4) VM House’s balconies



These balconies have been designed more for functional reasons rather than aesthetic ones.  They are located in VM House, an apartment house that consists of two buildings.  They are in the shape of letters ‘V’ and ‘M’ which seem to hug each other.  They appear like the spikes of a hedgehog as they jut out from the fascia of the apartment.  What makes this house especially striking is that the interior is visible from the outside due to the glass curtain wall covering the front of the apartment. These balconies were designed to let in ample sunlight into each home and to give an opportunity for maximum communication with people in the neighboring apartments.

3) Willis Tower balcony



These four glass-box viewing balconies are part of the Sears Tower in Chicago, the tallest building in America. They are placed at a height of 1,353 feet above the ground and extend four feet from the building’s Skydeck.  If you’re not afraid of heights then this is the place for you to be as it offers splendid views of Chicago. They make the visitors feel like they’re floating above the city

2) Underground balcony



If you thought that all balconies are supposed to be above the ground, then think again. In Japan, a very chic home called Sukiya House contains a distinctive underground tunnel that also serves as a balcony. It has been designed by architect Yukiharu Suzuki.

The common unique thoughts one would think off is a high rise, a levitated airport, or the pyramids of Giza.  No one will ever imagine that there are balconies that would mind boggle ones imagination.  Here is a list of the 10 Awesome Balconies.

1) Swimming pool balcony



These unique swimming pool balconies are a part of the skyscrapers located in Mumbai. The 37 storey skyscrapers are known as Aquaria Grande. This exceptional design has swimming pools enclosed in glass instead of balconies. It is the outcome of a collaboration between James Law, a Hong Kong based architect and Wadhwa Group, an Indian real estate company.

An aerial view of the Kensington Palace which used to be the Royal seat of power until the monarchy moved to Buckingham Palace

Moving in: Soon Kensington Palace will be home to the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge

The Historic Royal Palaces team believe Kensington Palace has to appeal to all ages and tastes if it is to boost its annual visitor numbers from the usual 300,000 to upwards of 400,000

A staff member in period costume sweeps through the King's State Rooms: First opened to tourists in Victorian times, Kensington Palace has long been a collection of flats for royal relatives - the Duke of Windsor used to call it 'the Aunt Heap'

Splendour: The King's Grand Staircase, The £12 million refurbishment has been paid for with cash reserves, Lottery funding and support from charitable trusts like the Clore Duffield, Gosling and Rothermere foundations

Centrepiece: The statue of Queen Victoria sculpted by her daughter Princess Louise has been spruced up and is looking as good as new

The restored formal gardens: After years in the heritage doldrums, KP is finally exploiting its true potential as one of the capital's major tourist attractions

Nice pad, but I bet Kate changes the wallpaper! As Kensington Palace opens to the public after a £12m makeover we take an exclusive tour of Kate and Will's new home


Not since the Windsor fire of 1992, has there been a royal makeover on this scale. Indeed, the last time a palace went through a facelift of this magnitude, it was courtesy of a German bomb.

In the case of Kensington Palace, however, this £12million transformation has not been prompted by any misfortune but by years of careful planning. Admittedly, there has been one unexpected, 11th-hour alteration to the designs.

But no one is complaining about the decision of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge to set up home here — because their presence in the private wing of the palace is only going to draw even more visitors through the doors on the public side.



Palace of varieties: Mail writer Robert Hardman stands by the modern luminous lace piece - a light sculpture made of more than two miles of electroluminescent wire

A few days ago, the Queen came to Kensington to re-open what used to be the seat of royal power until the monarchy moved to Buckingham Palace. Before she cut the ribbon, she toured the rooms where Queen Victoria grew up and inspected the new displays which feature everything from Prince Albert’s tongue-scraper to a new range of Diana, Princess of Wales, wallpaper and a very creepy children’s birthday party (of which more later).

‘We’ve set out to awaken a sleeping beauty,’ announced Charles Mackay, the chairman of Historic Royal Palaces, the independent charity which runs the place. He might equally have called it a sleeping giant. Because, after years in the heritage doldrums, KP is finally exploiting its true potential as one of the capital’s major tourist attractions.