Located four kilometres off the coast of Dubai, The World is an archipelago of 300 artificial islands designed by the Emir of Dubai, Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum. Intended to house luxury hotels and second homes (including sustainable floating villas!), they form a map of the world visible from the sky as far as the space station! Initiated in 2003, the construction of this multi-billion-dollar mega-project is still going on today. 

At the heart of The World, The Heart of Europe comprises several islands designed as real European beachfront resorts with hotels, retail and restaurants. They will offer visitors experiences that are unique in the world: an underwater hotel complex on the island of Venice or a "Raining Street" reproducing the Mediterranean climate with rain on command on the Côte d'Azur island.

The latter will also house a tropical forest and a swimming pool with a record surface area of 12,000 sqm! Josef Kleindienst, president of the eponymous group, which is developing The Heart of Europe, sees it as "a luxury destination combining the best of European culture and hospitality with Emirati luxury."

For its first phase of opening, The Heart of Europe will inaugurate on its main island the 5-star Côte d'Azur resort inspired by the legendary French Riviera. It will host four of the fifteen luxury hotels currently under development: Monaco, Cannes, Saint-Tropez and Nice.

Monaco offers a total of 198 rooms and each room offers private balconies, state of the art amenities with sea view, skyline view, Azur Suites, Party Suites and Ultimate Party Suite. Monaco will the first hotel to open its door in October. However, if you prefer to invest in Dubai, which is one of the fastest growing cities in the world, you should know that owners are offered two weeks' stay in one of its establishments every year!