If you ever dreamt of living underwater like mermaids then your dream has come true travel tips and stories. Vacations ideas, cruises spa and resorts

The early part of the 21st century is quickly becoming known as The Age of Dubai. Many of the world’s most spectacular, breathtaking, and startling architectural projects are being erected in a city that until recently was little more than a desert outpost. It’s leaders have the foresight to know that that its primary natural resource, oil, is in limited supply. The world’s first luxury underwater hotel, Hydropolis, is at this moment under construction in Dubai. The £300 million, 220-suite hotel is due to open at the end of 2007, which is quite amazing considering the grandiose vision. This submarine hotel is inspired by the Jules Verne tale 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. It will be an underwater oasis where visitors can marvel at the architecture surrounding them, and the sea beyond. It is one of the largest contemporary construction projects in the world, covering an area of 260 hectares, about the size of London’s Hyde Park. The hotel will also provide its guests the facility to soak under the sun on its sandy beach complete with snorkeling over the hotel suites. What more to ask for! Hydropolis will be located on the famous Jumeirah coastline of Dubai, which already play host to the world’s first seven-star hotel Burj al-Arab. The underwater hotel designed by Joachim Hauser covering 27 acres will feature 220 suites sitting on the floor of Gulf 20 meters below the surface linked by a submerged transparent 1700 feet long tunnel, marine institute, cinema, cosmetic surgery clinic and museum. It is one of the largest contemporary construction projects in the world. It will include three elements: the land station, where guests will be welcomed, the connecting tunnel, which will transport people by train to the main area of the hotel, and the 220 suites within the submarine leisure complex.
The original idea for Hydropolis developed out of Hauser’s passion for water and the sea, and goes much deeper than just building a hotel underwater. More than just curiosity, it is a commitment to a more far-reaching philosophy. “Once you start digging deeper and deeper into the subject, you can’t help being fascinated and you start caring about all the associated issues,” he explains. “Humans consist of 80% water, the earth consists of 80% water; without water there is no life.” Hydropolis reproduces the human organism in an architectural design. There is a direct analogy between the physiology of man and the architecture. The geometrical element is a figure eight lying on its side and inscribed in a circle. The spaces created in the basin will contain function areas, such as restaurants, bars, meeting rooms and theme suites. These can be compared to the components of the human organism: the motor functions and the nervous and cardiovascular systems, with the central sinus knot representing the pulse of all life.
The hotel will have two parts. The land station, will serve as the welcoming area, marine biology research center, restaurant, and cinema among other things. From the lowest level, hotel guests will be transported down towards Hydropolis by using a train system. The “land station” is a large building with a roof that dips and rolls like the crest of a wave. The tunnel is 1,700 feet long and carries a train beneath both the land and the sea. Mimicking natural forms, it is shaped like a collection of bubbles and curves designed to provide maximum resistance against the everyday pressures of the sea water as well as the occasional typhoon that may stray into this area. It has already been compared to both a jellyfish and a sea turtle. It features a pair of observation domes which allow an expansive view of the water and the creatures that live in it. They are large enough to emerge above the waves, and one is planned with a retractable roof allowing people to be surrounded by the ocean while looking directly into the sky. The land station also includes a restaurants, an entertainment park and a lot of attractions inspired by the sea, high-tech cinema screening the evolution of life in the ocean and the history of underwater architecture. The upper storeys of the land station house a variety of facilities, including a cosmetic surgical clinic, a marine biological research laboratory and conference facilities. On the lower levels are the staff rooms, goods storage and loading areas, and hotel and parking areas. As a finale, the screen will open to reveal the real-life Hydropolis. A viewing platform at the front opening of the spanning roof will allow views of the architecture as well as the light shows of Hydropolis.
He views his creation as a place where those who do not dive - or do not even swim - can experience the tranquillity and inspiration of the underwater world. You may soon be able to sleep with the fishes in the Middle East - and in luxury, which you might well expect when you’re paying as much as US$5,500 for a day’s lodging. The ballroom, located at this nerve center, will have asymmetrical pathways connecting the different storeys along ramps. A large, petal-like retracting roof will enable the staging of open-sky events. Staircases, lifts and ramps will provide access to the ballroom, while flanking catering areas will supply banquets and receptions.
Dubai has played host to some amazing plans that will re-write engineering and architectural history, but this has to be one of its most ambitious. Hydropolis will, quite simply, be the world’s first underwater hotel. Accessed by a connecting tunnel, the marine theme is likely to continue throughout the hotel’s rooms and decor. “Hydropolis imparts a unique impression of distinctiveness and exclusivity, an attraction that does not diminish after a first phase of curiosity,” Hauser said in his press conference presentation. “Guests from all over the world and from all cultures will be attracted by a multitude of offers, which simultaneously address mind, body and soul in an unparalleled manner. It is the dream of all humankind to live in and explore the sea.” Are underwater holidays the beginning of a new era?