Bloudan Grand Hotel, Uniqueness and Charm

In the joys of the achievements, the most important and splendid thing is to show the civilization of a nation and the effects of its construction. Bloudan Grand Hotel (BGH) has a great impact on the glory of this ancient civilization in the history of Syria and the Arab nation.

Let us talk about this hotel from the beginning. When they wanted to build it, they had three hills, and in order to choose one of them, they raised a plank on each hill and hung a piece of meat on each one. After a few days, they found the meat on the hill, the hotel is currently located intact ,  due to the good climate, while the other two pieces were rotten, and that is how they chose the location. They started building it in 1930, according to the French style, under the supervision of engineers Tidore Kattani and Michel Merhej, until its completion in 1936.

Besides its amazing captivating exterior, with its roads planted with pine, its swimming pool and skating rink, its interior is more than charming. It has a large salon divided into a reception section, an evening section and a restaurant. In addition to the deluxe suites.

Many conferences were held in BGH, including the Arab National Congress in 1937, Bloudan conference in 1946, the first meeting for the Arab League in 1956, and the Arab Writers conference in 1956.

Also, in 1955, 9-11 August, the fifth session of the executive committee, for Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), for desert locust control in the Arabian Peninsula, held in BGH.

In 1940, stamps were issued in different colours but of one design for the hotel.

The most prominent personalities who visited the hotel were the late president Hafez Al-Assad, the late president Jamal Abdulnasser, the singer Sabah, Wadih Al-Safi, Abdel Halim Hafez, Abd Al-Wahhab who has a suite named after him, and many others.

And if this huge hotel had included the great politicians and artists from the history of our nation, it had also received writers and poets who found in its captivating halls joy, comfort and trust, such as Badawi Al-Jabal and others.

It is worth noting that life came back to BGH after years of stagnation, through festivals, evenings…

In fact, what added magic to Bloudan is this charming and majestic edifice.