The Vacation Finder

Grossinger’s Catskill Resort Hotel, Liberty, New York

Regretfully, the resort's popularity fell after owner Jennie Grossinger died away in the early 1970s, and it was eventually closed in 1986. It was allowed to molder for decades, with a dry and graffitied swimming pool and a golf clubhouse suffocated by vegetation. The resort's crumbling remains were destroyed by fire in 2022.

The Catskill Mountains in New York are a paradise for the outdoors, complete with trails and waterfalls, as well as upscale hotels and resorts. Grossinger's Catskill Resort Hotel was one of them; it began as a Victorian-style building in the 1900s and expanded to include modernist rooms and amenities. During its glitzy golden age in the 1950s, the hotel hosted celebrities such as boxer Rocky Marciano and singer Eddie Fisher. The resort is also credited with inspiring the lasting classic Dirty Dancing, a cult favorite from the 1980s.

Coco Palms Resort, Kauai, Hawaii

This Hawaiian resort rose to fame thanks to Elvis Presley, the King of Rock 'n' Roll. Seen here in 2006, the verdant Wailua locale served as the backdrop for a large portion of Elvis Presley's 1961 film Blue Hawaii, a famous song that encouraged many couples to have "Hawaii-themed" weddings in the location. The resort's renowned doors were frequented by other entertainment titans such as Rita Hayworth and Frank Sinatra, who relished the opulent outdoor pool and king-sized apartments.

Coco Palms redevelopment begins on Kauai: Travel Weekly

In 1992, Hurricane Iniki severely destroyed the facility, forcing it to close its doors for good. Two decades later, a terrible two-day fire caused far more damage to the hotel. It now lies deserted, its apartments in ruins and its pool full of stagnant water. Developers have purchased it, but there are still a number of disagreements and issues, and some local Hawaiians are strongly opposed to the development. The resort is to be transformed into an Indigenous cultural and educational hub by a community-based organization at the grassroots level.

Penn Hills Resort, Analomink, Pennsylvania

The Pocono Mountains in Pennsylvania are another well-liked mountain getaway; they became well-known as a holiday destination as early as 1900. This specific resort began as a pub during World War II and peaked in the 1960s and 1970s, attracting a lot of honeymooners with its red-carpeted rooms. A small stream of visitors persisted over the ensuing decades, but the financially distressed hotel closed in 2009 following the 102-year-old co-founder Frances Paolillo's death.

The once-plush rooms became wet, the crimson Jacuzzis in the shape of hearts faded, and the two wedding bell-shaped pools in the grounds filled with rainwater that had become yellow-green, and the resort swiftly fell into ruin. After it was abandoned, the hotel was even inspected while Eric Frein, a killer who was believed to be hiding at the hotel and who had slain a state trooper in an attack on a police barracks in 2014, was on the loose. Little of the resort is left after arson and deliberate demolitions destroyed the majority of the surviving structures over time.

Buck Hill Inn, Buck Hill Falls, Pennsylvania

The Buck Hill Inn - Clio

The little hamlet of Buck Hill Falls' pride and pleasure, this once-fine inn, could not withstand the wrecking ball. Originally a modest private inn, it was founded in 1901 by a group of friends from Philadelphia. With the aid of the Olmsted brothers, renowned landscape architect Frederick Law Olmsted's sons, it quickly grew. The hotel gradually added all the features one would anticipate from an opulent getaway, such as hundreds of rooms, a gorgeous outdoor pool, tennis courts, and a golf course.

Lee Plaza, Detroit, Michigan

The 16-story block was owned by several different people over the course of the next few decades after the building's initial owner was forced to sell when the Great Depression struck. The building originally opened in 1929. Its opulence diminished and it was used as a senior citizen community for a while before it was permanently boarded up in the 1990s. The structure was left to the elements and eventually collapsed into a windowless ruin with a dilapidated ballroom and threadbare, graffitied hallways. But now there are plans to renovate the stunning Art Deco structure.