Britain's Prime Minister Gordon Brown is having a grand tour of the Middle East. The Telegraph reports that the Prime Minister stayed at the lavish seven-star Emirates Palace in Abu Dhabi on the third night of his tour of the Gulf. The hotel, which offers a $1 million vacation package, is one of the world's most lavish hotels. Luckily Brown didn't have to pay, Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown prince of Abu Dhabi footed the bill. Brown's suite included three bedrooms and a domed living room. Brown wrapped up his tour Tuesday in Dubai.

The battle for the world's tallest building is already a fiercely contested one. How else can you get in the record books? How about picking another category? Developers Abu Dhabi National Exhibitions Company (ADNEC) are working on Capital Gate, a building that will enter Guinness Book of Records as the "World's most inclined tower." The building leans at an angle of 18 degrees, a small amount perhaps but compare that the the most famous askew building, the leaning Tower of Pisa which leans less than four degrees. Creating a building with a lean like this is no easy feat, it requires extra steel reinforcements to compensate for the gravitational, wind and seismic pressures caused by the tilt of the building. The tower is part of a $2.2 billion business and residential project.

More bad news for the Queen of England - she has fallen to 12th place on Forbes' list of the world's richest royals. Earlier this month we reported that the value of her London residence, Buckingham Palace, had fallen by a whopping $100 million thanks to declining property values.

Now Elizabeth II is suffering the added indignity of languishing on the rich list, as her measly $650 million fortune puts her well behind the UAE's oil-rich rulers. In the No. 1 spot for the first time is King Bhumibol Adulyadej of Thailand, with a net worth of $35 billion, who apparently shot up the list as a result of admitting he was richer than previously thought.

At No. 2 is Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, president of the UAE and hereditary ruler of Abu Dhabi, with a net worth of $23 billion. No. 3 is King Abdullah bin Abdul Aziz of Saudi Arabia, worth $21 billion. And Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid, ruler of Dubai, clocks in at No. 5 with $18 billion. See the complete list here.

The over-the-top Emirates Palace hotel in Abu Dhabi is offering a $1 million, week-long stay which it claims is the world's most expensive holiday package. The Palace Suite package includes first-class airline tickets, a chauffeur-driven Maybach for the week, a personal butler, daily spa treatments, and day trips via private jet, the Gulf-based Khaleej Times Online reports. The offer is being made as an attempt to earn the hotel a slot in the Guinness Book of World Records, and part of the proceeds will be donated to charities in the U.A.E., the paper reports. The luxe day trips include jetting to Iran to weave Persian carpets and to Bahrain to dive for deep sea pearls, which will then be set for you in custom-designed jewellery.

Abu Dhabi is catching up with Dubai in terms of ambitious projects. The latest is their own island project. The Desert Islands will be a tourism destination off the coast of Abu Dhabi's western coastline. It will be eight separate islands including the Sir Bani Yas eco-resort and an onshore gate. The islands will include a nature preserve, a cultural destination and a showcase for world-class environmental, conservation and ecological tourism. The Desert Islands comprise the former Royal nature reserve of Sir Bani Yas Island, Dalma Island and the Discovery Islands – six nearby offshore outcrops, all of which will be linked by a ferry and hydrofoil service, water taxis and sea planes.

The 'Marsa Jabel Dhanna' gate, which will include a 150-room beachfront hotel in Jabel Dhanna and will be the destination's arrivals, departure and logistics hub. Sir Bani Yas Island will be at the heart of the destination and the Arabian National Park, which will be home to free roaming animals, will take up more than three quarters of the entire island with resorts, eco-lodges and campsites, and at its center, the Falcon Lodge Peak, where visitors can take lessons in falconry. Dalma Island, will provide a heritage experience with archaeological finds and a place where traditional fishing, farming and aquaculture livelihoods continue. Two of the Discovery Islands will be protected areas reserved for existing breeding grounds for birds and turtles, two will be devoted to exclusive resort and the remaining two islands will provide a 'wild camp' experience delivering the experience of staying on a deserted island.

The first place will be completed in 2010 and the hope is that the resort will attract over a million tourists by the time the resort becomes fully operational in 2017. An exhibition devoted to the Desert Islands has opened at the Emirates Palace Hotel in the UAE capital city.

Ferrari is developing what may be the new "end all, be all" of automotive adventure -- the Ferrari Theme Park, scheduled to open in 2009 on Yas Island, just a 30-minute drive from Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.

The $40 million project promises to offer up everything from roller coasters to a pit-lane team experience, go-karts, virtual reality racing simulators, a racing school, and a g-force simulator that helps laypeople experience the forces felt by race car drivers. An interactive museum will also be at hand, particularly useful for cooling off and waiting for your raging endorphins to ebb.

In addition to the park being a sweet tourist destination for gearheads, the economic benefit will be a great perk for Abu Dhabi, which is currently trying to lessen its economic dependence upon the oil business.

[Source: The New York Times via Newsvine]

As we've noted before, caviar production has slowed due to a ban on wild sturgeon from the Caspian Sea, which has thus far only been lifted for Iran. Now Bin Salem GTE has announced a massive project to produce caviar in the Abu Dhabi Industrial city. The new caviar producing plant will cost over $54 million and the caviar will be produced per international standards and treaties. The first phase of the project will be completed in 16 months and the hope to produce around 32 tons (yes, tons) of caviar as well as smoked fish meat.

We received some great pictures from the "Masters of Excellence" in Abu Dhabi May 8-11.  My favorite was this picture which features the massive Emirates Hotel In the background. The event took place at The Emirates Hotel and involved gala dinners fashions shows from designers and jewelers including Calvin Klein, Harry Winston and Graff diamonds. The event was attended by VIPs from the Gulf region.  As we've seen recently Abu Dhabi is making a bid for the luxury market that has been luring people to Dubai using the same formula of lavish hotels, innovative architecture and well-respected luxury brand names.

 As this article in the Financial Times points out,  Abu Dhabi is the richest of the seven emirates and is now attracting more and more tourists and high-flying spenders. Oil was discovered in Abu Dhabi in 1958 and since then the city has seen tremendous growth.   After the jump, pictures from the events including the fashions shows and some stunning creations from Graff jewelers.

A new luxury event will be taking place in Abu Dhabi May 8-11. The event will be taking place at the Emirates hotel, the massive golden palace that is the most lavish hotel in the world. The  “Masters of Excellence” event  will feature brands like Patek Philippe, Valentino, Chopard, Bulgari and Rolls Royce . The four-day event will draw  over 7,000 VIPs from the Gulf region for four nights each one with its own theme: Italy, France, England and America. Each night will have fashion and jewelry presentations. The American evening will feature press collections from Calvin Klein, Donna Karan and Harry Winston Jewelry. The event is being organized by Emotion, a luxury event management company, and being put on by renowned fashion choreographer Bernard Trux who has been behind a variety of innovative fashion shows in Paris and around the world past 35 years. The event is meant to be a "coming out" party for Abu Dhabi as it establishes itself as a luxury destination.

More places to play in Abu Dhabi, the Danat Resort Jebel Dhanna, a five star beach resort, has opened six waterfront villas at the west coast resort. The new villas join the 109 rooms and suites and offer privacy as well as amenities like a living room, kitchenette and soaker tubs in the bathrooms. The villas have sea views and satellite television. The villas also offer access to a private 800-metre sand beach as well as two floodlit tennis courts and two squash courts, swimming pool, the Body and Soul Health Club, plus water sports and beach activities. Guests may borrow MP3 players for use at the pool or beach and enjoy a free DVD movie to unwind. Villas start from AED 1500 for a one bedroom and AED 2000 for two bedroom.