Colonia Fara

Originally built by Italy’s National Fascist Party to serve as a seaside resort for the country’s youth, but after only achieving stuttering success as a youth resort and being commandeered by the military in World War II, the Colonia Fara has been left to corrode. 

Construction on the resort was completed in 1936, followed by a 1938 inauguration that was attended by Mussolini himself. The complex was meant to provide a truly fascist vacation experience to kids from around the country, but this carefree existence was not to last. After just two years in service as a summer camp, World War II broke out in earnest, and the large accommodation was taken over by the war effort and used to house Nazi troops. After the war, the facility tried to reopen once again as a youth resort, but it proved to be too tough a follow-up after serving as a Nazi barracks.

Once the second wave of summer fun fell apart, the space was briefly abandoned before being taken over by a local sports organization and elementary school. Neither of these new uses lasted long either as the building had become largely unsafe with the upper floors being almost completely useless. By 1999 the building was abandoned for good.

Today the rotting architectural husk still stands empty. The interior is largely destroyed by time and vandals while the exterior is surrounded by tall weeds and peeling paint. A far cry from the summer camp that was no doubt the source of countless happy fascist memories.

In 2014, a project to recover the building has been approved. The project includes a hotel, a restaurant, and apartments.

Update as of August 2022: The hotel has been fully renovated.