Fancy staying in a hotel that looks like an ultra-realistic copy of the Moon? Or how about going up a mile-high skyscraper? Or resting your head in a futuristic sky cruise far above the clouds? Although some of these outlandish designs are a long way from becoming reality, it’s certainly fascinating to take a peek and imagine what the future of travel could look like.
Feast your eyes on these awe-inspiring plans for hotels and attractions...
Bhatia was inspired by Hyperion, a 380-foot (116m) redwood tree in California, USA which is thought to be the world's tallest living tree. As well as this, he took inspiration from his work at the architecture firm Ant Studio, which focuses on optimising natural light and ventilation to create more sustainable structures. Although there's no sign that the far-fetched designs will ever be built, Bhatia believes AI has "tremendous potential" in the designs of the future.
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Dubai’s Burj Khalifa is the world’s tallest structure at 2,723 feet (830m), but it could become even more spectacular if these plans by architecture firm ZNera Space ever come to fruition. They’ve designed a space-age ring to encircle the famous landmark, which would stand supported by five pillars 1,804 feet (550m) above street level and extend across an area more than 1.8 miles (3km) wide.
The sky-high idea was created to address problems surrounding traffic and congestion, as architects say the vertical pillars could be used as air purifiers to combat pollution. But it’s very unlikely that the ring will ever get made. Designers at the firm admit it’s probably implausible both practically and financially, saying that it was intended as a “conversation starter” which would “trigger people to rethink urban development.”
This futuristic, high-concept hybrid of a plane and a hotel isn’t ever meant to land – 20 nuclear-powered engines will supposedly keep the luxury getaway permanently in the air. On the Sky Cruise more than 5,000 guests will be able to spend their time in gyms, swimming pools, restaurants, theatres and even a giant shopping mall. Passengers will board and leave the hotel while still airborne, and the plane will apparently fly autonomously.
Although it may look and sound incredible, the flying resort is a long way off. With our current technology, the gigantic hotel would have trouble taking off and would not be aerodynamic. Another issue is cost: with all the new technology needed and the added luxury, a stay on the Sky Cruise would be beyond inaccessible to most. But who knows what might be possible in a few decades…
Set for completion in 2024, Ciel Tower will be the tallest hotel in the world at an eye-popping 1,199 feet (366m). This gargantuan skyscraper, designed by London architecture firm NORR, will grace the glitzy Dubai Marina, with a glass observation deck providing sweeping views across the Palm Jumeirah and out towards the Arabian Gulf.
The mammoth building will house more than one thousand rooms and suites, while 82 floors will be taken up by a 984-foot (300m) atrium filled with vertically stacked gardens and terraces. There will also be a rooftop infinity pool and terrace, four restaurants and several bars. In March 2022, it was reported that construction had reached the half-way point, with the hotel expected to open sometime in 2024.
Discover the world's tallest buildings with observation decks
If scuba diving is your thing, you might want to start saving for a stay at the Water Discus Hotel, which is slated for construction in Dubai, courtesy of Polish firm Deep Ocean Technology (DOT). It’s divided into two sections: a 10,764-square-foot (1,000sqm) discus submerged 32 feet (10m) underwater, plus an above-water discus with a floor area of around 16,146 square feet (1,500sqm).
The above-water area has a restaurant and spa, but it’s under the surface that things get exciting. The hotel will be surrounded by coral reefs in tropical waters and has a dive centre with an airlock system, allowing divers to swim directly in and out of the ocean. Bedrooms will have awesome ocean views and – in case you haven’t had your fill of aquatic adventures – there’s a gigantic swimming pool on the top deck.
Designed by architecture student Brandan Siebrecht, who won the 2017 Radical Innovation Award for the idea, the ultra-futuristic Hyperloop Hotel is a hybrid between a hotel room and a high-speed train. It would use the Hyperloop transit system that’s currently being developed by Elon Musk to whizz guests between 13 US cities – all from the comfort of their very own pod.
Inside, guests would have their own office, living room, bedroom and bathroom. When they reach their destination, the pod docks at a static hotel, and from there the only choice is whether to go out exploring or continue enjoying their one-of-a-kind room. It’s unlikely we’ll be seeing a Hyperloop Hotel anytime soon as the technology isn’t currently developed enough, though its designer believes the idea could be feasible in the coming decades.
This stunning new skyscraper is one of the few on our list that you can actually stay in. Located in the heart of Singapore’s shopping district, the high-concept hotel has four themed areas – based on forest, beach, garden and cloud – which is spread across its four distinct strata.
There are 347 rooms across 23 storeys, plus a variety of amenities: a ‘water plaza’, an indoor beach, several stylish bars and restaurants, and a 400-seat ballroom and events area in the Cloud Terrace. The hotel has a strong focus on sustainability too, with a roof covered in PV solar panels and plenty of green spaces both inside and out.
Not only is Svart gorgeous to look at, it’s also set to be a sustainable trailblazer. Perched beside the crystal-clear waters of Holandsfjorden in Norway’s Arctic Circle, the hotly anticipated resort will be energy-positive – meaning it’ll produce more energy than it uses. This will be partly achieved with in-built solar panels, which will absorb sunlight reflected off the nearby Svartisen glacier.
Set to open later in 2024, the hotel plans to go completely off-grid, supplying all its own electricity, providing all produce from its own farm and managing all waste on-site. Ultimately, the goal is to produce no waste at all. The hotel is architecturally impressive too, with a distinctive circular design which will harness solar energy at all times of year.
Due to be completed at the end of 2025, Abu Dhabi’s Natural History Museum will be an exciting new addition to the city’s Saadiyat Cultural District. The flagship attraction will be a 38-foot (11.7m) Tyrannosaurus Rex fossil, nicknamed Stan, which was reportedly bought by the museum for £29.6 million ($31.8m).
Covering more than 37,600 square feet (35,000sqm), the building comes courtesy of architecture firm Mecanoo and is designed to emulate natural rock formations. The geometric exterior is all curves and crags and will sport plenty of water features and natural vegetation to act as symbols of life in the desert. According to the chairman of Dubai’s tourism department, the museum’s overarching goal is to “tell the story of our universe through some of the most incredible natural wonders known to mankind".
Offering an extraterrestrial experience right here on Earth, MOON is billed as a buzzy new addition to Dubai’s (already extremely extravagant) hotel scene. The plan, which is the brainchild of Canadian company Moon World Resorts, includes a 735-foot-tall (224m) sphere designed to look exactly like the Moon, while inside you’ll find a simulation of the lunar surface which allows guests to experience what it would be like on Earth’s only natural satellite.
Of course, it wouldn’t be a Dubai hotel without some extraordinary opulence. When it opens in 2027, the mixed-use building will contain a nightclub, a wellness centre, hotel suites and shopping areas, as well as 300 private apartments available to buy. Designer Michael Henderson, who created the idea alongside business partner Sandra Matthews, described it as “a fully integrated, contemporary, luxurious destination resort” offering “space tourism for all".
The world's tallest building at present is Dubai's Burj Khalifa, but this mile-high skyscraper, if built, would be twice as large. The ambitious design, which comes courtesy of architecture firm Kohn Pedersen Fox and structural engineering firm Leslie E Robertson Associates, won't be setting records anytime soon, however – it's slated for completion in 2045. The building will feature different lobbies for retail, bars, restaurants, gyms and libraries as well as residential space for 55,000 people. It's part of a bigger initiative to build a futuristic city in the Tokyo Bay region.
This luxurious apartment building looks as if it belongs underwater, rather than standing above Business Bay, Dubai's answer to Manhattan. The futuristic design is luxury auto brand Bugatti's very first step into the world of residential architecture, which will be realised by Dubai-developer Binghatti. While the building's fluid lines are said to have been inspired by the French Riviera, its shiny curves are also reminiscent of one of Bugatti's opulent cars.
The 42-storey skyscraper will have 171 Riviera Mansion apartments and 11 Sky Mansion penthouses, as well as a rooftop pool, members club, a riviera-inspired beach and – as might be expected – two garage-to-penthouse car lifts plus a bespoke chauffeur service. Bugatti is far from the first car company to enter the world of architecture. Bentley is building a 61-storey skyscraper in Miami, while Aston Martin launched its Automotive Galleries and Lairs service in 2019, which designs buildings to display a client's car collection.
British architect Jordan William Hughes won the 2023 Jacques Rougerie International prize for this incredible design for an elevator that could seriously simplify space travel. Using existing research by engineers and physicists, Hughes' design would create a tether between an ocean-based 'spaceport' and a captured asteroid in geostationary orbit, according to Dezeen. People and cargo could then shuttle between the two in small drones as an alternative to rockets, which Hughes believes are inefficient and environmentally damaging.
Hughes currently works as a concept artist at Foster + Partners and came up with the plan for Ascensio in his spare time. "My project aims to build upon all previous concepts to showcase the reality of what may be possible; a lightweight, movable space elevator that connects the ocean to the stars," he told Dezeen. "This would be a very expensive, very ambitious project and it's not something I'm expecting to be built in the next 10 years," Hughes told the BBC. "It's a bit fanciful today but I'm sure it will happen because this is the only way space travel and space exploration actually works and becomes efficient."
This gravity-defying creation looks like a fantasy home, but it actually exists – and you can pay it a visit. The Hub of Huts was designed by Network of Architecture (NOA) back in 2022 for Hotel Hubertus, a wellbeing and ski retreat in the Dolomites. Having previously designed the hotel's extraordinary cantilevered outdoor swimming pool, NOA set about creating a structure that would "overturn horizons" resulting in an "effect of wonder" for the viewer, according to Lukas Rungg, architect in charge and NOA founder.
This breathtaking wellness area can accommodate 27 people and is accessed via a suspended walkway. The platform hovers 49 feet (15m) above the ground and is supported by two pillars clad in larch logs, which complement the natural landscape. The upper floor houses two whirlpool baths, two panoramic showers and a changing room, while the lower floor has a soft sauna, Finnish sauna, a shower cabin and an ice mist shower, as well as a third outdoor pool. NOA calls the project "a floating outpost between heaven and earth".
This incredible creation is another NOA design, this time a concept for an adaptable home. NOA was one of 20 architects chosen to design a prototype interpreting 'ways of living' for art exhibition Documenta Kassel 14 and this project, named Edersee, was their utopian offering. The hybrid home can be moved up or down to take up three different positions, while under the earth its green roof blends with the surrounding landscape, disappearing and protecting its inhabitants. At its highest position, 'in the trees' (pictured), Edersee sits among the tree crowns, giving sweeping views of nature and revealing a swimming lake below.
Inside, the open plan layout centres around a large patio. While NOA doesn't have plans to make this particular design a reality, the concept of a building that adapts to different situations and needs throughout the day, the season or the year feels like something we'll be seeing more of in the future as we develop new ways of living and working, and adapt to changes in climate.
Now check out the world's most futuristic hotels that already exist