Inside Dubai’s new ultra-lux neighbourhoods with giant bespoke £100MILLION mansions on ‘Billionaire Island’

DUBAI is splurging on whole ultra-luxury neighbourhoods of bespoke £100million homes built on man-made islands. The mansions on one of these - dubbed Billionaire Island - almost always come with private beaches and rotating parking tables that automatically turn cars to face the right direction. Other houses popping up are fitted with cinemas, spas and private elevators. The new round of super-mansions is being designed to the peak of luxury as developers court the world's wealthy elite.

The palace-like properties can be built to-order and no custom request is off the table - provided the money follows. Residents can order exclusive art collections, custom furniture and any style of interior design as part of the package. One of the new mansions boasts a huge, retractable glass dome in its centre covering a pool and a spa. Another features a swimming pool with a movable floor that rises up to meld with garden tiles during parties.

A builder even transported a giant glass wall thousands of miles to create the perfect sea view. The client demanded a single pane of glass measuring 17m by 4m that could sink into the ground at the click of a button. The German manufacturer took 45 days to decide whether it could complete the order - and had to gain special permissions to transport the glass when it did. Wissam Damaa, whose company Palace Group built the house, said: “Most of our clients have multiple homes in cities across the world and they’re very specific about what they like and what they expect.".

Price are - predictably - eye-watering, with most in the range of £50 to £100million. Mark Phoenix, CEO of Sankari Properties, said: "The upper end of the market is the most profitable. "If done properly a developer can sell for the maximum sort of prices.". Mark's company is currently developing a £1billion ultra-luxury tower. Prices and demand for super exclusive properties sky-rocketed. The rush on exclusive properties is part of Dubai trying to diversify its economy so it isn't so reliant on oil.

Last year, a record-breaking 435 homes worth more than $10million - surpassing New York and Hong Kong. And Dubai could offer the world's fat cats more bang for their buck. Per square foot, the price there is just a third of that in New York, and fifth of that in London. Mahdi Amjad, founder of ultra-luxury developer Omniyat, said: "We benchmark our buildings against buildings in New York and we find that for similar ticket prices, or maybe lower ticket prices, you get by far more space and by far more experiences and amenities.".