A luxurious Marbella hotel used by wealthy tourists and football clubs on training camps has been abandoned and gone to ruin due to a loss of business from Covid.
The Gran Hotel and Spa in Benahavis now resembles a “ghost ship” said one resident with water in a swimming pool having gone green and stagnant and is now home to frogs and algae.
Lawns have been left unwatered and overgrown while the outside of the building looks dilapidated.
Not so long ago the four-star hotel entertained the Germany and Belgium national teams as well as Aston Villa, but now it has been unused for 15 months, since it was forced to close in March, 2020, due to the pandemic.
(Image: Cavendish Press (Manchester) Ltd)
The summer house which operates as a swim-up bar now lies empty with sun loungers casually tossed into the water.
The once immaculate exterior corridors with its pristine plants are now infested with overgrown or dead shrubs.
It has suffered badly as have many hotels on the Costa del Sol from the fewer tourists that are going to Spain and especially from the UK.
But this week locals blamed it’s continuing closure partly on Spain remaining on the UK government’s amber list.
A local resident said how the Gran Hotel was the most upmarket place to stay in the area.
They said: “The Gran is the jewel in the crown when it comes to hotels in the Costas yet it is now a sad shadow of its former self. The place is overgrown with weeds and the pools are only any good for tadpoles and frogs.
“Many national football teams have previously stayed there due to excellent football training facilities nearby and it is a favourite of wealthy British holidaymakers too.”
They added: “There are beautiful hotels elsewhere in the village but the Gran is still an important part of the area and needs to reopen again. It’s currently like a ghost ship.”
With mainland Spain still on the UK’s amber list it means that business is still going to struggle for the foreseeable future.
(Image: Cavendish Press (Manchester) Ltd)
A notice in Spanish on the deserted hotel’s Facebook page dated March 22, 2020 read: “Dear followers, due to the coronavirus pandemic situation, the Gran Hotel Benahavis will remain temporarily closed.
“We appreciate your understanding and hope that the situation will be resolved as soon as possible, and we can welcome you and receive your visit again.”
In April, the hotel posted again, saying: “For the well-being of our clients and colleagues, now it’s time to stay home, thus helping to prevent the spread of the epidemic.”
(Image: Cavendish Press (Manchester) Ltd)
There are no signs that the Gran Hotel with its 95 rooms is going to open for business this summer and travel company Expedia are not even taking bookings for it until January, 2022.
It comes as a string of popular European holiday destinations have announced new restrictions on UK tourists amid rising concern over the Delta variant.
Spain, Portugal and Malta are among tourist hotspots toughening up entry requirements for Brits as infections here soar.
(Image: Cavendish Press (Manchester) Ltd)
The number of new cases of Covid 19 reported rose to 22,868 yesterday, the highest levels since the height of the second wave in January.
Spain, the most popular destination for Brits, said from later this week travellers would need to prove they were fully vaccinated, or provide a negative PCR test on arrival if aged 12 or over.
Spanish PM Pedro Sanchez said the UK’s Covid figures were “worrying” because the accumulated 14-day rate was “well above 150 cases per 100,000 inhabitants.”