One of my clients has actually stayed at the Southern Ocean Lodge (pictured below).
The "Le Dune" hotel, located on the Mediterranean Island of Sardinia, is the most expensive hotel in the world according to a recent survey from Luxury-Hotels.com. The survey compared luxury hotels across the globe and then ranked them based on their average rates for a standard double room this June to August 2012 summer season. As a result, the dollar figures behind the rankings reflect the minimum amount a visitor had to spend to stay at a particular hotel.
Coming in at an average rate of $2539 per night, the “Le Dune” hotel easily scored the top spot. This luxurious accommodation is situated in Santa Margherita di Pula, a seaside resort along Sardinia’s southern coast. The “Le Dune” was significantly more expensive than the runners up, the Royal Mansour in Marrakech, Morocco and the Hotel Pitrizza in Sardinia’s Porto Cervo. There, average rooms are going for $2060 and $2041 per night, respectively, this summer.
Overall, Sardinia landed three more hotels in the Top 10, for a total of five. The others making the cut were the Villa del Parco, the Hotel Cala di Volpe and the Hotel Romazzino. Asia made a showing on the survey’s list as well. The continent’s most expensive hotel, the Amankora in Buhtan, settled into the number five slot with an average nightly rate of $1910. Finishing out the Top 10 were the Maia Luxury Resort in the Seychelles and two upscale resorts in Australia, the Southern Ocean Lodge and the Lizard Island.
Following are the 20 most expensive hotels in the world for the period spanning June through August 2012. The rates listed are based on the average price for a standard double room.
Rank Name of Hotel Location Avg. rate/ night
1. Le Dune, Forte Village Resort Sardinia, Italy $2539
2. Royal Mansour Marrakech, Morocco $2060
3. Hotel Pitrizza Sardinia, Italy $2041
4. Villa del Parco Sardinia, Italy $2031
5. Amankora & Spa Paro, Bhutan $1910
6. Hotel Cala di Volpe Sardinia, Italy $1904
7. Hotel Romazzino Sardinia, Italy $1850
8. Maia Luxury Resort and Spa Anse Louis, Seychelles $1692
9. Southern Ocean Lodge Kangaroo Island, Australia $1665
10. Lizard Island Great Barrier Reef, Australia $1651
11. Song Saa Private Island Preah Sihanouk, Cambodia $1649
12. Burj Al Arab Dubai, United Arab Emirates $1611
13. Viceroy Maldives Vagaru Island, Maldives $1589
14. Anantara Kihavah Villas South Male Atoll, Maldives $1574
15. Amanyara Turks and Caicos Islands $1549
16. Naladhu Maldives South Male Atoll, Maldives $1540
17. Gora Kadan Kanawaga, Japan $1537
18. Grand Hotel a Villa Feltrinelli Lombardy, Italy $1498
19. The St. Regis Bora Bora Resort Bora Bora, French Polynesia $1459
20. Saffire Freycinet Cole's Bay, Australia $1457
About the Methodology:
The survey was conducted from May to July 2012. For all luxury hotels, the average rate for a standard double room was calculated for the period spanning June to August 2012. Only such hotels offering a minimum of 20 rooms were considered. The rates were taken from the respective hotels’ websites or drawn from the leading hotel-booking sites. In all cases, the lowest available price was used in tabulating the results. If the standard double room was sold out for a particular day, the standard “theoretical” rate for that day was substituted and included in the average rating. All rates were established in U.S. dollars or converted into such figures using the exchange rate for the respective day.
