Cyprus is full of hidden stories, and few sites capture both intrigue and melancholy quite like the abandoned Eva Hotel in Larnaca. Once a bustling destination for visitors, the hotel now sits in quiet decay, its walls weathered, rooms empty, and grounds slowly overtaken by nature. Exploring the site from the ground is eerie, but flying over it with a drone reveals its scale, architectural features, and the haunting beauty of abandonment.
The drone footage begins with a sweeping aerial view of the hotel complex. From above, the building’s rectangular structure and surrounding grounds are fully visible: the cracked pool, overgrown pathways, and scattered remnants of terraces and seating areas. The contrast between the man-made architecture and the encroaching vegetation is striking. From this perspective, Eva Hotel looks like a monument frozen in time, a snapshot of what once was vibrant and lively.
As the drone moves closer, details emerge. Broken windows reveal dark, empty interiors, graffiti decorates the walls, and weeds push through cracks in the concrete. The pool, once a centrepiece of leisure, now lies dry and abandoned, its edges crumbling under the weight of neglect. From above, the geometry of decay—straight lines, rectangular forms, and fragmented spaces—becomes almost artistic, turning ruin into a visual narrative.
Flying a drone over an abandoned site is always challenging, and this visit was no exception. Strong winds and the layout of the property tested both the pilot and the equipment. In a tense moment during filming, the drone crashed, a sudden reminder of the risks inherent in exploring such locations. Thankfully, the pilot recovered safely, but the drone suffered damage and had to be repaired upon returning to the UK. That unexpected incident added a layer of drama to the filming process, making the captured footage even more remarkable considering the obstacles.
Beyond the hotel itself, the surrounding landscape adds context and contrast. From the air, Larnaca’s urban outskirts stretch toward the coast, while distant beaches shimmer in turquoise sunlight. This juxtaposition of life and abandonment underscores the story of Eva Hotel—a place once thriving, now quiet, yet framed by a world that continues to move around it.
Despite the challenges, the aerial perspective captures the eerie charm of the hotel in a way the ground never could. It emphasises the scale, the patterns of decay, and the solitude of a building left behind by time. For urban explorers, photographers, and drone enthusiasts, Eva Hotel offers a rare glimpse into a space frozen between memory and ruin.
As the drone ascends for a final panoramic shot, the hotel becomes a small, stark feature against the sprawling landscape. Its presence lingers long after the flight ends—a testament to Cyprus’s forgotten architecture, the allure of abandonment, and the unpredictable adventure of capturing it from the sky. Even with a crash and a repair needed halfway across the world, the footage immortalises Eva Hotel’s haunting beauty, proving that sometimes the risks make the rewards all the more compelling.
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