Events

Blow Hard

Your 2014 Jetset Blow List

Maybe you just cashed an extra-plump holiday bonus. Maybe you just discovered you’re a Rockefeller. Or maybe life’s just too short to not circumnavigate the globe by private jet or take a hot-air balloon over Everest. Whatever your method of rationalization, here are five trips that might be worth blowing it all for.

BORDEAUX TO DEATH

A Not-At-All-Subtle Place to Sleep

Where: Bordeaux, France.
What: Staying on a legendary 200-acre vineyard in a hotel magnate’s centuries-old estate. It’s got an indoor pool and gold-leaf chandeliers and probably a comically large security deposit.
How much: $19,000 per night.
Which equals: 158 nights at the Embassy Suites in Des Moines.

THE AIR UP THERE

Around the World on a Private Plane

Where: Everywhere, actually.
What: Hopping on a private plane to visit 27 countries—and even flying a few legs of the journey yourself, if you’re game. All in 73 days. Take that, Jules Verne.
How much: $89,000.
Which equals: $5 invested at 7% interest over 4,500 years.

LIGHTS. CAMERA. NORWAY.

You: The Movie. It’s a Thing.

Where: Anywhere in Scandinavia.
What: Dreaming up a movie script, then heading to the Nordic country of your choice to act it out and get filmed by the guy who produced The Rock and Blade. Adding Wesley Snipes costs extra... but not much, we assume.
How much: About $3,600 per day.
Which equals: About 3,600 packages of Swedish Fish.

HAPPILY EVEREST AFTER

Hot-Air Ballooning over Everest

Where: Mount Everest.
What: Taking a hot-air balloon over the world’s highest mountain with world-renowned mountaineer/pro hot-air ballooner Chris Dewhirst. Flash photography and/or Instagram likes may be involved.
How much: $4.8 million.
Which equals: 278 new Hyundai Elantras. Or 209 if you splurge for the sport package.

UNDER THE SEA

A Private Island with a Submarine

Where: A private island in Fiji.
What: An all-inclusive stay at a private island resort, where you’ll have their on-site submarine called the DeepFlight Super Falcon at your disposal. As if the complimentary minibar isn’t enough.
How much: Starting at $4,600 per night.
Which equals: About 4.6 actual hunting falcons.