No paddles go up for Berengaria hotel

Despite a recent spike in interest for the auction of the abandoned Berengaria hotel in Cyprus, the historic building failed to draw bidders who would be willing to meet the minimum asking price of just over €2 million.

The historic Berengaria hotel, nestled in the island’s highest mountain range covering 26,520 square metres, went up for auction on Tuesday but remained unsold due to bidders failing to meet the reserve price of €2,360,000 million.

The hotel captured the imagination of thousands of visitors who may have had a chance to get up close and personal with its ‘ghosts lurking in the dark’ but failed to turn that allure into a real money offer.

What's next for Berengaria

It was therefore bought in by the Bank of Cyprus, which will have to wait three months before putting the 80-year-old property on the auction list again.

It was not immediately clear whether the price is expected to be knocked down.

Berengaria, named after the wife of King Richard the Lionheart, is a main tourist attraction in Prodromos, up in the Troodos mountains. It opened in 1931 and closed down in 1984.

Despite safety warnings, the desolate structure remained a main attraction where visitors and history enthusiasts often got up close and personal by going inside to admire the site.