The 12 most expensive skyscrapers built in the last 20 years
In 2006, Indian business magnate Mukesh D. Ambani built the 27-floor Antilia skyscraper, which serves as his private residence.
At $1 billion, Antilia is the world's most expensive residential property behind Buckingham Palace. It's also designed to survive a magnitude 8 earthquake on the Richter scale.
Source: Business Insider
The Seat of the European Central Bank (ECB) in Frankfurt, Germany cost $1.25 billion to construct in 2013.
Source: EU Business
The twin skyscraper houses the headquarters of the ECB, the central bank for the euro.
The tallest building in the UK, it features residences, a hotel, restaurants, offices, a business school, shops, a clinic, and an observatory.
Source: The-Shard.com
Stretching 101 stories, the aptly named Taipei 101 was built in 2004. It hovers over Taiwan and cost $1.8 billion.
Source: Business Insider
The skyscraper's ground floor features a giant sphere painted gold. The other levels contain offices, shops, and a restaurant.
Built in 2007, the $2.05 billion Palazzo Casino is on the Las Vegas Strip.
Source: The Las Vegas Review Journal
Italian Renaissance architecture influenced the hotel and casino's design.
Constructed in Dubai in 2012, the $2.17 billion Princess Tower houses shops and 763 luxury condos.
Source: World Atlas
The view from the higher floors is stunning.
The Venetian is a luxury hotel, mall, and casino in Macau. Built in 2005, the 738-foot resort cost $2.4 billion.
Source: The New York Times
In the center of the mall, there's a manmade "river" (modeled after the famous one in Venice), where shoppers can take gondola rides.
With a price tag of $3.8 billion, One World Trade Center opened in 2012. Located in New York City, it's next to the site of the original WTC, which is now a memorial for the victims of the September 11 attacks.
Source: New York magazine
In the elevator going up to the observation deck, there's a timelapse projection that shows what Manhattan has looked like every year since 1500.
In 2010, a set of Las Vegas high-rises called the Cosmopolitan was built for $3.9 billion.
Source: Arquitectonica
One of the Cosmopolitan's main attractions is its giant glowing chandelier. There's also a casino, shops, restaurants, a theater, a gym and spa, and a convention space.
With a price tag of $4.1 billion to construct in 2005, the 614-foot-tall Wynn resort and casino sits on the Las Vegas Strip.
Source: Bloomberg
Here's what it looks like inside. In 2016, it started a $1.6 billion expansion, set to be finished in 2020.
Source: Bloomberg
Three towers make up the Marina Bay Sands Resort, which opened in 2010 in Singapore.
With a cost of $5.7 billion, it's billed as one of the world's most expensive casino properties, though it also includes a hotel, a convention center, a mall, a museum, two theaters, seven restaurants, and a skating rink.
Source: Fast Company
At a whopping $15 billion, the Abraj Al Bait features seven towers completed from 2007 to 2012. Located in Mecca, the Saudi Arabian government owns the complex.
Source: The Guardian
At the peak, there's a massive gold-painted crescent, which appears in white on Mecca's flag.
Inside, there are restaurants, a five-story shopping mall, luxury hotels and condos, and a parking garage.
The towers can be seen from inside the holy mosque of Mecca, where crowds flock to pray.
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