10 luxurious perks of being the new Saudi king
Time magazine has reported that the new king of Saudi Arabia, Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, maintains a private jail for “errant princes and spendthrift princesses who neglect to pay their bills.”
2. A luxury yacht the length of a football field
Salman’s yacht -- much like these parked in the royal family’s favorite vacation spot of Marbella, Spain -- has its own banquet room and enough room to sleep 30 in comfort, not to mention a crew of more than 20.
3. $30 million vacations
The Saudi royal allegedly spent that much on a single holiday in the Maldives, taking over not one, but three, resorts for himself and his guests, including this one, Anantara Dighu.
4. A whole private palace
President Obama recently visited the new king in the Erga Palace in Riyadh, a spread so exclusive that non-royals rarely get to see the interior.
5. Luxurious homes
The family enjoys other palaces and homes as well, though it’s unclear how many they have and how much wealth is tied up in them. Shown here: A royal family home in Switzerland.
6. An undisclosed fortune
The wealth of the widespread Saudi royal family is tied up in the country’s diverse assets -- an estimated total of more than $1.4 trillion. It’s unclear how much of that wealth is attributed to Salman himself, but his late half-brother and royal predecessor was worth an estimated $18 billion alone.
7. Roughly 100 bodyguards at a time
That’s the reported number of bodyguards that the then-prince took with him when vacationing in the Maldives. Shown here are bodyguards outside Erga Palace.
8. A lot of gold
While not much is known much about the layout at Salman’s Erga Palace, reporters did spot what appears to be a gold-plated Kleenex dispenser between the world leaders during their January meeting. According to pool reports, these chairs are also made of gold.
9. A school just for royals like himself
Salman attended the Princes’ School in Riyadh. Not much is known about it, but it’s said that a previous king founded it specifically for royals and the children of prominent Saudis.
10. A chunk of a media empire
Salman and his family own 10 percent of a media empire that owns several major newspapers, including Asharq Al-Awsat. That may not seem like a big deal, but according to documents aired by Wikileaks, auditors consider Salman the de facto owner.