Eerie Disney ghost village where 587 mini castle-like houses are frozen in time
In rural Turkey, what was meant to be a Disney princess haven of hundreds of turreted holiday homes was left to the elements.
Burj Al Babas is a failed mega project that now resembles an eerie ghost town more than a luxury resort. Bordering the Black Sea, the town is filled with 587 mini castles that were slated to be the next big tourist attraction. Then funding dried up and the white-washed town was left high and dry.
The homes were on sale for between £330,000 to £440,000 for their own little palace. Sarot Group, the project developer envisioned an ode to the Royal families of Europe's past when they dreamt up the project, according to CNN Traveller.
For the rich and glamorous bored by Monaco and the south of France - this slice of paradise offered it all: Mediterranean climate on neo-Gothic rooftops overlooking bucolic Turkish forests.
Located in the Roman spa town of Mudurnu, famous for its hot springs and supposed 'healing waters,' each villa would boast underfloor heating and Jacuzzis on every level.
However, after construction started in 2014, with 2018 as the envisioned end date, Sarot Group was forced to declare bankruptcy. Locals were equally furious after seeing the look of the homes and the business practices of the developers.
Local news reported that many were frustrated the castles didn't resemble anything in the area, particularly the historical Ottoman-style mansions.
A lawsuit against the developers claimed the company destroyed trees and harmed the environment. Then Turkey's economy crashed and the developers soon incurred a £24 million debt.
It looks unlikely the project will ever be finished as investors and buyers pulled their money out of the £200million project in 2019.
Sarot Group was confident it would finish the scheme despite the massive bump in the road, according to a report in The New York Times. But the second arrow hit when the pandemic arrived and the project was left well and truly abandoned.
The empty town has many villas which were started but not one was finished. Burj Al Babas now lies still, frozen in time with zero signs of life.
Burj Al Babas consists of more than 700 multi-story castles, half of which were already sold by 2019.
The controversial Gothic-inspired architectural details, including flying buttresses, pointed arches, and ribbed vaulting, is supposed to mimic the castles lining the roads just outside the Roman spa town of Mudurnu.
The project's developers chose a massive valley at the base of Turkey's northwestern mountains to draw in Arabs from the Gulf. Each home boasts magnificent natural vistas. Furthermore, the town is now littered with abandoned construction materials.
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Scottish Sun
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Daily Mirror
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Daily Mail
4 hours ago
- Daily Mail
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