet), it is the tallest building used exclusively as a hotel, and one of the most distinctive structures for a hotel building in the world. It stands in the sea on an artificial island 280 meters (919 feet) away from the beach in the Persian Gulf, connected to the mainland only by a curving path.

The hotel construction began in 1994, and its doors were opened to guests on December 1, 1999. It was built to resemble the sail of a dhow (a type of Arabian vessel), and intentionally placed in such a way that its shadow does not cover the beach. On top of the hotel is a large helipad, extending from the side of the hotel over the ocean, and supported by cantilever. A remarkable element of its architecture is the outer beachward wall of the atrium, which is made of a woven, Teflon-coated fiberglass cloth.

The Burj al-Arab features the tallest atrium lobby in the world (180 meters, or 590 feet), and the volume of the atrium can accommodate the Dubai World Trade Center building, which, at 38 stories, was the tallest building in Dubai from the late 1970s to the late 1990s. The Statue of Liberty can also be fitted into the atrium.

The Burj al-Arab does not have rooms, but rather 202 duplex suites. The smallest suite occupies an area of 169 square meters (1,819 square feet), and the largest one covers 780 square meters (8,396 square feet).

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Other facts

• Contrary to a common belief, the Burj al-Arab is not rated as the world's only 7-star hotel, but as a 5-star deluxe hotel (the maximum possible rating for a hotel is five stars).
• So expensive was the hotel's design and construction that it is estimated that to reach breakeven, it must be entirely booked for 400 years. The full amount it cost to build the hotel and furnish it is not publicly known, but through *cough* chatting to the staff *cough* I have heard it is around 2 billion USD.
• One of its restaurants, the Al Muntaha (meaning highest, or ultimate), is located 200 metres above the Arabian Gulf, offering a view of Dubai from above. It is accessed by a panoramic elevator.
• Another restaurant, the Al Mahara is an excellent seafood restaurant, rated tenth best restaurant in the world. It has an incredible aquariam. One of the tanks (called the: 'oval') is a clossal circular tank seen restaurant wide. The total volume of all the tanks is over 1 million litres! The glass of the tanks, is about 18cm thick, over 7 inches! It is not glass, which over-magnifies the fish, but Acrylic, which has a much smaller magnifying effect - meaning the fish are shown at a realistic size.
• The building's external lighting schemes, from white light to a multicolored one, change from one to another every 30 minutes expressing the evening's progress. Sometimes, there is a lightshow, where colours interchange rapidly.
• Once upon a time, tourists could pay a fee of $55 to have a look round, but this has been abolished to ensure privacy. To get into the hotel you must now have a suite booked or a reservation at one of the restaurants.
• The hotel was built by South African construction company Murray & Roberts.

Additionally, the Burj al-Arab

• is the world's tallest 5-star deluxe hotel (not including buildings with mixed use), and was the first 5-star deluxe hotel to surpass 1000 ft. (approx. 305 m.)
• is the world's tallest structure with a membrane facade.
• is considered to be one of the most expensive hotels in the world to stay in. The prices for the least expensive suites are in the range of $1,000 to over $6,000 a night. The most expensive suites can cost over $15,000 a night. (However, I have seen some lesser hotels in the Alps charge far more for far less, eg: $10,000 for a suite not even as good as a $1000 suite in the Burj)

External links

• Official website (http://www.burj-al-arab.com/)
• Tennis on the Burj's helipad (http://www.burj-al-arab.com/tennis/)de:Burj al Arab

fr:Hotel Burj-Al-Arab