You Can Buy A Ranch Twice The Size Of NYC

If you have an extra $725 million lying around, you can own a piece of land that's larger than a European country. The W.T. Waggoner Estate Ranch in north Texas, the largest contiguous ranch in America, is bigger than London and more than twice the size of New York City, two of the most populous cities in the entire world. If you can fit New York City in this ranch twice, can you imagine what you could do with all that land? The possibilities are endless and suddenly, $725 million doesn't seem like that much money.

Sprawling seems like an understatement when describing the Waggoner Ranch, which is situated 13 miles south of Vernon, Texas. So just how big is this ranch? Although the official website says approximately 535,000 acres, the real estate agents selling the land have listed it at 510,000 acres, which is equal to 797 square miles. In comparison, Greater London is approximately 611 square miles, the island of Maui is 729 square miles, and New York City, as in the most populous city in America, is a measly 305 square miles. If two of the biggest metropolises in the world or the entire island of Maui can fit squarely inside of the W.T. Waggoner Ranch, then that's a lot of land to work with.

Bernard Uechtritz from Briggs Freeman Sotheby's International Realty, one of the brokers selling the land, told the Houston Chronicle:

We've had over 500 inquiries from all around the world. We are showing the ranch to national and international and Texas-based prospects on a weekly basis. A number of buyers are conducting due diligence, evaluating the property.

If these potential buyers need help with ideas for what to do with all that land, then they're in luck. Here are just a few suggestions.

• Turn it into the world's biggest petting zoo/animal sanctuary, where the cuter, friendlier animals can run free, and the predators live comfortably in spacious enclosed natural environments to avoid a Jurassic Park situation.
• Two words: pizza nation. With all that land, you can grow your own tomatoes for sauce and produce for toppings, and set up a cheese farm and whatever else you need. Then just use the rest of the space to make a giant food court of nothing but pizza shops.

• Finally bring your favorite Sims world to life.
• Create your own unofficial country based on your favorite '90s TV show (mine would be called My So-Called Country) and designate yourself the Fresh Prince of said country.

• The world's largest dog park/utopia. Not only will your dog have room to run, but there will also be doggie beaches, obstacle courses, spas, and gourmet cafes.
• Start a summer camp that encourages watching Netflix while drinking boxed wine.
• Create your own unofficial country based on your favorite childhood book — Dr. Seuss would be an obvious choice, but Where's Waldo? Now that would be a challenge.

• Fantasy nerds with money can transform the land into their very own King's Landing or Middle Earth, where residents live simpler, more honest lives. Think of how much you'll save on electricity bills! But maybe leave out the war and killing parts.
• Recreate London or two New York Cities side by side.

Images: Getty Images (2); Giphy (3)