A London tour guide company has revealed plans to build the city’s largest sightseeing boat ahead of the 2012 Olympics.

City Cruises, which runs river sightseeing tours in the British, said May 27 that it would launch its new 600-passenger vessel on the River Thames by Spring 2012, describing it as a “next generation leisure and tourism vessel.”

The design, which will be London’s largest scheduled sightseeing vessel, is being built at a cost of £4 million and will ferry passengers between popular tourist spots such as Parliament, the Tower of London and Maritime Greenwich.

Giorgio Armani, the man behind one of the world’s biggest fashion chains, is in talks with advisers over funding to build his first hotel in Britain.

The 200-plus room luxury venue could be built in Knightsbridge, west London, near the iconic Harrods store.

Among options under consideration is whether to convert office space or an old hotel into a £300million-plus site, the Dailymail reports.

In a bid to stand out among the host of deals marking Prince William’s wedding, London’s luxury hotels are offering guests the chance to live like a royal for a night.

A red carpet and champagne reception awaits customers buying the “royal opulence” package at the Hyatt Regency London, which includes four nights in the royal suite, measuring 368 square metres (3,960 square feet).

For £36,000, the clients are promised a glimpse of “the ultimate royal lifestyle”; a chance to relax in marble bathrooms, a fully equipped gym and a baby grand piano.

Ukraine’s richest man has set a record for property in Britain, spending $213 million on two London flats.

The flats cover 2,323 square metres across three floors of a luxury development overlooking Hyde Park, and have been bought by Rinat Akhmetov.

The oligarch plans to combine them to make a penthouse, including a further $93.6 million in interior improvements, according to the London Evening Standard.

This week has seen the opening of two London luxury properties, proving that the high-end hotel boom in Britain’s capital is still well underway.

On March 14 Marriott opened the St Pancras Renaissance hotel, which has been completely restored to its 19th century glory thanks to a five-year, £200m renovation.

The five-star hotel is situated in the London home of Eurostar, providing an easy place to stay the night if you’re planning on being whisked off to Paris or Brussels early the next morning.

Hotels in London have begun raising their room prices for next year’s Olympic Games, with one establishment hiking up their tariffs fivefold.

One four-star hotel quoted an unnamed wholesale trip operator 1,100 pounds (1,1750 dollars) for a room which would normally be charged at 200 pounds.

On top of the rate increase, many hotels are implementing harsh conditions on room reservations, including in one instance a 100 percent cancellation fee over the period of the Games, the Financial Times reported Monday.