There's no denying that Dubai's new public transportation system is sleek. It is the longest automated metro system in the world and offers luxury compartments with Wi-Fi and air conditioning. The question is, will anyone be riding on it? The Dubai Metro recently went into service but in a place where gas is cheap and privacy is at a premium it's not clear exactly who will be the passengers. Some have speculated that Dubai's car-centric culture may find switching over to this type of transportation a bit difficult but it is expected to help ease Dubai's legendary traffic snarls.

The Metro was to provide easy transport for expatriates and tourists but with the economic future of the country in turmoil and a mass exodus that includes dusty luxury cars being left in airport parking lots, the Metro could be yet another Dubai big idea which is looking increasingly foolhardy. But let's not write the world's largest driverless train off quite yet. BBC News surveyed a couple of young people who live and work in Dubai who seem excited to ride the train and work it into their normal schedule.

What in the world is happening to The World? The London Times reports that one of the world's most ambitious building projects, a series of islands in the Arabian Gulf shaped like a map of the Earth, may be in real trouble. We've been following this project for years watching as various people laid claim, or were rumored to have laid claim to country-named islands. Richard Branson even planted a Union Jack on one of the islands as one of his infamous stunts. But now the project is becoming an ocean wasteland, a half-finished project of rocks and sand surrounded by breakwaters. Work has stopped inside the manmade lagoon and instead of neatly defined islands in the shape of recognizable countries and continents, ragged sandy blobs pushed barely above the water remain. The Times article quotes a Dubai property agent as saying that the project has been cancelled, a fact which leaves many investors in the lurch.

The sudden fall of Istithmar World, is one of the shadowiest and most interesting stories going on right now. Bloomberg reports that the Dubai sovereign wealth fund, is halting investments as part of a restructuring effort. The fund has been on one crazy decade-long spending spree of more than $25 billion that include shares in Yacht Haven Grande in the Virgin Islands, Barneys New York, the W Hotel Union Square in New York City and the Queen Elizabeth 2 yacht.

But as Dubai's fortunes have undergone a major shift in the past year or two the load of all those investments has become particularly onerous. One major burden is the CityCenter project in Las Vegas which Istithmar shares with MGM Mirage. Isithmar may end up selling the fund or some of its assets. Some say the fund will cease to exist which could put some of its investments in danger. Rumors of a sale of the Queen Elizabeth 2 and of a possible bankruptcy filing for Barneys have been swirling for weeks. For the most part Dubai tries to keep its financial flailings out of the public eye but that may not be possible this time.

Like the United States, the United Arab Emirates, wants to encourage young drivers to wear their seatbelts. But the UAE has a unique approach to their nationwide safety campaign. Instead of an ad campaign and the fear of tickets they are creating the Fashionable Seatbelt campaign which will be launched after Ramadan. Seatbelts will be covered with images of the national flag, sports logos and logos of fashion houses like Gucci. Figures from the Health Authority Abu Dhabi say that only 11 percent of Emiratis wear their seatbelts. Designers will be invited to submit ideas for the seatbelts and the plan is to eventually have the color of your seatbelt as something that is chosen when you pick out your car. It seems like an interesting idea but knowing how notoriously litigious Gucci and other luxury brands are when ti comes to protecting their intellectual property, I think that the campaign might have a tough time using the fashion logos.

[Thanks, Ben!]

Many duty-free shops in international airports sell expensive wine and spirits but a new shop at Dubai International Airport's Terminal 3 is one of the most extravagant yet. The shop, Le Clos, sells many of the world's most sought-after wines including not just recent vintages but some legendary bottles like the Chateau Petrus 1947, Château Cheval Blanc 1961 and Domaine de la Romanée-Conti 2005. Their website shows that their range of vintages starts in 1945.

The shop is staffed with wine advisors with expertise on specific regions and varietals and whisky experts are also on staff for help with selecting the best single malts. There are several options for buying. You can pre-order through the online store and collect your bottles in the store before you fly out of Dubai. Or if you are making a return journey back into Dubai you can choose your wines ahead of time and pick them up after your flight.

[via Decanter]

A few months back we saw that plans to turn the Queen Elizabeth 2 cruise ship into a floating hotel in Dubai had been delayed. The owner, developer Nakheel had planned to moor it at the Palm Jumeirah development but now word has come that the ship may be on the move. The AP has an email from Nakheel saying that other ports have expressed interest in hosting the ship. Nakheel had purchased the ship for a reported $100 million and had plans to recreate the original decor and fittings of the ship from when she was launched in 1967 only with a modern day spin that included adding a 500-seat theater and building a massive spa complex. Those plans are are on hold as Nahkeel, which has developments across Dubai, is considering all offers and has applied to anchor the ship in Cape Town, South Africa.

The email said that the company is working "to ensure opportunities to experience QE2 in her current condition are maximized whilst ensuring her important heritage is at all times protected." This seems like more continued spin from Nakheel which has been hard hit by Dubai's real estate slump and tourism decline. The company has shelved a variety of projects including Donald Trump's planned hotel and has received some of the $10 billion in government bailout funds. There are also reports of widespread layoffs. The company has said before it has no plans to sell the ship. There is widespread speculation as to whether the company will be able to pay off $3.5 billion worth of debt coming due this year so it seems that they might be willing to sell the QE2 if they can find a buyer.

The ultra-opulent Burj Al Arab hotel, symbol of Dubai's excess, has just received four new custom Rolls-Royce Phantom limousines, pushing its total fleet of Phantoms to 10. Produced by Rolls' Bespoke Programme, the cars' interiors feature Grecian key marquetry applied to the wood veneer, and the distinctive Burj Al Arab logo embroidered into the leather headrests. The cars are all white like the exterior of the hotel itself, which is home to the $18,000-per-night Royal Suite, one of the world's most expensive hotel rooms. Last year we wrote about the bespoke Rolls created for the Four Seasons George V in Paris with a custom Hermès interior.

A mansion in London's posh Belgrave Square has hit the market for £100 million, or about $150 million, tying it with Candy Spelling's The Manor in Beverly Hills for the title of the world's most expensive estate (in terms of current listings). The six-floor, 21,000-sq.-ft. white-stucco-fronted building has 12 bedrooms, 20-ft. ceilings, a basement swimming pool, gym, media room, and every imaginable luxury fitting. The property has been gutted and revamped by Lebanese developer Musa Salem, the London Times reports.

Across the Square another house has recently come on the market for £80 million, or about $120 million. The eight-bedroom, 20,000-sq.-ft. house is being sold by Saudi Arabia's Juffali family, following the death of its owner. Belgrave Square is also home to Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska and Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al-Maktoum, the Emir of Dubai, as well as several embassies. The Square was built for the 2nd Earl Grosvenor, later the 1st Marquess of Westminster, in the 1820s and is one of the grandest in London.

It seems that despite a disastrous economy in which he lost a reported $20 billion, Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich is pressing on with plans for the Eclipse (above), the $355 million megayacht which will be the world's biggest upon completion next year. The 555-ft. ship, which includes a military-grade missile defense system, armor plating and bullet-proof windows, will literally eclipse the recently-debuted $350 million, 531-ft. Dubai owned by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al-Maktoum, the Emir of Dubai.

There has been much speculation over whether Abramovich would shelve the Eclipse and / or sell off some of his other superyachts such as the 377-ft. Pelorus, but the Moscow Times reports he plans to keep them all. In fact, Abramovich is said to have already purchased a berth for the Eclipse at Porto Montenegro, the new megayacht marina under construction in the former communist country being billed as "the Monaco of the Balkans" (which we reported on last year).

Luxury brands are struggling to find footing in today's rough economic climate but there was no sign of that during Cartier's official opening of its biggest boutique in the Middle East. The over 7,500-square-foot showroom in the Dubai Mall is the brand's third in store in Dubai. The opening event was attended by actress Monica Bellucci and Bollywood stars including Anil Kapoor.

The store had its soft open three months ago but Cartier President and Chief Executive Officer Bernard Fornas tells the Khaleej Times that even with the economic slowdown business has been good and that the store is an investment in the future. When the economy recovers, Cartier will be waiting with a huge store in one of the world's biggest malls. Dubai remains a key spot for luxury brands because it is visited not just by rich Emiratis but by the emerging wealthy from China and India.

Here is the U.S. people are trying to hide their private jet usage but over in Dubai, grocery store mogul, Dhananjay Datar flaunted his with a press conference in the sky aboard a Boeing 737 Business Jet. Datar is the chairman of Al Adil Trading and the press conference was to celebrate 25 years of his company. Al Adil Trading sells more than 4000 food and household items in the United Arab Emirates such as Indian spices, chutneys, rice, tea and coffee.

During the airborne press conference Dhananjay Datar cut a cake and told the gathered press that his wife, Vandana Datar was responsible for his success and continued profit. He gave her a new Rolls Royce Phantom as a token of his appreciation.

Xpress has pictures of the flight and reports that guests were taken in three stretch limos from the Four Points Sheraton Hotel, Bur Dubai to the airport where a chartered Royal Jet airline awaited them. The guests were given a three hour tour over the Emirates, entertained by a magician, and served a fine meal.

[Thanks, Ben]

Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al-Maktoum, the Emir of Dubai, has finally unveiled the largest yacht in the world. Formerly known as Project Panhandle / Golden Star, the 531-ft. Dubai (above) was originally commissioned by Prince Jefri of Brunei. Al-Maktoum purchased the partly-constructed behemoth in 2006, and had it transported from Blohm & Voss in Hamburg to the the newly formed Platinum Yachts shipyard in Dubai for completion (renamed then Project Platinum), at a total cost of about $350 million. With eight decks, the Dubai can accommodate 115 people including a crew of 88. In addition to the swimming pool, Jacuzzis, helipad and multiple dining areas, saloons, guest and VIP suites, the yacht features two owner's suites on the sixth and seventh decks and two heli-observations rooms on the seventh and eighth decks, Superyacht Times reports.

The interior is garish in the extreme, a floating Las Vegas casino by way of the UAE. She has a maximum speed of 26 knots and a cruising speed of 25 knots with a range of 8,500 nautical miles. The Dubai may not hold its world's largest yacht title for long, however; as we reported back in October, Russian oligarch Roman Abramovich commissioned an even larger yacht, the $355 million, 555-ft. Eclipse. It remains to be seen whether the economic downturn, in which Abramovich lost several billion dollars, will hamper completion of the yacht which includes a military-grade missile defense system. The Eclipse is also being equipped with armor plating surrounding the bridge and Abramovich's master suite, as well as bullet-proof windows.

One side effect of the implosion of Dubai's economy which my colleague Deidre Woollard reported on last month is the plummeting value of trophy properties owned by certain superstars. Celebs including David and Victoria Beckham (above), Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, and Michael Jackson are losing £80,000 or over $100,000 a week as the luxury real estate they purchased in the over-inflated Emirate plunges in value, the London Daily Mirror reports. Posh properties that were worth £3.2 million (or about $4.4 million) in October now on the market for £1.6 million (or about $2.2 million), i.e. only half as much.

"The Dubai market has fallen off a cliff," Jack Whisker of luxury agents Dream Property Dubai tells the paper. "The credit crunch hit us suddenly because all the foreign investors lost confidence. It has hit the higher-value properties the hardest." In January Deidre reported that the Beckhams, who have a luxury villa on the Palm Jumeirah complex, were considering purchasing a second property in the Burj Dubai tower, so they could be doubly exposed. Brad and Angelina reportedly own one of the artificial islands in the out-there development known as The World.

Back in 2007, the plan to turn the Queen Elizabeth 2 cruise ship into a floating hotel in Dubai was just another lavish project in Dubai. Now this project, like so many others, may be in trouble. The QE2 was bought by government-owned developer Nakheel for a reported $100 million. It was to sit on at a pier in the Palm Jumeirah development as another tourist destination. The company announced they would recreate the original decor and fittings of the ship from when she was launched in 1967 only with a modern day spin that included adding a 500-seat theater and building a massive spa complex.

The London Times says that because Nakheel has many other projects including the Palm Jumeirah and the Trump Tower, and because of the significant economic problems affecting Dubai, the QE2 project may end up being delayed. It was originally supposed to be completed this year. Nakheel told the Sunday Times that the conversion will go forward and that has no plans to sell the ship.

In order to draw tourists to Dubai, the Emirates airlines, the Dubai Department of Tourism and Commerce Marketing, Dubai hoteliers and destination management companies, have launched the 'Keep Discovering Dubai' campaign to promote tourism from around the world.