Tallest, oldest, most expensive: record-breaking hotels

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Tallest, oldest, most expensive: record-breaking hotels

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How about lashing out on a night in the Royal Villa at Grand Resort Lagonissi in Greece?

Like a bit of room to move in your hotel suite?

Ask for the keys to the royal digs at the Grand Hills Hotel and Spa in Lebanon.

Hotels are pushing the boundaries to claim an "est" title - the priciest, the biggest - and lure travellers to check out their record-breaking offerings.

Accommodation website hotels.com has compiled establishments from around the world which break the norm.

The world's tallest all-suite hotel - Burj Al Arab, Dubai:

The building, standing at 321 metres heigh, will only have top billing for a few more months - it will be outgrown by the nearby Rose Tower when it's completed at the end of the year.

The hotel is a self-rated seven star establishment, built on a man-made island 280 metres from shore.

It's one of the most luxurious hotels in the world, boasting a fleet of Rolls Royce cars, a personal shopper for patrons, a helicopter landing platform and Versace bedspreads in each of the 202 suites.

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(Photos: Inside the Burj Al Arab hotel)

The establishment nestled on the strip in Vegas operates under the same license as the neighbouring Venetian hotel - together they have 8108 rooms.

The Palazzo is fitted out with a large selection of restaurants, retail outlets and its own Lamborgini dealership, boasting the only Koenigsegg dealer in the US.

The world's oldest - Hoshi Ryokan, Komatsu, Japan:

This ancient hotel has been operating for over 1300 years - first opening its doors in 718 - and has been kept in the family for 46 generations.

In the 100-room establishment the focus is on ensuring comfort and relaxation.

Guests are welcomed with a traditional Japanese tea ceremony and provided with a yukata - a cotton kimono - to use after soaking in the hot springs dotted around the Japanese garden.

Featuring a dedicated butler, chef and pianist, this room will set patrons back a hefty $50,000 a night.

The room decked out with marble bathroom, walk-in wardrobe and private wooden terrace and pool, overlook the Aegean Sea.

If guests ever want to leave the room, they can use the private Lear jet to do some island hopping.

The world's most expensive to build - Emirates Palace, Abu Dhabi:

The hotel, which opened in 2005, cost over $3 billion to build.

Silver, gold and marble were used in the construction of the 394-room hotel and the 1002 chandeliers dotted throughout are adorned with Swarovski crystals.

The site is home to 70 football pitches, a beach stretching 1.3km, a marina, a chopper pad and a couple of pools - one complete with a waterslide, waterfalls and a river.

(Photos: The Emirates Palace)

World's Highest Hotel (floor height) - Park Hyatt, Shanghai, China

The Park Hyatt in Shanghai is currently the highest hotel in the world, occupying floors 79 to 93 of the 101 story Shanghai World Finance Centre; the hotel has views over the Huangpu River and the city skyline.

The suite is set over six floors, filling a combined floor space of 8,000 square metres - half of which is used in living space.

The remaining area is home to two swimming pools, a private garden, a terrace and tree pavilions.

World's coldest hotel - Icehotel, Jukkaskarvi, Sweden:

Rooms are built entirely out of ice and snow, decorated with handcrafted ice art and sculptures, and stay cool with temperature sitting between five and eight degrees.

It has an ice chapel, two eateries and a bar serving sexy cocktails from ice glasses.

The mountaintop escape sits 3880 metres about sea level, in the Sagarmatha National Park, atop the world's tallest peak, Mt Everest.

Guest planning to stay at the establishment have to pack their hiking boots for the 45-minute trek from the airstrip to the hotel.

Photos: Big luxury - record-breaking hotels

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