Overview
If you're not the heiress of a Russian billionaire or a Victoria's Secret model, then it's probably unlikely that you have the spare cash to buy yourself a private island or hold your 21st birthday on one. Despair not. Do what you can to rustle up $1500 and you'll have the option of spending the night on a man-made island: Africa's first underwater hotel room.
Opened as the Manta Resort's newest attraction on November 1, 2013, the subaquatic accommodation floats in a circular blue hole in the coral reef near Pemba Island, off the East Coast of Tanzania. The top floor — above sea-level — features an open-air deck where guests can relax, take in the idyllic Indian Ocean surroundings and soak up some sun or gaze at the stars. The bottom floor, submerged to the depth of four metres, is a bedroom, walled entirely in glass and affording dreamy views of passing sea-life. The nocturnal scenes, illuminated by spotlights, have been described as rather surreal.
The vacation innovation was designed by Swedish installation artist and sculptor Mikael Genberg. He's the brains behind the Utter Inn, an underwater room built in a lake near Stockholm, and is currently contemplating putting a Swedish-style cottage on the moon.
Funding was achieved via a newly formed company registered in Zanzibar, Genberg Art UW Limited, which represents a collaboration between several Swedish and Tanzanian investors, including Genberg Underwater Hotels, Christer and Jacky Abrahamsson, Hans Elis Johansson and Michael Wild.
Via PSFK.