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The future of tourism is a $20 million hotel that takes guests 30 feet underwater

planet ocean underwater hotel
Planet Ocean Underwater Hotel could one day take guests up to 30 feet underwater. Planet Ocean Underwater Hotel

Why go scuba diving when you could book your own 18-by-12-foot pod in a hotel room 30 feet under the sea?

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A planned hotel promises to let you do just that. The project is the brainchild of managing director Tony Webb, who told Tech Insider he’s been trying to make his Planet Ocean Underwater Hotel a reality for the last two and a half years.

His patent — which was approved this week — would make the hotel a movable, modular vessel that can be moved if possible, a preventative measure to keep guests safe from hurricanes. Each pod would also be outfitted with flotation side bags so there would be no risk of sinking.

The design is not the first of its kind. Other examples include the yet-to-be-completed Poseidon Undersea Resorts in Fiji or Atlantis at The Palm Dubai, but Webb insists that his design would be more cost effective and as much as $1,000 cheaper per night than competitors.

Each pod would come with a king-sized bed, bathroom, internet, and massive panoramic acrylic windows and walls looking out onto the ocean floor. Here's the design submitted for patenting:

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planet ocean underwater hotel
Each room would include a bed, a bathroom, internet, TV, and massive acrylic viewing panels. Planet Ocean Underwater Hotel

There would be no scuba diving required to reach your room. Instead, guests would take an elevator down from the surface level and into the main lobby, which would also have a restaurant, event rooms, and observation areas. From the dining room, guests will see an underwater light show as well as sea life being fed outside of the hotel.

Webb and his team are currently searching for a mooring location to test their design. Possible places include Aruba, Antigua, the British Virgin Islands, Cuba, Saint Martin, and more.

Construction is estimated to cost $1.7 million per room for the 12-pod hotels, or roughly $20 million. Webb does not have a date for when the hotel would officially open.

planet ocean underwater hotel
So far, there's no official date for the $20 million design. Planet Ocean Underwater Hotel

In addition to tourism, Webb said one main goal of the project would be helping marine research. He wants the hotel to become a testing ground for a variety of programs, including for BioRock, an artificial reef system.

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After being awarded the patent, Planet Ocean Underwater Hotel is now in stage two of building the hotel and finding a location to test their design.

"I refer to it as inner space tourism, and the new industry is now ready to launch into the ocean frontier," Webb told The Daily Mail.

Find out more about Planet Ocean Underwater Hotel here.

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