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Russian billionaire Telman Ismailov opened a hotel this month that is being widely proclaimed as the most expensive hotel in Europe. As it’s situated along the Mediterranean Sea in transcontinental state of Turkey, there seems to be some confusion surrounding the hotel’s continental status.
That didn’t stop a gaggle of A-list celebrities—including Sharon Stone, Mariah Carey and Richard Gere—from attending Mardan Palace in Antalya’s grand opening. The £1billion-plus (over US $1.6 billion) hotel was inaugurated with a bang as Tom Jones opened for Carey, Paris Hilton made an obligatory appearance and one prominent actress stumbled over the name of neighboring country Azerbaijan.
Housed in this veritable temple of decadence, you’ll find a spa with real snow in one of its rooms, gold-plated mirrors on the floors of the bathrooms, 23,000 square meters of Italian marble, remote controlled toilets and the centerpiece—a pool and sunken aquarium that must be crossed by gondola.
As to the question of geography, the coastal province of Antalya is actually located on the Asian side of the Turkish Straits, the conventional border between Europe and Asia.
Suites at this most luxurious hotel can cost over $18,000 per night—certainly enough to keep the riff-raff out.
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