The short answer: the most expensive hotel ever built is Marina Bay Sands in Singapore, at a reported US$5.5 billion to construct, close to US$8 billion including the land. Nearly every entry below is a casino mega-resort, where the billions went into gaming floors, malls and theatres rather than the bedrooms. Emirates Palace in Abu Dhabi is the priciest pure luxury hotel.
By the Hotels for Kings Editorial Team · Last updated: June 10, 2026
We may earn a commission when you book through links on this page, at no extra cost to you. Rankings are editorial, we never accept payment for placement. Costs below are the most widely cited nominal construction figures, cross-checked against multiple reports; where sources disagree, we say so rather than pick the largest number.
Quick comparison
| Hotel | City | Reported cost | Opened | Type |
|---|
| Marina Bay Sands | Singapore | ~US$5.5 bn | 2010 | Casino resort |
| Resorts World Sentosa | Singapore | ~US$4.9 bn | 2010 to 2012 | Casino resort |
| Wynn Palace | Macau | ~US$4.2 bn | 2016 | Casino resort |
| The Cosmopolitan | Las Vegas | ~US$3.9 bn | 2010 | Casino resort |
| Fontainebleau | Las Vegas | ~US$3.7 bn | 2023 | Casino resort |
| Emirates Palace | Abu Dhabi | ~US$3 bn+ | 2005 | Pure luxury |
How we ranked and verified this
We rank by reported construction cost, the bill to build the property, using the most widely cited nominal figures from contemporary reporting and the operators themselves. These numbers are estimates, not audited accounts: some include land and financing, some do not, and none here are inflation-adjusted, so a 2005 hotel and a 2023 one are not strictly comparable. Where a figure is disputed we note the range. Every hotel listed is open and operating in 2026. We also separate casino integrated resorts from pure luxury hotels, because lumping them together is what makes most "most expensive" lists misleading.
The ranked list
1
Singapore
~US$5.5 bn · opened 2010
Why it's number one: the most expensive hotel, and standalone casino resort, ever built. Widely reported at around US$5.5 billion to construct and close to US$8 billion including the land, Marina Bay Sands opened in 2010 with three 55-storey towers carrying the boat-shaped SkyPark and its 150-metre infinity pool, plus a casino, a mall, a museum and a convention centre. The infinity pool alone became one of the most recognisable hotel images in the world.
Who it's for: first-time Singapore visitors who want the landmark and the rooftop pool. What to book: a high room with bay views for SkyPark access.
The honest part: it is a vast, busy resort, not an intimate luxury hotel. Rooms are good rather than exceptional for the price, the pool gets crowded, and most of that record cost sits in the casino and mall you may never use. You pay for the view and the address.
Source: contemporary construction reporting on Marina Bay Sands; figures vary between roughly US$5.5 bn (build) and US$8 bn (with land).
Read our Marina Bay Sands review →
2
Sentosa, Singapore
Resorts World Sentosa
~US$4.9 bn · opened 2010 to 2012
Why it's here: Singapore's other mega-resort, reported at around US$4.9 billion, built across 2010 to 2012 on Sentosa island. The complex bundles several hotels, a casino, Universal Studios Singapore and the S.E.A. Aquarium into one of the costliest integrated resorts ever built, with the spend spread across attractions rather than a single tower.
Who it's for: families who want theme parks and an aquarium on the doorstep. What to book: one of the higher-end hotels within the resort, such as the waterfront suites.
The honest part: this is a theme-park resort first and a luxury stay second. The headline cost reflects the attractions, not the rooms, and the atmosphere is family-entertainment rather than refined escape.
Source: reported construction cost ~US$4.93 bn (about US$6.7 bn in 2022 dollars).
Browse Singapore luxury hotels →
3
Macau
Wynn Palace
~US$4.2 bn · opened 2016
Why it's here: Steve Wynn's Cotai statement, reported at around US$4.2 billion when it opened in 2016. The resort is built around a performance lake with cable cars gliding over it, a serious art collection and some of Macau's most opulent suites, alongside the inevitable casino floor.
Who it's for: travellers who want the most polished, design-led of the Macau giants. What to book: a Fountain-view room overlooking the performance lake.
The honest part: Macau is a gaming city, and Wynn Palace is built for high-roller traffic. Outside the casino and the lake show, there is less of a destination than the price suggests, and the resort can feel quiet between gaming peaks.
Source: reported construction cost ~US$4.2 bn at 2016 opening.
Browse Macau luxury hotels →
4
Las Vegas, United States
The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas
~US$3.9 bn · opened 2010
Why it's here: reported at about US$3.9 billion when it opened in December 2010, the Cosmopolitan was for a time the most expensive hotel in the United States. Its design-forward towers, residential-style rooms with wraparound terraces over the Strip, and a buzzy bar and restaurant scene made it the cool address on the Strip.
Who it's for: Strip visitors who want style, terraces and nightlife over a sprawling resort. What to book: a Terrace Studio facing the Bellagio fountains.
The honest part: it opened into the financial crisis and changed hands at a heavy loss, a reminder that the most expensive to build is not the most profitable. As a Strip casino hotel, the gaming floor and crowds are part of the deal.
Source: reported construction cost ~US$3.9 bn; opened December 15, 2010.
Browse Las Vegas luxury hotels →
5
Las Vegas, United States
Fontainebleau Las Vegas
~US$3.7 bn · opened 2023
Why it's here: the newest entry on the list, opened in December 2023 at a reported US$3.7 billion after one of the longest stop-start construction sagas in Las Vegas history, begun in the 2000s and stalled for over a decade. The blue-glass tower brought 3,600-plus rooms and a fresh luxury casino resort to the north end of the Strip.
Who it's for: travellers who want the newest big-box luxury resort in Las Vegas. What to book: a higher-floor Strip-view room in the main tower.
The honest part: it sits at the quieter north end of the Strip, a real walk from the central action, and as a brand-new mega-resort it is still finding its feet. The long-delayed history is a cautionary tale about pouring billions into Las Vegas concrete.
Source: Fontainebleau Las Vegas opened December 2023 at a reported US$3.7 bn.
Browse Las Vegas luxury hotels →
6
Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates
~US$3 bn+ · opened 2005
Why it's here: the most expensive pure luxury hotel ever built, with no casino in sight. Reported at over US$3 billion when it opened in 2005, Emirates Palace, now run as Emirates Palace Mandarin Oriental, spreads along a private beach with its own marina, a domed gold-leaf interior, vast suites and famously gilded touches. It is the one entry here built purely as a grand hotel rather than an integrated resort.
Who it's for: travellers who want sheer palatial scale and an Arabian-grandeur landmark in Abu Dhabi. What to book: a sea-view room in the main palace wings.
The honest part: the cost figure is the most disputed on this list, and the palace's monumental scale can feel more like a state building than an intimate hotel. The grandeur is the point; if you want a quiet, design-led boutique, this is the opposite.
Source: widely reported at over US$3 bn; opened February 2005, now Emirates Palace Mandarin Oriental.
Explore the Mandarin Oriental collection →
The honest takeaway: expensive to build is not the same as best
Read this list as a measure of scale and ambition, not of how good the stay is. Five of the six are integrated casino resorts where billions went into gaming, retail and entertainment, so the construction cost says almost nothing about the bedroom you sleep in. Emirates Palace is the exception that proves the rule: built as a hotel rather than a casino, it still cost a fortune, and even then the spend bought grandeur rather than intimacy.
If you want the most refined stay rather than the most expensive landmark, smaller luxury hotels that cost a fraction to build routinely outclass these giants on service and design. For the rooms that command the highest nightly rates rather than the biggest build budgets, see our guide to the most expensive hotel suites in the world.
Frequently asked questions
- What is the most expensive hotel ever built?
- Marina Bay Sands in Singapore is the most expensive hotel ever built, widely reported at around US$5.5 billion to construct and close to US$8 billion including the land. It opened in 2010 and is considered the most expensive standalone casino resort in the world. Most of the other costliest hotels are also casino mega-resorts.
- Why are the most expensive hotels mostly casinos?
- Because the money goes far beyond the bedrooms. These are integrated resorts where the budget covers vast casino floors, shopping malls, theatres, convention space and attractions, so the headline cost reflects an entire entertainment complex, not the hotel alone. A pure luxury hotel rarely needs that scale of spending, which is why so few non-casino hotels make the list.
- What is the most expensive non-casino luxury hotel ever built?
- Emirates Palace in Abu Dhabi, now operated as Emirates Palace Mandarin Oriental, is the most expensive traditional luxury hotel ever built, reported at over US$3 billion. It opened in 2005 with no casino, a gold-leaf interior and its own marina, and is often cited, with some dispute over the figure, as the costliest pure hotel in the world.
- Are these construction figures reliable?
- Treat them as well-sourced estimates, not exact accounts. Reported costs vary depending on whether they include land, financing and fit-out, and whether they are adjusted for inflation, so a 2005 hotel and a 2023 one are not strictly comparable. We use the most widely cited nominal construction figures and flag where sources disagree rather than pick the largest number.
- Is the most expensive hotel to build also the best hotel?
- No, and that is the honest point of this list. Construction cost measures scale and spectacle, not service, intimacy or design quality. The most expensive hotels to build are enormous resorts that excel at scale; many smaller luxury hotels that cost a fraction to build deliver a far more refined stay. High cost buys a landmark, not necessarily a great room.
- What is the newest hotel on the most-expensive list?
- Fontainebleau Las Vegas, which opened in December 2023 at a reported US$3.7 billion after a famously stop-start construction history that began in the 2000s. It is the most expensive hotel built in the United States in recent years and the newest entry among the world's costliest hotels.
