32 Grand Old Railway Hotels Left Vacant Along Forgotten Routes

8. Grand Hôtel du Salève, Mornex, France: Lost Alpine Railway Retreat

Perched on Mont Salève with stunning views of Geneva and Mont Blanc, the Grand Hôtel du Salève (1892) was a luxurious destination accessed by the Chemin de fer du Salève, a pioneering electric rack railway. This elegant hotel catered to affluent tourists seeking alpine air. However, the railway closed in 1935 due to competition from cars, isolating the hotel. It later served as a sanatorium and then fell into complete abandonment for many years, its decaying grandeur a silent reminder of a lost mountain railway and a bygone era of leisure.