A photographer has shared eerie pictures of an abandoned “eco-hotel” which cost £3.66 billion and has been dubbed “Disneyland for the crazy”.
The Holiday Area Eco Dream Club Sea Resort, in the Antalya-Kemer region of Turkey, was said to have been built by a German billionaire as a gift for a woman he loved in the 1990s and spans a whopping 140,000 square meters.
The plush resort boasted its own farm and mini-zoo, a "heavenly cafe" with a 270-degree view and a water park.
In the early 2000s, the venue was booming with guests, and was once known as one of the most popular tourist complexes in the country.
However, the hotel unexpectedly closed its doors in June 2014 and since then the building has become dilapidated – yet its haunting beauty and unique history still attracts thousands of visitors every year.
Dmitry Rzhannikov, 56, from St Petersburg, Russia, came across the unusual hotel while in Turkey and captured the haunting photographs.
He said: “A German billionaire fell in love with a Turkish beauty and built the hotel for her as a gift.
“Construction cost over $5 billion (£3.66 billion) but then the beauty either died or fell out of love with him and the hotel went to a Turkish businessman.
“He scored loans for the development, didn’t pay them off and fled abroad or perhaps died.
“The quarrelling heirs couldn’t share the property and during this time, the economy fell into despair.”
The photographer believes the hotel filed for bankruptcy and the complex was left to rot.
Dmitry explored the eerie location, with its quirky exterior and decorations that include giant frogs and a worn replica of Noah's Ark.
In one image, a worn and crumbling treehouse can be spotted as the overgrown trees mask its appearance.
In another shot, three rusted life-sized monkey sculptures sit staring into the abyss – signed 'speak no evil, see no evil and hear no evil'.
Other features include gigantic bugs dotted around the complex, as well as a piece of literature on a marble plaque, which has since been smashed and is now unreadable.
Three rusted life-sized monkey sculptures sit staring into the abyss – signed 'speak no evil, see no evil and hear no evil'.
Dmitry added: “I noticed some strange figures flashing between the trees in the window, but these were the sculptures of animals on the premises.
“I was excited, as it looked really fantastic – like a scene from a movie.
“Seeing the beauty in all this ugliness and devastation is not immediately obtained.
"You can go into the hotel rooms abandoned by their inhabitants and look into the romantic tree houses.
To keep up to date with all the latest news stories, make sure you sign up to one of our newsletters here.
“You can go up the stairs to the amphitheatre, among the chairs in which admiring spectators one sat and float between the imaginary tables of the former cafes and restaurants.”
Due to its location up the slope of a mountain, which is overgrown with pine trees, the hotel is known as an 'eco' venue – also due to its impressive inclusion of nature throughout.
The complex has so many attractions that it's near-impossible to see them all in one day, so explorers usually take multiple trips to the site.
Some of the fun experiences include now-defunct cable cars, toy trains, a mini-zoo and a farm.
Dmitry said: “The children’s sector of the complex is especially striking, as guests were either greeted by a lion peeking out from behind a column, or giant gorillas lurking in ambush.
“Instead of a fence, a giant caterpillar winds and ‘fruits’ grow on artificial trees – in which, some are indistinguishable from others.
“Its psychedelic architecture is amazing to the imagination.
“Eco Dream is a Disneyland for the crazy.”
Source: Read Full Article
