That’s one small step for a man, one giant leap for… Dubai?
There is a lot to see in Dubai. Visitors to the city in the United Arab Emirates can enjoy architectural wonders such as the Jumeirah Beach Hotel, Cayan Tower, and Burj Khalifa, which, at 2,717 feet, is the tallest building on Earth.
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However, Michael Henderson, a Canadian businessman, wants more. He wants the moon.
Henderson is looking to build a 900-foot replica of Earth’s only satellite on top of a 100-foot building.
The real estate market is red hot
The $5 billion real estate project, dubbed MOON, includes a destination resort inside the sphere, complete with a 4,000-room hotel, an arena capable of accommodating 10,000 people and a “lunar colony” that will give guests the feeling of walking down to earth. . the moon.
The moon was sitting on a circular pedestal-like building below it and glowing in the night.
“We have the biggest ‘brand’ in the world,” said Henderson Associated Press, indicating that the Moon itself—the heavenly body—was his trademark. “Eight billion people know our brand, and we haven’t even started yet.”
Dubai has an overheated real estate market, fueled by the wealthy fleeing restrictions in their home countries during the coronavirus pandemic and Russians seeking asylum amid Moscow’s war on Ukraine, the Associated Press noted.
The sheikhdom was shaken by the 2009 financial crisis that forced Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates, to provide Dubai with a $20 billion bailout.
However, Dubai has transformed quite a bit.
Rents rose on average in Dubai by 26.9% year-on-year, even with protection against price gouging. Dubai saw 86,849 residential sales last year, surpassing the previous record of 80,831 from 2009.
The tourists come back
And the tourists come back.
Dubai welcomed a total of 14.36 million international visitors in 2022, up 97% from the previous year, according to the Department of Economy and Tourism.
The first quarter was also good, with Dubai receiving 4.67 million international visitors overnight, an increase of 17% over the same period last year, and the city’s best performance in the first quarter since the outbreak of the pandemic.
The MOON project also includes space for a potential casino as well. Gambling remains illegal in the United Arab Emirates, a federation of seven hereditary governed sheikhdoms on the Arabian Peninsula.
However, major brands such as Caesar’s Palace are already in existence or hoping to build in Dubai.
Last month, Wynn Resorts (where) – Get a free reportThe offerings and the name of the planned casino resort in the UAE were revealed, which one analyst described as “one of the most exciting growth prospects in the gaming industry globally”.
The resort named Wynn Al Marjan Island is located on an area of 115 acres on Al Marjan Island, which consists of four islands in the emirate of Ras Al Khaimah.