$11 Million Christmas Tree an ‘Overload’ of Tradition, Hotel Says (Video)

An $11 million Christmas tree decorated with gems and gold erected at an Abu Dhabi luxury hotel led to widespread criticism for its abundance, the hotel that set up the tree admitted over the weekend it may have taken the holiday spirit a bit overboard.
 
The Emirates Palace hotel said it regretted its "attempts to overload the tradition followed by most hotels in the country" in a statement, according to Gulf News.

"Putting the Christmas tree … is a tradition meant to share in celebrating occasions guests hold while they are away from their home countries and families," the hotel stated.

Following its launch on Dec. 15 in the lobby of the hotel in celebration of Christmas and the New Year, Emirates Palace said in a release that it was aiming for a Guinness World Record for world's most expensively dressed tree.
Contrasted to its earlier excitement, the hotel denied its ownership of the jewels decorating the tree.

It stated that it is "just a venue for exhibiting the tree," while Style Gallery, an Abu Dhabi gallery, covered all the costs for making and decorating the tree with jewels—including diamonds, pearls, and rubies—borrowed from a hotel jeweler, who will recover them after the festive season.