Inspiration

5 Neiman Marcus Fantasy Gifts for the Try-Anything Traveler

Have a spare $300,000 to throw around? Here's how you should spend it.
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Courtesy Black Tomato

As the maker of the ultimate wish list, Neiman Marcus has launched its annual 'Christmas Book,' filled with opulent gifts like $850 Dolce & Gabbana toasters with hand-painted designs by Sicilian artists and $12,000 coffee table books signed by the Dalai Lama. But the pages we immediately flip to are the Fantasy Gifts: over-the-top experiences and presents that, in the past, included a $1.5 million rose gold private plane and a $60,000 spa treatment in Paris. This year five gifts caught our eye, including a trip to all four tennis majors with 2017 U.S. open winner Sloane Stephens and a $7 million Serenity Solar Yacht, with interior designed by Neiman Marcus fashion director Ken Downing. Yes, you can buy all these things from the catalog—just make sure your credit limit can stand it. While these five gifts alone total nearly $9 million, at least 5 percent of money spent will go to charities like the Heart of Neiman Marcus Foundation, which supports youth art education. With that off your conscience, which would you choose?

  • Image may contain Mountain Outdoors Nature Mountain Range Peak Scenery and Ice
    Courtesy Black Tomato

    Visit India, Nepal, Bhutan, and the Maldives with Black Tomato

    It'll cost ya... $630,000.

    You and three friends (choose wisely) will get to enjoy the ultimate adventure with Black Tomato, a tour company that knows what it takes to have an over-the-top vacay. This specific trip includes a champagne breakfast just above the Everest Base Camp, a night at the Oberoi Amarvilas for unobstructed Taj Mahal views at sunrise, a private tiger-spotting safari in Ranthambore National Park in Rajasthan, a helicopter tour of the Himalayas, time relaxing at the Maldives' Soneva Fushi overwater bungalows, access to a private jet, and lodges constructed just for you. The catalog doesn't share how long the dream trip is, but we can bet money—$630,000—that it's more than just a long weekend jaunt.

  • Courtesy Lightspeed Development, LLLP

    Sail Around the World on a Serenity Solar Yacht

    It'll cost ya...$7.1 million.

    This 74-foot yacht can sail indefinitely at 7-9 knots thanks to its solar panel–covered roof, meaning you don't have to make landfall, well, ever. We'd highly suggest stopping for food and water, though. Plus, you'll want a break from the 11 other people who can comfortably join you. It's not often that a yacht purchase comes with a shopping spree—but this is Neiman Marcus, and they don't do anything half way. We suggest spending that shopping spree on ultra-luxe swimsuits to look the part. That said, your cool $7.1 mil doesn't cover everything; you'll have to find your own four-person crew.

  • Courtesy Exotics Racing

    Embrace Your Inner 007 in Las Vegas

    It'll cost ya...$315,000.

    You'll have to practice your best "Shaken, not stirred" for the hotel bar at the Waldorf Astoria Las Vegas, where you'll be checking in for this three-day taste of covert ops. This trip is for wanna-be undercover agents and adrenaline junkies who'll race exotic supercars, jump out of planes, and get insider training from Special Operations Forces veterans—parachutists, divers, even ex-Marines. It's all organized by the Invictus Experience, which specializes in "luxury espionage adventures." Who knew?!

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    See All of the Tennis (No, Really, All of the Tennis)

    It'll cost ya...$555,000.

    You and your closest tennis-obsessed fan will get to hang in VIP boxes at all four tennis majors in Paris, London, New York, and Melbourne. Even better? You'll be the VIP guests of none other than 2017 U.S. Open champ Sloane Stephens, sitting with her family and close friends while she plays. Plus, you'll get a private head-to-head match against Stephens herself. You may want to start practicing that backhand now.

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  • Photo by Yolanda Edwards

    Get a Sugar High on the Italian Riviera

    It'll cost ya...$325,000.

    Let's get the non-travel bit out of the way: This gift comes with a custom Sugarfina candy bar installed in your home and restocked for three years (clocking in at approximately one million gummy, chocolate, and caramel candies). Yeah, you need to check with your dentist before buying. But the real treat, if you ask us, is the trip for four to the Italian Riviera. Whoever snags this gift will overnight at Belmond Hotel Splendido in Portofino, visit Cinque Terre and the Sugarfina factory in Genoa, naturally. You'll even get to come up with your own candy flavors alongside Sugarfina founders Rosie O'Neill and Josh Resnick.