Musk and Trump’s Secret to Power: Staying at a 3 Million Won per Night Mar-a-Lago

Staying at Mar-a-Lago After US Presidential Election... Near the Main Building
Dinner, Meetings, and Calls with Trump

Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, who is known as the ‘First Buddy’ of President-elect Donald Trump and a key figure in the upcoming administration, is exerting significant influence while living as a tenant at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort residence.

According to the New York Times (NYT) on the 30th (local time), Musk has been staying at Banyan, a guesthouse within Mar-a-Lago.

Marero, Jeongyeong AP Yonhap News

The building is only a few hundred feet (100 feet ? 30 meters) away from the main house where President-elect Trump resides. The NYT stated, "Staying so close has helped Musk easily access President-elect Trump."

Musk stays close to Trump and often participates in important meetings. Recently, he joined a dinner with Jeff Bezos, founder of Amazon and a rival and adversary in the space industry. He also attends personnel meetings held at the Mar-a-Lago tea house and has been present when President-elect Trump makes phone calls with foreign leaders. Employees working for Musk’s companies are also involved in the transition team, interviewing candidates for senior positions in Trump’s administration. Musk’s two children, their nanny, and Shivon Zilis, an executive at Neuralink (a company founded by Musk) and mother of three of his children, have also been spotted there.

Musk moved to Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach, Florida, on November 5, the day of the U.S. presidential election, and spent most of his time there until around the 25th of this month before leaving. The NYT expects Musk to return to Mar-a-Lago within a few days. On the 27th, President-elect Trump posted on his social media platform Truth Social, "Where are you? When are you coming to Mar-a-Lago, the ‘center of the universe’? Bill Gates said he’s coming tonight," adding, "I miss you and X. New Year’s Eve will be really great." This is presumed to be a message directed at Musk.

President-elect Trump has boasted to those around him that Musk is renting accommodations at Mar-a-Lago. Although the exact amount paid is unknown, sources say the existing lodging fee is at least $2,000 (about 3 million won) per night. The Mar-a-Lago membership fee reaches $1 million (about 1.5 billion won).

Musk is not the only one residing at Mar-a-Lago. Other close aides, including Vice President-elect J.D. Vance, also stay there frequently. However, according to the NYT, no one stays there as regularly as Musk does.

Some of President-elect Trump’s aides have privately expressed dissatisfaction, saying Musk has exerted too much influence over the transition and is too closely aligned with Trump.

However, the NYT predicts that after President-elect Trump’s inauguration on January 20 next year, Musk will find it more difficult to have unrestricted physical access as he does now.