The History:
The Jerma Palace Hotel is a former four-star hotel in Marsaskala, Malta. It opened in 1982, it was managed by Corinthia Hotels International and was the largest hotel in southern Malta until it closed down in 2007. It was then abandoned and fell into a state of disrepair. Built on a headland called il-Hamriga, close to the 17th-century Saint Thomas Tower, the land originally belonged to Franciscan Conventuals and Ivan Burridge. They sold it to San Tumas Holdings and in turn they sold it in 1976 to the Libyan Foreign Investment Company. They subsequently built the Jerma Palace Hotel which opened in 1982. Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi had a presidential suite in the hotel. The opening of the hotel played a significant part in transforming Marsaskala from a traditional fishing village to a small resort.
The hotel closed down in March 2007 and in July 2008 it was sold to the contractors Jeffrey and Peter Montebello for €18.6 million. The Montebello brothers planned to transform the former hotel into apartments, a 5-star hotel and a yacht marina but none of this transpired. Instead it was effectively abandoned and its interior stripped of everything of value including carpets, marble floors, doors and tiles. Now in a derelict state, parts of it having collapsed, the walls are covered in graffiti and the building has been occupied by squatters and drug addicts. A number of fires have also broken out in the former hotel.
In August 2016 the Planning Authority ordered the hotel's owners to demolish the building. Ironically on that same day the building caught fire. In October 2016 Porto Notos Ltd (acting on behalf of the owners) submitted plans for two residential towers, one of 44 and another of 32 storeys, together with a 22 storey hotel.
Here’s what it used to look like in its heyday:
Jerma1 by HughieDW, on Flickr
jerma2 by HughieDW, on Flickr
jerma3 by HughieDW, on Flickr
The Visit:
Had heard about this place prior to my brief pre-Xmas break to Malta. To my surprise and excitement we ended up staying just up the road from the hotel. Hence on the first morning there I was up early and walked over to the former hotel. Impossible to miss, it was an easy access place. Three things strike you about this place: (1) its location (2) its sheer size and (3) the relatively short period this place has declined from being a plush hotel to a complete wreck. It may now be a wreck and stripped of anything and everything of value, but it now does have some very, very fine graff.
The Pictures:
Now that is a location:
img9567 by HughieDW, on Flickr
img9279 by HughieDW, on Flickr
The first of many pieces of graff:
img9282 by HughieDW, on Flickr
And some more:
img9284 by HughieDW, on Flickr
Lots of broken marble:
img9285 by HughieDW, on Flickr
And even more graff:
img9287 by HughieDW, on Flickr
img9288 by HughieDW, on Flickr
img9290 by HughieDW, on Flickr
Inside its slim pickings:
img9297 by HughieDW, on Flickr
And the outside is pretty bleak too:
img9300 by HughieDW, on Flickr
The outdoor pool has seen better days:
img9301 by HughieDW, on Flickr
img9355 by HughieDW, on Flickr
The indoor pool hasn’t fared much better:
img9351 by HughieDW, on Flickr
img9352 by HughieDW, on Flickr
A trashed marble chess board:
img9347 by HughieDW, on Flickr
The place has suffered from a number of fires:
img9315 by HughieDW, on Flickr
img9317 by HughieDW, on Flickr
The former reception/entrance:
img9319 by HughieDW, on Flickr
img9322 by HughieDW, on Flickr
img9332 by HughieDW, on Flickr
And yet more pieces of graff:
img9324 by HughieDW, on Flickr
img9357 by HughieDW, on Flickr
img9363 by HughieDW, on Flickr
A slight hint at its former glory:
img9360 by HughieDW, on Flickr
But only
Other than that, the place is a wreck:
img9353 by HughieDW, on Flickr
img9354 by HughieDW, on Flickr
img9362 by HughieDW, on Flickr
The Jerma Palace Hotel is a former four-star hotel in Marsaskala, Malta. It opened in 1982, it was managed by Corinthia Hotels International and was the largest hotel in southern Malta until it closed down in 2007. It was then abandoned and fell into a state of disrepair. Built on a headland called il-Hamriga, close to the 17th-century Saint Thomas Tower, the land originally belonged to Franciscan Conventuals and Ivan Burridge. They sold it to San Tumas Holdings and in turn they sold it in 1976 to the Libyan Foreign Investment Company. They subsequently built the Jerma Palace Hotel which opened in 1982. Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi had a presidential suite in the hotel. The opening of the hotel played a significant part in transforming Marsaskala from a traditional fishing village to a small resort.
The hotel closed down in March 2007 and in July 2008 it was sold to the contractors Jeffrey and Peter Montebello for €18.6 million. The Montebello brothers planned to transform the former hotel into apartments, a 5-star hotel and a yacht marina but none of this transpired. Instead it was effectively abandoned and its interior stripped of everything of value including carpets, marble floors, doors and tiles. Now in a derelict state, parts of it having collapsed, the walls are covered in graffiti and the building has been occupied by squatters and drug addicts. A number of fires have also broken out in the former hotel.
In August 2016 the Planning Authority ordered the hotel's owners to demolish the building. Ironically on that same day the building caught fire. In October 2016 Porto Notos Ltd (acting on behalf of the owners) submitted plans for two residential towers, one of 44 and another of 32 storeys, together with a 22 storey hotel.
Here’s what it used to look like in its heyday:
The Visit:
Had heard about this place prior to my brief pre-Xmas break to Malta. To my surprise and excitement we ended up staying just up the road from the hotel. Hence on the first morning there I was up early and walked over to the former hotel. Impossible to miss, it was an easy access place. Three things strike you about this place: (1) its location (2) its sheer size and (3) the relatively short period this place has declined from being a plush hotel to a complete wreck. It may now be a wreck and stripped of anything and everything of value, but it now does have some very, very fine graff.
The Pictures:
Now that is a location:
The first of many pieces of graff:
And some more:
Lots of broken marble:
And even more graff:
Inside its slim pickings:
And the outside is pretty bleak too:
The outdoor pool has seen better days:
The indoor pool hasn’t fared much better:
A trashed marble chess board:
The place has suffered from a number of fires:
The former reception/entrance:
And yet more pieces of graff:
A slight hint at its former glory:
But only
Other than that, the place is a wreck:
