HONG KONG, Sept. 8 (Xinhua) -- A luxury residence project, designed to be built on a huge cruise ship sailing around the world and featuring facilities and services to hotel standards, was unveiled for sale Saturday to some of Hong Kong's richest people.

    Priced at 288,500 euros per unit or above, the Four Seasons Ocean Residences will be furnished with a spa, a fitness center, four restaurants, designer retail, a casino, a gourmet market, a business center, and even a launch for jet skis or sailboats.

    "Four Seasons Ocean Residences will be the world's most grand and luxurious residential community at sea," said Robert Oppenheim, managing director of BV International Ocean Holdings Ltd, the developer of the ambitious project.

    The 13-deck ship of 219 meters and 48,600 tons will be built by Finland's Acker shipyards and is scheduled for delivery in 2010. It contains 112 wholly owned private residences of one to four bedrooms, designed to high-end hotel standards by Tillberg Design,the company which developed the designs for Queen Mary II.

    Charges for services, to be provided by Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts, are expected to start from around 72,000 euros a year, the project developer said.

    Owners sailing on board the ship will be able to tour many cities and ports without ever leaving home, the company said, adding that the ship's first journey is due to start in 2010, with the first two years following a schedule covering places and events such as Antarctica, the 2012 Olympics in London and the Grand Prix in Monaco.

    A private cocktail party had been organized Friday evening for some of those from Hong Kong's top rich list. Further one-to-one sessions with potential buyers were held on Saturday, said Savills International, the project's Hong Kong agent.

    The agent said Saturday it could not disclose the number of people present at the promotional sessions. It was too early to tell whether the rich would buy the idea or not, since promotional activities in Hong Kong were the first leg of a global tour, a spokeswoman for the company told Xinhua, adding that inquiries have been frequent.

    Further promotions were planned through mid-October in many renowned cities of riches around the world, such as Singapore, Moscow, London, Dubai and New York.

    BV International Ocean Holdings is a joint venture between Bayview Financial, a real estate investment and mortgage finance company, and Ocean Development Group, which is involved in the development of cruise and cruise-related projects.