(Image: Lana Sator via English Russia; abandoned luxury hotel in St Petersburg)
Urban Ghosts has explored a variety of abandoned hotels across the world in past articles, and now we’re going to visit a range of others from Eastern Europe and the Caucasus to Asia, Oceania, and into Africa. These one-time tourist destinations were the summer retreats of the noble, the well-to-do and the government’s most powerful. What’s more, they’re invariably surrounded by some of the most breathtaking views in the world. Their fates are varied, from renovation and reopening to complete ruin.
Sheraton Rarotonga, Cook Islands
(Images: Steve Parker; the Cook Islands’ decaying Sheraton Rarotonga)
The Cook Islands opened its international airport in 1973, and since then, the island nation’s tourist trade has boomed. It’s estimated that about a quarter of the population is employed by the tourist industry, and every year, there are four visitors for every one permanent resident. That’s a lot of tourists, and it seems like a opening a hotel there would be a slam-dunk.
The problem, though, came when the government got involved with property development. In 1984, it was decided that large hotels should be favoured over the smaller, mom-and-pop style places that dotted the islands. The government decided to fund its flagship project, a Sheraton, in spite of the fact that they couldn’t entirely afford it on their own; in the end, they borrowed the money from a bank in Italy. A few years later, when it seemed the project may never even be finished, the Cook Islands Party took office – and after promising to put an end to the project that never got off the ground, instead, they sought to finish it.
Sort of. The construction companies that were hired did a lot of spending but not a lot of actual constructing, and it wasn’t long before the money ran out. Another company was brought in, but was ultimately the target of a series of arrests in connection with Mafia activity. The whole thing was handed over to a Japanese investor, who was arrested for tax fraud…. you get the idea.
The seemingly cursed Sheraton Rarotonga has been largely abandoned ever since, in various stages of construction. Much of what’s been going on isn’t actually known, as the government doesn’t have the funding available to keep track of what’s happened to its investment. In 2014, a New Zealand company put in a $40 million bid to turn the abandoned shell of a hotel into a 5-star resort…. so while time will tell what’s going to happen to the project, for now, horses and cows graze the lawn, graffiti covers the walls, and the curse continues.
According to local legend, the land was cursed by the daughter of one of the early owners. When a lease deal went sour, the owner was shot and killed by the settler who’d planned on using the land for his plantation. He was free after only a brief stint in jail, and it’s said that the murdered man’s daughter cursed any business built on the land – and so far, it looks like the curse has worked.
Bokor Palace Hotel (Bokor Hill Station), Cambodia
(Image: Matthew Klein; Damien @ Flickr; the abandoned Bokor Palace Hotel)
Bokor Hill Station, at the heart of which stands the elegant Bokor Palace Hotel, has been abandoned since the 1970s, and even though its fallen into considerable disrepair, it’s clear that it was once very beautiful.
Built in the 1920s, it was meant to be a countryside resort hotel for those looking to escape the urban landscape of Phnom Penh. The idea was that of French colonists, and according to the story, the actual construction was done by a group of indentured servants. By the time it was built – after nine months of back-breaking labour – it was rumoured to have claimed the lives of nearly 1,000 of them.
The resort was first abandoned around the chaos of the First Indochina War, which ultimately led to the French leaving the country. In the 1960s, though, the hotel and casino were given new life by a class of wealthy Khmer rulers, and a stranglehold placed on the entire countryside by the Khmer Rouge meant that the resort was, once again, no longer the vacation paradise it was meant to be. Instead, it was rumoured to be a place of executions, with prisoners thrown from the mountain, hands tied behind their backs.
(Image: Charles Pieters; abandoned church at Bokor Hill)
Unlike many of the abandoned hotels we’ve talked about, the Bokor Hill Station has long been open to tourists – in part, most likely, because the trip there deters all but the most determined of urban explorers. The resort hasn’t been forgotten, either, and plans are in the works to reopen the Bokor Palace Hotel and also revitalize a nearby abandoned church (above) in the hopes that it will become a destination for weddings. Others have suggested turning it into a museum, and time will tell what’s in store for the abandoned Cambodian landmark with the tragic past.
Maya Hotel, Japan
(Images: Jordy Meow/Haikyo.org via Totoro Times)
Japan’s forgotten Maya Hotel isn’t just empty, it’s all but inaccessible. Sitting halfway up Mount Maya, reaching the abandoned hotel means a pretty serious climb over treacherous terrain; the mountain is covered with hiking trails, but with the ease in which a newcomer can get lost, navigating the paths up to the mountain is scary stuff.
The hotel itself was built in 1929, designed to sit at the midway point of the ropeway company that went from the bottom of the mountain to the top. In spite of the beauty of the surrounding landscape, its remoteness didn’t prove to be the tourist draw that it was expected to be. It’s been abandoned several times in the decades since its doors first opened, rebuilt a couple times, and abandoned again.
(Image: Jordy Meow/Haikyo.org; B-29 tire in abandoned Maya Hotel)
During World War Two, the abandoned Maya Hotel even saw military action as a base for anti-aircraft guns, and reminders of the military’s occupation of the hotel remain in evidence – including the unlikely presence of a tire from a B-29 bomber. Apparently once used as something of a decoration, the tire is now a strangely out-of-place artifact.
As recently as the 1990s, the hotel was used as a student center; the strange evolution of life that went on at the mountainside facility can still be seen in rooms like the one-time chapel, and the so-called Green Room, with its floor-to-ceiling windows and remains of a tiled bath.
Northern Crown, Russia
(Images: Lana Sator via English Russia)
The Northern Crown hotel in St. Petersburg is a mysterious place, an eerie, unfinished shell of what was destined to be a beautiful hotel. Started in 1988 by a construction company based in the former Yugoslavia, the hotel was supposed to be one of the glories of the city. That much is evident even from what’s left of the mostly finished building: spectacular arches, marble floors, glass elevators, open, wrap-around balconies… it’s certainly the stuff of a high-end hotel.
There are 247 rooms, with plans for luxury cafes and restaurants to help ensure that guests would have everything they ever wanted. No guests ever checked in, though, and the nearly completed hotel was abandoned – for some reason – in 1995.
There is, of course, a legend behind why the hotel was never completed. One theory suggests that it has something to do with the death of one of the Russian Orthodox Church’s most outspoken bishops, Metropolitan Ioann. The cleric, who others in the church condemned for his toxic, anti-Semitic attitude and “Fascist ideology”, and who once tried to get Czar Nicholas II canonized on the basis that he believed he had been martyred as a “ritual victim” of the Jews, died in 1995. Although the stories suggest his death occurred in the hotel, details are just as sketchy as you’d expect.
The Luneta, Philippines
(Image: Patrickroque01; the fully renovated Luneta Hotel in Manila)
The Luneta closed its doors in 1987, and in 2014, it got a new lease of life and a complete remodel. Originally opened in 1918 and overlooking Manila harbour, the hotel is nothing short of iconic. Once surrounded by warehouses and homes, it was the place where the most elite of the country’s visitors would stay. For decades, it was the host to foreign dignitaries, the rich and powerful, and it was a favourite for the officers of the merchant marine.
US President Dwight D. Eisenhower stayed there for months at a time, writing that it was one of the most exquisite places he had ever visited.
During the bombing raids of World War Two, The Luneta was one of the few survivors. After the war, the hotel was sold several times, and gradually fell into a state of decay. In spite of its position on one of Manila’s busiest streets, the abandoned hotel fell into an increasing state of disrepair that somehow served to make its presence more poignant.
In 2008, the abandoned building drew the attention of the National Historical Commission, who approved the complete reconstruction of the hotel. From rebuilding the guest rooms and the restaurant to reconstructing the 1918 menu, it took years – but the doors of the iconic Luneta reopened on May 9, 2014.
Grande Hotel Beira, Mozambique
(Images: F Mira; Robertcruiming (1, 2, 3); Michiel Van Balen)
Technically, the Grande Hotel Beira isn’t abandoned. But it isn’t open for business, either. When it was built in the 1950s, the Portuguese were still running this corner of Africa – and the hotel was considered the lap of luxury. That was short-lived, though, and by the 1960s, the building was no longer a hotel and the area was no longer safe.
The Grande Hotel Beira was turned into a jail for political prisoners, and for a while, the second floor was taken over by the military. Finally, the country’s civil war ended in 1992 – after almost two decades of fighting – and the hotel became home to refugees from across the country.
(Image: National Archives UK; the Grande Hotel Biera circa 1955)
And that’s what it remains. No one’s quite sure how many people are living in the once-grand hotel, but estimates are anywhere from 2,000 to 3,000 at any given time. One of the pools has been turned into a laundry, while another serves as a urinal. There are a few solar panels and generators, but conditions are dismal. Those that live there share their home with rats, trash, and graffiti-covered walls, its interior long-gutted, everything that could be burned for heat and fuel is long gone. At one time, the rooms were lit by chandeliers; now, people struggle for a place to sit.
The government is now debating what to do with the squalid Grande Hotel. A loose form of organisation prevails and the hotel’s children are said to have the opportunity to attend classes, but still, the situation is nothing less than wretched.
Akasaka Love Hotel, Japan
(Images: Michael John Grist; inside the abandoned Akasaka Love Hotel)
Love hotels have long been a staple of a culture in which time alone with a significant other – or just an “other” of the opposite sex – can be difficult. The high cost of living means that young singles have a tendency to avoid the struggle to make ends meet by living with their parents for longer than most Westerners. And with most parents still holding onto traditional values… love hotels can be a lifesaver.
Or a relationship aid, at the very least, and the hotels are pretty distinctive, often just as gaudy as you’d expect. The Akasaka Love Hotel is one in a strip of hostelries where visitors can pay to stay by the hour. But it isn’t simply an abandoned love hotel; it’s an epic, flashy, striped, and animal-print tribute to the 1980s.
There are rooms with animal print on the walls, with psychedelic circles and bright colours. There’s even one guest room with wallpaper sporting a print that we’ll just say won’t be found in any of the world’s more traditional hotels.
While we’re not sure what the specific history of the abandoned Akasaka Love Hotel is, it’s thought that poor location had something to do with its closure. Unfortunately, as Atlas Obscura points out, the abandoned hotel has now been demolished.
Bounty Beach Bungalows Resort, Indonesia
(Images: via Bing Maps; the abandoned Indonesian resort from the air)
Surrounded by pristine beaches and tropical paradise, the Bounty Beach Bungalows Resort has the sort of name that just makes you want to pack your sandals and get on a plane. But the history of the now-abandoned resort is a tragically short one.
Built in the early 2000s, the bungalow complex is on one of a group of three islands – Gili Trawangan, Gili Air, and Gili Meno. Gili Meno, the home of the resort, is the smallest of the islands, home to only around 300 people. It’s the least developed, too, and for a time, it was the place to go. It was quiet, secluded and beautiful, everything that a tropical paradise should be. While Gili Trawangan was the destination of choice for those in search of an island party scene, Gili Meno was the place to go for those looking to kick back and relax in the sun.
The Bounty Beach Bungalows Resort should have been a hit, and even after years of standing empty, they still retain some of their quaint, charming feel. According to the caretaker, there are plans to revitalize the property…. but who’s going to do it and when it’s going to happen, no one’s sure. After a series of terrorist bombings rocked Bali in 2002, it all but stopped what had been a blossoming tourist trade. The owner had barely opened the doors when they closed again, with promises of reopening once the tourists returned.
But on the heels of the bombings came other problems for the islands. Damage from decades of blast fishing have begun to take their toll on one of the major attractions – its coral reefs. Even though the destructive form of fishing has stopped, it now remains up to those who live there to repair the damage that’s been done, and to encourage an adoption of green practices that will – hopefully – bring the tourists back.
Stalin’s Hotel Seagull, Russia
(Images: via English Russia; the abandoned Hotel Seagull then and now)
It’s called the Russian Riviera, and for good reason. Seated in one of Russia’s few sub-tropical areas, Gagra – in the disputed Black Sea state of Abkhazia – was, at one time, home to around 27,000 people. But ethnic cleansing turned the area into little more than a ghost town in the early 1990s.
At the beginning of the 20th century, Duke Peter of Oldenberg built himself a palace on the aptly named Russian Riviera. The views are as stunning as you would expect, from his art nouveau-style mansion, with its big, round windows, winding staircases, and balconies. The palace was short-lived, however, being nationalized by the Soviet Union and turned into the Hotel Seagull, or Hotel Chaika.
It soon became a summer retreat for the highest-ranking men in the Soviet government; guide books advertised Gagra as the most beautiful of the resort towns on the Black Sea coast. Protected by the mountains, shielded from the fierce winds that blanket so much of Russia, and the location of health spas, resorts, pristine beaches and parks, there was no better way to enjoy all that Gagra had to offer than to look out over the city from the private balconies of the hotel.
But when the 1990s conflict destroyed much of the town, the elite, one-time retreat of high ranking Soviets was left in ruins.
Nara Dreamland Hotel, Japan
(Images: Jordy Meow/Haikyo.org; abandoned Nara Dreamland hotel and theme park)
Nara Dreamland is an abandoned amusement park that we’ve visited before on Urban Ghosts. It’s an eerie place, perhaps more-so because of its original intent – theme parks are fun, after all, and there’s something especially poignant about the inevitability of decay in a place designed for family entertainment. Nara Dreamland was designed as a sort of tribute to Disneyland: there’s the pirate ship, the iconic tea cup ride, Adventureland… and the hotel.
The abandoned hotel is reportedly ignored by many urban explorers, who are typically more interested in the rusting roller coasters and other rides. But according to Abandoned Kansai, the hotel stands largely open and accessible (although guarded by the same security that keeps an eye on the grounds). The windows are broken or boarded up, the rooms sit empty. Meeting rooms, kitchens, wash rooms, storage… but the most striking feature is an observation tower offering an unprecedented view of the surrounding park.
The story behind the abandoned Nara Dreamland is a sad one. After World War Two, a Japanese businessman named Kunizu Matsuo spearheaded the project to bring an amusement park to Japan’s cultural cradle – Nara. Originally, he was in talks with Disney to license all the familiar characters, but those talks fell through. Nara Dreamland was left with some generic mascots and a few manja characters, but once more authentic Disney-themed parks began to open, Nara Dreamland wasn’t as special as it had once been. Even though it looks as though it’s been abandoned for decades, its doors only shut in August 2006.
Related – 10 Mysterious Out-of-Place Artifacts That Continue to Baffle Scientists
The post 10 Abandoned Hotels from Eastern Europe to Asia, Africa & Oceania appeared first on Urban Ghosts.