Buying In NewYorkAlfred G Vanderbilt was the first guest to check in and Judy Garland made it her home for a while, but now for a mere €1.2 million you can buy a slice of the Big Apple's most famous hotel.
One of New York's most cherished landmarks, the Plaza Hotel, is currently undergoing a mammoth €263 million ($350 million) facelift.
Sitting on the corner of Fifth Avenue and Central Park, the 19-storey French château-style building was purchased by Israeli developer Elad Properties in August 2004 for €507 million ($675 million).
When it reopens on October 1st, 2007, exactly 100 years after it first opened its doors to the public, the 800-room hotel will be transformed into a smaller 280-bedroom hotel with an adjoining 180 private residences.
These private candos were released on the market last year. Now 152 serviced rooms are for sale.
These range from from 46sq m (500sq ft) studios to 186sq m (2,000sq ft) penthouses. Prices are from €1.2 million ($1.6 million) to €6.7 million ($9 million).
Old-world service is promised with a butler assigned to every floor. Furnishing and fit-out promises to be ornate - the bathroom fixtures will be 24 carat gold.
Owners can stay at their condominiums for up to 120 days a year. The unit can then be released to the hotel for rent on a nightly basis or rented out by owners themselves.
Jason Higgs from Luxury Hotel Homes, the Irish and UK selling agent for The Plaza, said investors can expect a yield of 7.26 per cent.
The Plaza has been the setting for numerous movies, including The Great Gatsby and Breakfast at Tiffany's.
Truman Capote threw his legendary Black and White Ball there at the hotel and F Scott Fitzgerald went for a dip fully clothed into the fountain.
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