Building luxurious palaces allowed the Kings, Nobles and business people to show their power and wealth. Have you wondered what’s the most expensive Palace nowadays?
The most expensive Palace is Forbidden City Complex in Beijing, China. The estimated market value of the Forbidden City along with the land and its entire contents is more than $70 billion. This is making the Palace both the most expensive Palace and real estate anywhere in the world.
You would probably think all the most expensive palaces belong to the royal family. After a few minutes of reading this article, you will be surprised that Buckingham palace is nowhere near the top of the list.
What makes Forbidden City so expensive?
Probably to ultimately realise why it is so expensive, you need to visit it in person and film it with a drone.
From a bird’s eye view you can contemplate Its actual size, it lies in 720,000 square meters of land making it one of the largest palaces in the world.
Built between 1406-1420 the complex consists of 980 buildings, reportedly encompassing 9,999 rooms.
It sounds like you would probably need a week to see it all.
The story behind the Forbidden City has an impact on value as well, serving as a home for emperors and their households for almost 500 years.
Part of that is now located in the National Museum in Taipei.
Since 2012, the Forbidden City has seen an average of 14 million visitors annually and received a record of 19 million visitors in 2019.
If you are excited to add Forbidden City to your bucket list, check out the Button below for tickets, tours and accommodation.
Versailles Palace, France $50.7 billion.
The next Palace on our list it’s one of the most extravagant and luxurious palaces ever known on the planet.
Palace of Versailles could easily hold first place on this list if not for the price difference of the market value.
Louis XIV started to expand from a simple chateau with a moat into a Palace until 1682 when the Palace became large enough to move his entire court and the French government to the Versailles.
Every country’s rulers since then contributed to the look of the architecture and design of today’s Versailles.
For example, Luis XV, installed an opera house in the north wing, for the wedding of Daphnis and Marie Antoinette.
Palace of Versailles hosted few political events like; Peace of Paris (1783), the Proclamation of the German Empire, and the end of World War l among many other events.
All these events, its magnificent architecture, and the art it possesses makes it one of the most expensive Palaces in Europe.
The Palace now is a UNESCO World Heritage historical monument, and in 2017 it received 7,700,000 visitors, making it the most visited monument after Eiffel Tower and Louvre.
Louvre Palace, France, $45,5 billion
21 km from Palaces of Versailles located in the heart of the French capital, Palaces of Louvre is the third most expensive Palace in the world.
French historian Patrice de Moncan estimates that the Louvre on its own is worth $10,5 billion and the museum’s treasure has a minimum value of $35 billion, bringing to a total of $45,5 billion.
Located on the right bank of the river Seine the Louvre has initially been a medieval fortress and became a royal palace in the 14th century.
The present-day Louvre is a massive complex of wings and pavilions which went through countless days of rebuilding and restoration.
If planning to visit Louvre, check out helpful links to tours and accommodation.
Tokyo Imperial Palace, Japan – $12.25 billion
The fourth most expensive Palace on our list is located in the eastern part of the world, in Tokyo, Japan.
Despite many people’s opinions that can’t see why this Palace is so valuable, the price of the square meter at The Tokyo Palace is $33.000.
So according to official figures in 2016, the cost of the whole complex is $12.25 billion.
Built on top of an old Edo Castle, the Palace covers 1.3 miles of land and today is the usual residence of the Emperor of Japan.
If you plan to visit the Palace, there are guided tours available for the inner area and the palace gardens, which are well worth seeing by the tourist feedback.
Winter Palace, Russia – $6.44 billion
Located in the heart of the most beautiful Russian city St Petersburg, the Winter Palace is worth $6.44 billion.
Like the other palaces mentioned above, the Winter Palace has been a home for the Russian emperors too, from 1732 to 1917.
Ones visiting you will admire the might of Imperial Russia as well as an iconic symbol of the Russian revolution resulting in the events that happened at the Palace in October 1917.
Buckingham Palace, UK – $5.04 billion
Probably one of the most famous palaces in the world as it appears consistently on tv thanks to the number of events, ceremonies and movie filming happening at the site.
The real estate firm Foxtons evaluated the Queen’s residence for $2.2 billion just the building alone.
Adding the collection of artworks, antique furniture and many other assets, Buckingham’s worth rises to $5.04 billion.
Originally a private townhouse built for the Duke of Buckingham, then in 1761 King George III bought the building and used it as a residence for Queen Charlotte.
You can visit the interior of the Palace only in the summer by taking the State Rooms tour which tickets are selling quite fast.
In rest, you only can contemplate the magnificent building behind the gates and watch the famous ceremony of changing guards
Istana Nurul Iman Palace, Brunei – $3.5 billion
Included in the World’s Guinness book for the largest living residence Istana Nurul (the Light Of Faith) took two years and more than one billion dollars to complete.
The government completed and used the castle as the attainment of Brunei’s independence from Britain on 1 January 1984.
Istana Nurul has 200.000 square meters of space which include 1788 premises, five swimming pools, 250 bathrooms and a helipad.
There are many tours available, including the boat tour where you can enjoy the view from the river of the Palace.
However, the Palace is open to the public for three days a year when His Majesty greets everyone on the occasion of Hari Raya Aidilfitri, the religious festival following the fasting month of Ramadan.
Summary
It’s mind-blowing to realise the amount of money, blood and sweat our ancestors put in such and edifices through human history.
Hope we have inspired you in taking the next adventure and when you have a spare minute don’t forget we have much more to share with you about castles and palaces.
Related Question
What Is The Biggest Palace In The World?
If we were to go based on size, the largest Palace in the world based on volume and floor space would be the Palace of the Parliament in Bucharest. On the other hand, if we go by pure area, the title belongs to the Forbidden City in Beijing.