Located across four picturesque acres on the outskirts of Potomac, Maryland, this gated residence makes a regal first impression. On the market with Washington Fine Properties, a long, sweeping driveway leads up to an elegant seven-bedroom mansion, complete with colonial-style shutters and meticulously landscaped gardens.

Descending the staircase into the basement, you're transported into a quaint chocolate-box town, complete with cobblestones. Created by the current owner for their then-teenage children, this jaw-dropping replica features 15 storefront façades, including a post office, cinema, café, church and mechanic's shop.

While most of the doors open to cinder blocks, a few do harbour recreational rooms. Signposted as the Old Sailor's Drinking Society, this charming brick-effect façade leads into a games room with a pool table and TV. Elsewhere, a hidden door in the street offers access to a small garage to allow cars to be brought in. We reckon this must be America's most adorable small town...

If you're yearning for an escape from the rat race, this palatial property, on the market with Houston Portfolio Real Estate, could be just the ticket. Flanked by 20 acres of rolling fields, the luxurious Texas retreat offers everything you'd need to live the good life, from plush living spaces and a home cinema to a five-stall horse barn and tack room – plus a few unexpected surprises to boot.

More than simply an equestrian property, the opulent interior is decked out in dark wood, swathes of marble and grand columns. Leading off from the open-plan kitchen, there's a fully-stocked bar and wine cellar, as well as a vast family games rooms and four plush bedrooms. However, the home's pièce de résistance is found in the backyard.

What's a mansion without its own private waterpark? Perfect for the young and the young at heart, the impressive complex offers the ultimate summer staycation, with a swimming lake, waterside, zipline, spa and rock slide. The thatched clubhouse perched on the shore shelters a commercial outdoor kitchen with plenty of seating to accommodate extended family and friends.

The Sunflower State's most expensive listed property, this fantastical mega-mansion in the city of Lake Quivira, Kansas, was inspired by the Legend of King Arthur. According to The Wall Street Journal, the intriguing estate was built at a cost of around £23.9 million ($30m) in 1992. Commissioned by Dennis Langley, a mogul in the natural gas industry, the home includes a pretty showstopping secret.

On the market with Crown Realty, the seven-bedroom, seven-bathroom property offers a multitude of magical details throughout the interior, from hand-crafted dragon doors and exquisite stained-glass windows to a pulpit taken from a church in Salem, Massachusetts, as well as a fairy tale turret library thought to be the highest point in Johnson County.

A one-of-a-kind feature, the property has a network of secret subterranean scuba-diving tunnels located beneath the mansion that surface in the outdoor pool and at various points throughout the home. Accessed by a number of pop-up holes and grottos, the tunnels are filled with sunken treasures, faux fossils and exotic fish. Now that's a tough act to follow!

One of the largest homes in Florida's Hillsborough County, this extensive country-style manor, known as The Oaks Estate, is perched on the shores of Lake Thonotosassa. On the market with Smith & Associates Real Estate, the breathtaking compound includes a two-storey guest house, a 20-car garage, horse barn, grazing pastures, jogging trails, saltwater pools and a boathouse – and that's just for starters.

For buyers with deep pockets looking for a rural escape, a cosy cabin in the mountains just doesn't cut it. Located amongst the summits of Colorado between Bear Mountain and Lone Peak, this modern masterpiece is a wilderness retreat worthy of a billionaire. On the market with Sotheby's International Realty, the VIP property has a few tricks up its sleeve... 

Sprawling across 74 acres, this remote estate, which includes a 22,800-square-foot mansion, isn't short of space to stretch out. The main house offers six bedrooms and fourteen bathrooms, plus dramatic living spaces like this double-height reception room. While the house has all the usual super-rich home features, from a spa to a billiard's room and wine grotto, there are a few unexpected additions too.

Home cinemas are commonplace in plush properties, but an entertainment space that resembles a Star Trek command deck is somewhat less predictable. Complete with illuminated control panel displays and embroidered headrests, entering this remarkable room is like stepping foot in your very own starship. Not a superfan? No sweat, this mansion has more surprising extras in its arsenal.

Located in the desert in Scottsdale, Arizona, this regal mansion is an imposing sight amongst rolling sand dunes and shrublands. Listed with Sotheby's International Realty, the 17-acre estate features dramatic views over the McDowell Mountains, as well as 15,500 square feet of living space and some pretty unique amenities besides.

Inside, the elegant eight-bedroom property has a timeless, traditional interior to match its classic façade. The spectacular open-plan living areas feature vaulted ceilings, rustic wooden beams and a towering marble fireplace, not to mention a bar. But the luxury finishes don't end there...

Delve below ground level and you'll find something just a little bit out of the ordinary. The perfect home for wannabe spies to hone their skills, the enigmatic mansion comes complete with its very own soundproofed target range for shooting and archery. 

Listed with Knight Frank, the pristine estate is known as Sydenhurst and offers no end of grand features, as well as a few unexpected ones too. The interior, which includes seven vast reception rooms, has been designed with 21st-century living in mind, offering grand fireplaces, spacious open-plan layouts and rich, sumptuous soft furnishings.

Built by a Silicon Valley mogul, this vast home overlooking the glittering lights of the San Francisco Bay Area is a remarkable piece of real estate. The hilltop estate, which is listed with REX and Compass Real Estate, envelops 32,000 square feet of luxury accommodation, including an array of balconies and decks situated across the home's various storeys, each with breathtaking views across the valley.

For keen golfers, there's also an expansive 110-yard course in the estate's grounds, complete with two greens, three traps and multiple areas to tee off from, all set against a breathtaking valley backdrop. The impressive design is the work of Jay Blasi, the architect behind Chambers Bay Golf Course, which hosted the 2015 US Open, so no big deal then... How's that for a billionaire backyard?

Colorado's Vail Valley: home to dense, towering woodlands, unrivalled ski slopes and one of the most spectacular estates currently on the market in the United States. Hidden inside a forest, Casteel Creek Retreat covers an immense 439 acres, including 32,000 square feet of opulent living spaces, a fully-stocked trout pond, cross-country skiing and snowmobile tracks, a shooting range and an Olympic-sized pool. 

On the market with Sotheby's International Realty, the wilderness property has 21 bedrooms and 34 bathrooms, plus a catalogue of luxury facilities for residents and guests to enjoy. A vast indoor sports arena can accommodate everything from golf practice to games of tennis, baseball and basketball, while the five-storey rock climbing wall is sure to keep adrenaline junkies entertained.

However, the real surprise at the heart of this unique estate is found nestled in the grounds. A replica Wild West town, complete with historic shopfront façades, offers a whimsical trip back in time. Home to two Western-themed guest suites, an ice cream parlor and a saloon, if you ever fancied owning your own town and playing sheriff, now's your chance.

Listed with Hall and Hall, Mesa Vista Ranch in Pampa, Texas is one of the largest and most expensive properties ever to come on the market in America. Built for T. Boone Pickens, a prominent oil executive and financier who passed away in September 2019, the vast estate covers more than 100 square miles.

At the core of the ranch sits a 25,000-square-foot residence called The Lodge, which features everything from living rooms and a library to a 30-seat home cinema and a conference centre. The amazing American estate also a chapel, as well as two additional homes with a total of eight bedrooms.