Ski Dubai, an awesome indoor ski mountain located in the scorching desert of Dubai, United Arab Emirates, opened in December 2005. The building is 25 stories high and has 22,500 square meters (about 3 football fields) consisting of two Alpine restaurants, five ski slopes, a snowboard run, and a children’s ice palace. Ski Dubai accommodates a limited 1,500 guests, so the lift lines aren’t too long!

Royal Caribbean’s Freedom of the Seas will be the largest cruise ship in the world, when it launches in May, 2006. The ship will serve a whopping 3,800 guests. In addition to a rock climbing wall, an ice skating rink, a spa, shops, and several restaurants, the ship will have the world’s first floating FlowRider, which is built by Wave Loch Inc. of La Jolla. The FlowRider, a recent innovation in water park technology, simulates a wave by passing 30,000 gallons of water over the ride surface. Check out Freedom’s website – it’s a fantastic example of Flash technology – the animated interface is extraordinarily compelling.