Built in the flurry of British domestic holiday culture that boomed in the post-war era, The White House Hotel in Abersoch, Wales closed in 2004 and became very much derelict and overgrown in the decade that followed. In 2014 the rejection of a new £8 million hotel on the site after concerns over a lack of affordable housing in the seaside resort brought forward even more uncertainty about its future. The project has also seen large scale opposition due to the threat it would potentially impose on smaller bed & breakfast businesses in the area. However, an online petition in 2015 resulted in the project being brought back to life, and the hotel was demolished in February 2016. Plans are now going ahead to erect a 40 room spa hotel to be opened in two years’ time. Luckily I had the chance to visit the site before the winter to document what was left. Whilst researching for information about the hotel I found a written account from local resident Debbie Tissot who described the following; “My parents owned the Hotel and I was introduced to it when I returned home from Bangor Hospital. I lived there for many years and can remember Kath's recollections of people 12 deep at the bar in 1962 and having the job of guarding the windows to stop people queue jumping, something I wasn't particularly good at, as I was easily bribed! It is very sad to see it derelict now. Abersoch is still is a great place to go but it would be better if we could hang on to our independent Hotels and Clubs, after all people who holiday in flats there still need entertainment and somewhere to hide out from the rain.“
