Atlantis The Palm, Dubai
Atlantis The Palm, Dubai is a luxury hotel resort located at the apex of the Palm Jumeirah in the United Arab Emirates. It was the first resort to be built on the island and is themed on the myth of Atlantis but includes distinct Arabian elements. The resort opened on September 24, 2008 as a joint venture between Kerzner International Holdings Limited and Istithmar World. Hotel. The 1,548 room nautically themed resort has two accommodation wings, consisting of the East and the West Tower, linked together by the Royal Bridge Suite. It is complemented by the  Aquaventure water park and the Lost Chambers Aquarium, home to over 65,000 marine animals. Underwater rooms. The Poseidon and Neptune Underwater Suites at Atlantis The Palm are two of only a tiny handful of underwater hotel rooms around the world, and regularly appear in lists of the world’s most unique accommodation. Measuring 165 square meters/1776 square feet in total, the upper, entrance floor is at ground level while the master bedroom and en-suite bathroom are submerged. The almost floor to ceiling windows in both the bedroom and bathroom face out on to the resort’s Ambassador Lagoon, home  to a multitude of exotic sea creatures. Development. Atlantis The Palm, opened on 24 September 2008 as a joint venture between Kerzner International Holdings Limited and Istithmar World. In April 2012, Istithmar World acquired Kerzner's 50-percent stake in the property for US$250 million. The property continues to be managed by Kerzner International Resorts. The architect was design firm Wimberly, Allison, Tong and Goo (WATG) an international firm specializing in Luxury Hotels. The principal contract for the project was awarded to Laing O'Rourke, a multinational construction firm based in United Kingdom. Laing O'Rourke was responsible for the design  and construction phases of the 23-story hotel and water park. Official launch. After the construction of the hotel carried out by Laing O'Rourke it was officially opened on 24 September 2008. As part of the opening, a light show of moving images was illuminated onto the hotel. 100,000 fireworks, around seven times the amount that were used for the opening ceremony of the 2008 Beijing Olympics, were let off, lasting 15 minutes. The display of fireworks across the full stretch of The Palm lit up the entire island and Atlantis, The Palm. Custom-made shells shipped in from across  the globe created a light spectacle taking off from the 716 firing locations around the island, including 400 balconies at the resort. Display creator Fireworks by Grucci claims the display set a new world record, but records curator Guinness World Records has yet to announce the status. The launch party costed an estimated £15m in total, with Kylie Minogue earning £2m for a 60-minute performance for the hotel's 2,000 guests. Dolphin controversy. In October 2007, the hotel received a shipment of 28 bottlenose dolphins from the Solomon Islands, to be used as part of  their aquarium exhibit, called Dolphin Bay. The move was decried by several environmental groups, particularly for the fact that the export of dolphins had earlier been banned by the Solomon Islands government (after a similar controversial shipment to Mexico). Hotel managers have said that though the dolphins are being trained to interact with visitors, they will not appear in any sort of show or circus-like performance. They have also stated that the health of the dolphins is paramount; because the bottlenose is not an endangered species, their shipment did not pose a problem. The deal was done with the  approval of the United Arab Emirates and Solomon Island governments, through the company Solomon Islands Marine Mammal Education Centre and Exporters Limited (who had overturned the earlier ban in court). The amount of money paid for the dolphins has not been disclosed.