This episode we explore a now-defunct and crumbling resort
The resort was part of what was known as the borscht belt
The region was so named as it was a popular destination for vacationing Jewish families in the 1920s to 1970s
Famous musicians comedians and entertainers would travel the circuit of resorts bungalow communities in hotels in upstate
New York and it was an inspiration behind movie select dirty dancing
Opening in the 1920s and its height the resort had tennis bowling a swimming pool a
theater lounges and many other amenities
Due to cheap air tickets the popularity of beaches and overseas travel. The resort's began to decline in the 1980s and to close
They were later sold to various groups as religious retreats or leveled for new construction in the case of this resort
It was one of the last operating but eventually succumbed to the inevitable and later opened as a girls camp
Which was in turn forced to shut down a decade ago due to safety violations
Let's go inside and see what's left today
Smashed windows and heavy overgrowth greet the visitor
A pool filled with graffiti and a burned-out hallway likely caused by arson. The floor is charred and quite dangerous
Bert
In the back is a changing area in lockers
Further down the hall as an exercise room as clear many vandals have been here from the quantity of smash glass
We head up the stairs into the hotel rooms
Cart sits unattended left by the last maid to ever make a bet here
This large wing still has most beds and other furnishings
As think maker records I notice other areas that are burned
Eventually we seem to have attracted attention and we decide to leave before visitors arrive
In the end this is just one more decayed remnant of what was a thriving industry of borscht belt resorts
Most today have been repurposed destroyed or burned to the ground by arson given the state of this one
It may not be far behind those that are now just a memory
The world has moved on and with the collapse of local economies and changing priorities these places cannot be viably supported
So they remain relics of nostalgia fond memories of childhood
Join us next time as we explore a series of startling ly abandoned crypts