The Affluent Travelers

The Most Expensive Home For Sale

Forget Trump's place in Palm Beach, Florida ($125 million), the most expensive property
for sale-ever- in the United States is now (Aug.06)  the Aspen, Colorado compound of Prince Bandar bin Sultan bin Abdul Aziz.

Bandar was the Saudi ambassador to the U.S. Now that he's taken a new job in Saudi Arabia he will have less time to spend in Aspen. His 95-acre Starwood Ranch property is listed at $135 million. Larger than the White House, the mansion is 56,000-square-feet. Included are  several smaller homes and buildings.

The main home has 15 bedrooms and 16 bathrooms. The property features stables, a tennis court, an indoor swimming pool, outdoor water features and a snowmelt driveway- all on a mere 95 sprawling acres. Bandar will keep a new 15,000-square-foot guesthouse he has been building and some  acreage.  The sale is being handled by the regional affiliate of Christie's.  Here's your chance to live like a Prince and make real estate history.

Istanbul, Turkey

Ciragan Palace Hotel

Once the residence of the last Ottoman Sultans, the Ciragan Palace Hotel Kempinski İstanbul is the only hotel situated directly on the European shores of the Bosphorus. As the first member of the Leading Hotels of the World in Turkey, The Ciragan Palace Hotel Kempinski İstanbul is actually two hotels: the restored Sultan's Palace itself and a grand deluxe hotel featuring five star luxury.

Sultan Murat V, deposed during a military takeover, was held prisoner here with his family until his death in 1904. After this the palace became the new location for parliament and was opened on November 14, 1909. Parliament convened here for just two months before a fire, which broke out in the central heating vents, destroyed the entire palace in just under five hours, leaving only a stone shell. Priceless antiques, paintings and books were lost, along with many vital documents.

In 1946, Parliament gave the palace, its outbuildings and grounds, to İstanbul Municipality where it was used as a dumping ground for sand and other construction materials. It was also used as a swimming pool and was a football ground for the local team.

In its new incarnation the Palace has received the following awards:  Condé Nast Traveler - Top 100, The Best in the World,   Gourmet - The World's Best Hotels,   Condé Nast Traveler - 2000 Gold List, Best Places to Stay in the World,   Institutional Investor - The World's best hotels,  Travel & Leisure - Eating Well in Istanbul,  Architectural Digest - Hotels Around the World.

To ease the jet lag and transition into vacation mode I settle in for a Traditional Turkish Bath- "Kese" at the Çırağan Health Club. The first  part is  a warm soak and massage for complete body relaxation.  It finishes with a refreshing body scrub- Ottoman style.  There is nothing like the luxurious tub, smells of ocean and earth scents,  and peaceful music.

Seabourn Spirit #1

The intimate, all-suite Seabourn Spirit is once again the highest-rated cruise ship in the world in the 2005 Conde Nast Traveler Readers' Poll. The ultra luxury ship was awarded the same title in the 2003 poll. Spirit's overall score of 97.7 was bolstered by perfect scores of 100 in the categories of "Itineraries" and "Crew/Service." In addition, the magazine's readers rated the ship's value as "Excellent."

Spirit's identical sisters, Seabourn Pride and Seabourn Legend, shared the spotlight with admirable scores in their own rights. Pride earned a perfect 100 for "Crew/Service" and Legend took the top spot in the small ship category for "Food/Dining," barely edging ahead of second-place Spirit by two-tenths of a point.