Forsaken Boeing 737 to be reborn as luxury villa in Bali

This grounded plane is en route to a new life in the hotel business. 

Russian entrepreneur Felix Demin has sky-high dreams for a Boeing 737 he bought in 2021. According to Insider, the 31-year-old purchased the commercial plane from former Indonesian airline Mandala Air, which ceased operations in 2014. 

Now, he’s in the midst of transforming the time worn-looking vessel into a state-of-the-art luxury villa in Bali, set to begin welcoming guests this March. The rate for a stay at the behemoth lodging will run revelers much more than domestic airfare: A night aboard is set to cost approximately $7,300. 

Once customers climb aboard in the coming months, the interior of the Boeing will be nearly unrecognizable, save some of its defining structural features. To make room for living accommodations, Demin has had the plane stripped of its seats and flying instruments, the equipment replaced with two bedrooms and, according to renderings, a wingside terrace. Where previously there was a cockpit now will be a luxe bathroom decked out with a spa-like stone tub. Adjacent to the jet will be an infinity pool looking out to the Indian Ocean. 

“Externally and structurally, this is a jet aircraft that we have turned into a luxury hotel,” said Demin, Insider reported. To get the plane to its cliffside perch, Demin needed not just permits, but a week’s worth of time in September 2021 during which the aircraft was carried in separated sections to the edge of a mountain.

According to an Expedia listing for Private Jet Villa by Hanging Gardens, as it is named, there will also be “free self parking,” a kitchen, air conditioning, a 24-hour front desk and complimentary wireless internet access.