Opulent and luxurious, the Saudi royal family's poshest palaces make the likes of Versailles and Buckingham Palace seem modest and understated. As you would expect, the world's wealthiest regal dynasty owns hundreds of sumptuous properties around the globe. Join us as we venture through the keyhole and discover the secrets behind 12 residences belonging to the House of Saud.
The sprawling Al-Yamamah Palace (also Al-Yamama) in the Saudi capital of Riyadh is the official residence of the current Saudi monarch King Salman bin Abdulaziz, who has been king and prime minister of the kingdom since January 2015. A working palace, the building also serves as the headquarters for the royal court.
The exterior of the elegant, modern building nods to traditional Arabic design, with its geometric motifs and pointed arched windows, and is relatively minimal. However, the interiors are anything but. Stunning chandeliers, rich carpets, ornate antiques and gold accents abound as seen here, with ornate doors leading into the extravagant, gold-festooned room.
Italian marble floors and intricately carved ceiling and wall panels add to the showy vibe. King Salman chairs government meetings in the building and often welcomes foreign dignitaries and other VIPs to the palace.
Turbulence within the Riyadh region has, on occasion, forced the king and his courtiers to decamp to the more secure Al-Awja Palace (also Al-Auja), which is situated north-west of the Al-Yamamah palace, on the outskirts of Riyadh. Though a fairly recent construction, the multimillion-dollar palace has been built in the local Najdi style. The interiors are surprisingly restrained and evoke an era when the kingdom wasn't quite so flush with money.
The rooms are decorated with historic photos of Saudi Arabia. In this image from October 2016, the king is showing guests (including the Crown Princes of Abu Dhabi and Dubai) an old black and white picture of Riyadh. Instead of lots of OTT bling, the palace showcases the best of Saudi craftsmanship, with exquisite, hand-carved wall details and furniture, mosaic flooring and subtle accents. The building reflects the new king's simpler tastes and his passion for local architecture and decorative styles.
King Salman is so rich, he has several overflow palaces where he can retreat and receive guests. Located in central Riyadh and completed relatively recently, Erga Palace is one such residence. While the total wealth of the Saudi royal family is unknown, it has been reported to reach as much as $1.4 trillion (£1.1tr), according to House of Saud, an English language Saudi Royal Family news resource.
Shortly after the Saudi king took the throne in 2015, hosted President Obama, who expressed condolences on the death of the late Saudi Arabian King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz al-Saud while at the palace. Like Al-Yamama, Erga Palace is ostentatious, with more than its fair share of gilding, rich silk carpets and pricey Italian marble.
To celebrate the visit, the king treated President Obama and his entourage to a no-holds-barred banquet. The hosts and guests dined on lobster, lamb, jewelled rice and other delicacies. According to CBS News, reporters also spotted gold-plated Kleenex dispensers alongside gold chairs.
While hosting meetings with courtiers and entertaining Saudi VIPs, Erga Palace is largely used for government functions, state receptions, and cultural festivals that introduce Saudi arts and customs to the international community. As seen in this photo, even the waste paper bins are made from silver.
King Salman's son and heir, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, doesn't hold back when it comes to spending the family fortune. As well as owning a $500 million (£403m) yacht, the next-in-line to the throne holds the deeds to one of the world's most expensive houses.
Named after the French Sun King, the stunning Château Louis XIV is pictured here, via Cogemad luxury living. The incredible gardens are filled with beautiful fountains, statues and avenues of plants and trees, designed in a classical French stately home style.
The crown prince splurged $300 million (£242m) on the swanky château back in 2015, according to an investigation by reporters from the New York Times. Located not far from Paris, the palatial 10-bedroom château was built in a Baroque style, and completed in 2011.
Crafted and decorated by France artisans, the château's interiors impress, with marble from floor to ceiling, gilded ironwork and frescoes. Even the indoor pool is decorative, thanks to the mosaic tiling and chandeliers.
In addition to the pool, the château is fitted out with a ballroom, home cinema and gym. There's even an underwater room with fish tank walls and a subterranean nightclub. No wonder Kim Kardashian shortlisted the château as a wedding venue in 2014, according to the Daily Mail.
Now serving as Deputy Defence Minister, King Salman's younger son Prince Khalid bin Salman previously worked as Saudi ambassador to the US. Upon his appointment to the role in 2017, he began looking for a suitably palatial home not far from Washington DC, to serve as a base.
Prince Khalid settled on the magnificent Le Château de Lumière (Palace of Light) in Great Falls, Virginia, which is just outside DC. According to the Daily Mail, while still a student at Georgetown University, in February 2017 the 29-year-old prince paid for the $12 million (£9.6m) property in cash using a front company.
The château has eight master suite bedrooms, 13 bathrooms, numerous reception rooms and even a royal-friendly ballroom. No expense has been spared on the fixtures and furnishings, which include highly sought-after antique sofas, crystal chandeliers and gold-plated statues.
Fit for any prince or billionaire, the château also features a spa, cinema, card room and basketball court, as well as a spectacular outdoor pool area, complete with a cabana, Corinthian columns and fire bowls.
Saudi Arabia's foreign minister from 1975 until his death in 2015, Prince Saud bin Faisal owned Houston's most expensive home until he sold it on in 2002. The prince had the nine-bedroom, 11-bathroom home built in 1984, and it was described as a River Oaks Modern Masterpiece in the real estate listing.
The house, which is on the market right now for just shy of $16 million (£13m), retains the hallmarks of its 1980s construction, with plenty of marble, oversized chandeliers and statement antiques. Sprawling over three acres of fully-gated grounds, the palatial property provides palatial proportions just moments from Downtown Houston.
The reception rooms are decorated similarly. They feature lots of gilded flourishes, polished Italian marble and fine brocade fabrics, which may be a little OTT for many people these days. The property hosts a central sitting room, a fitness centre, two terraces and separate baths with designated dressing rooms.
But the master bedroom is a big selling point. Super-spacious, it includes a chic sitting room, twin walk-in wardrobes and a marble and gold ensuite luxury bathroom.
The most historic Saudi building in our round-up, the 32-room Murabba Palace in Riyadh was built for King Abdulaziz al Saud (aka Ibn Saud) during the 1930s and early 1940s, and finally completed in 1945. The building now serves as a museum.
The palace was built in the Najdi style and incorporates many age-old construction techniques and design features such as straw-reinforced abobe walls, acacia and palm frond ceilings and cooling courtyards.
A number of notable VIPs have visited the palace, including Donald Trump, who enjoyed a Saudi sword dance in the grounds during his visit in May 2017, and even briefly joined in with the performance.
Years earlier, President George W. Bush was given a guided tour of the palace-turned-museum, which is a major tourist attraction. Highlights of the permanent exhibition include dazzling gilded doors and tapestries with pure gold lettering.
King Salman's nephew, Prince Alwaleed, is one of the richest investors in the Middle East, has most recently contributed funding to Elon Musk's Twitter takeover, according to House of Saud. Back in 2009, Prince Alwaleed bagged the Castle of Castagneto Po in Turin, Italy for around $25 million (£20.1m), according to Rightmove. There has been some sort of castle in this location dating back to 1019 but this structure was rebuilt in the 19th century in a neo-Gothic style. It has more than 40 rooms.
The castle was the childhood home of supermodel, musician and former First Lady of France, Carla Bruni. Prince Alwaleed bought Castagneto Po from Bruni's family, who had spent a fortune restoring it, including the marquetry floors and frescos.
The castle comes with all mod cons, including ultra-modern kitchens, lifts and underfloor heating. As a romantic Italian getaway, Castagneto Po really does take some beating.
This regal property stands within 70 hectares of English-style parkland designed by Saverio Kurten which includes vegetable gardens, fruit orchards, wide terraces and old greenhouses, a caretaker’s house, and a farm building.
Prince Alwaleed bin Talal was arrested in November of 2017 in a corruption clampdown and released the following January, after paying a financial settlement, as reported by Reuters. Luckily for him, the Saudi prince who the Daily Mail reports has three palaces appears to have kept hold of this sprawling abode.
Dubbed 'Promotion Palace' by locals, the splendid building has a total of 420 rooms, decorated with rich silk carpets, copious gilding and 1,500 tonnes of Italian marble.
Sadly, the palace is packed with stuffed animals the prince has shot on his many hunting trips including a majestic giraffe. His favourites are said to be a lion and a zebra he killed on a safari with his daughter.
If he's in the mood for a dip the prince can choose between three swimming pools, including this gigantic lagoon-like beauty. There's also a 45-seat underground cinema in the palace, 250 flatscreen TVs and four state-of-the-art kitchens that can feed up to 2,000 diners.
Both the owner of our next royal house and the building itself have a surprising story hiding behind their facades. According to Dirt, Princess Reem Al Faisal lived within this seemingly low profile home she purchased in an off-market deal in 2016 for just shy of $3.5 million (£2.8m). The house actually drops down to a staggering four full floors at the back, encompassing a whopping 5,000 square feet of living space. The Princess hails from one of the most prominent, influential, and wealthy arms of the Al Saud dynasty. She is granddaughter of the late King Faisal and is one of very few female Saudi artists – a photographer and noted art gallery owner.
The fully-renovated kitchen also sports a vaulted ceiling and plenty of windows for light and ventilation. All the cabinetry is 100-year-old antique wood, and the appliances are high-end Viking models. Bought in 2016 from comedian and founder of Nerdist Industries, Chris Hardwick, the princess has since sold the property for $3.5 million (£2.8m) to another creative pairing – Grammy nominated writer/producing duo Denzel Baptiste and David Biral, aka Take a Daytrip, according to Dirt.
Ideal for high profile owners, the unassuming-from-the-outside abode features comprehensive home automation and security systems throughout, as well as high walls and secured gates. Luxury features abound, with handsome hardwood flooring, Venetian plaster walls, in-ceiling speakers and numerous skylights. This isn’t the first LA home for the artistic Princess however, as she previously owned an 18th-floor pied-a-terre in the Sierra Towers building in West Hollywood (reportedly according to Dirt, later rented out to rock royalty, Sharon and Ozzy Osborne).
Built in 1924, the four-storey home sits on a steeply sloped parcel of just over a quarter acre, with the main floor spaces surrounding three sides of a courtyard terrace boasting attractive views out across the canyon. Whether the Princess spent much time here is unclear, as the house was publicly listed as a rental in late 2020 at a rate of $10,500 (£8.5k) per month, according to Dirt. However, the separate art studio on the lowest floor, ideal for our artistic Princess, suggests she definitely lived here.
His Royal Highness Prince Turki bin Nasser of Saudi Arabia lived in this Beverly Hills estate before putting it on the open market with an asking price of $39.95 million (£32.2m) in June 2020. Turki bin Nasser was a Saudi military officer, as well as state minister for environmental issues in Saudi Arabia until his passing on 30 January 2021. The Al Saud family owned the land since the early 1990s and custom-built the current homes in 1995.
Prince Turki bin Nasser owned extravagant mansions in Riyadh, Barcelona and London, and was reportedly considered one of the wealthiest men in Saudi Arabia, according to Dirt. The LA gated community, Beverly Park hosts three guarded entrances with 24/7 security patrols protecting the high profile neighbourhood of approximately 70 estates, that has included Eddie Murphy, Rod Stewart and Denzel Washington
Sitting on 4.67 acres, the two-home compound boasts 26,000 square feet of luxurious living space with 14 bedrooms and 22 bathrooms. The huge master suite is roughly 4,000 square feet alone and hosts dual bathrooms, custom wardrobes and a "sweeping balcony with picturesque views", according to the real estate listing.
If Prince Turki ever grew bored of the flashy gold-adorned and marble interiors, he may have taken advantage of the estate’s rare position atop the Beverly Park hills. The compound is one of very few properties with clear views out over LA and the Pacific Ocean, with an expansive infinity pool for good measure.
Another granddaughter of the late King Faisal of Saudi Arabia, HRH Princess Reema bint Bandar Al Saud is, according to Dirt, widely credited with spearheading the push for Saudi women’s right to drive vehicles, and she is outspoken on a range of other gender equality issues. In 2019, Her Royal Highness became the first-ever woman to serve as Saudi Arabia’s ambassador to the United States, and it's a position she still holds today. Obviously keen on the high life, in 2013 she snapped up not one but two condos in LA's celebrity-favourite, The Century building.
According to Dirt, Princess Reema paid about $8.9 million (£7.1m) in two separate transactions to buy two adjacent condos in the prestigious building, which is also home to Rihanna and until recently Matthew Perry. The stylish royal then combined the two apartments and enlisted the help of interior designer Victoria Montana to give the space an eclectic look. Shown here is the entrance to the great room, featuring 'S' and 'T', in reference to the princess' two children, Sarah and Turki.
It's hard to think why the princess would part with such grandeur, but the luxe abode has just been snapped up by a new owner: Hollywood star, Denzel Washington. The actor, together with wife Pauletta Washington has, according to Dirt, just paid $10.9 million (£8.8m) for the sprawling condo. He'll be able to enjoy residents' perks, such as a 24/7 concierge and five-star dining at Hinoki & The Bird, the 42-storey skyscraper’s in-house restaurant.
Situated on four acres, The Century’s manicured grounds include beautiful Pamela Burton-designed estate gardens and a 75-foot swimming pool. The princess' former abode also includes two privately-owned cabanas and when the shopping bug hits the condo is just walking distance from Rodeo Drive.
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