'Most expensive suite in world' where time freeze
WeirdNews
It was so opulent that one guest, Elvis Presley, was said to have found it “too gaudy”.
TEXAS (Web Desk) - The Celestial Suite, which hosted some of the world s biggest celebrities from the King of Rock and Roll to the President of the United States, still looms over the US city of Houston, Texas.
The penthouse was the brainchild of ex-mayor Roy Hofheinz, who was building a Disneyland-style resort called the Astrodomain.
The resort boasted the Astroworld theme park, a huge stadium called the Astrodome — nicknamed the “Eighth Wonder of the World” — and a quartet of hotels.
Overlooking it all was the Celestial Suite, where guests like President Lyndon Johnson, Frank Sinatra, Muhammad Ali and Michael Jackson stayed in style atop the Astroworld Hotel.
Harper Goff, the Oscar-winning set designer and Disneyland visionary, was hired to fill the interiors with antique furniture, Tiffany glass and 24-carat gold.
Multiple themed bedrooms, a two-storey nightclub, a library, and dining room were just some of its features, all served by a private elevator.
It was so opulent that one guest, Elvis Presley, was said to have found it “too gaudy”.
It was recorded as the most expensive suite in the world by the Guinness Book of Records in 1977, costing $2,500 a night.
The hotel itself remains in operation under the Wyndham brand, but the penthouse seems to have been closed to overnight guests since the 1990s.
But new eerie photos have shown that its interiors remain “remarkably well preserved” – like a time capsule from the 1960s.
Urban explorer Lance Bradford was able to photograph the suite, capturing its faded majesty in haunting new images.
