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Meiningen, Schloss Landsberg
Only if you’re desperate for such a card. Mailed, no stamp, no postmark, messy reverse. Grade: 5
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Hotel Belvedere, The Louvre Restaurant (Portland, Oregon, USA)
Unused, undivided back card with instructions to use a 2-cent stamp, so it’s hard to judge the card’s age. As we often do, we went to Google to check the hotel’s history. The first several entries all pointed to similar stories, of which we reproduce some of one (glapn dot org) here: “The Louvre was an elegant restaurant located in the Hotel Belvedere on the northeast corner of Fourth and Alder. Built in 1891, the Belvedere survived the massive flood of 1894 and was purchased in 1907 by property developer Theodore Kruse. Once he owned the restaurant, Kruse turned it into a “bohemian” place. Separate restaurants were located inside, one for mixed male‑female dining and one for men only. (It isn’t known if there was one for women only as well.) The “Gents’ Dining Room” looked different from that of the mixed dining room. The men‑only dining room sported potted palms and mirror‑lined walls. The Louvre became infamous in certain legal circles. It possessed a liquor license, and there a number of reports in local newspapers cited liquor law violations. In one from 1908, the Louvre found itself on a list of eight “gay refectories” where the “gay laugh” could be heard.” That’s enough from us, and this card does cite Kruse as the proprietor. Grade: 2
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Chicago, Hotel La Salle, Office and Clerk’s Desk (USA)
Even for the era, that’s One Fancy Office. Unused card with minor age staining on the reverse. Grade: 2
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Mt. Myohyang, Hyangsan Hotel (DPR Korea)
Unused, captioned in Korean and English. Grade: 1
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Saranda, Tourist Hotel (Albania)
Although this unused card only dates from 1989, the area, the name, and most likely the building itself would have been swallowed up by what Saranda is becoming. (If you know the current name, could you let us know? Thanks!) Aging card, but clean. Grade: 1
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Struga, “The Holy Mother of God” and Hotel Biser (Macedonia)
Online reviews for the hotel are decidedly mixed–the best thing seems to be the location–but our review of the unused postcard is: Grade: 1
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Santa Barbara, El Patio Motor Hotel (California)
We have two of these cards, mailed two days apart in 1973 by the same person, to the same person. The cards are in identical condition, with postmark, but one has two different “ordinary” stamps and the other has a single “National Parks Centennial” commemorative stamp. The motel? Survives only on postcards. Grades: 1
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New Orleans, New Hotel Monteleone (Louisiana, USA)
Unused old card, but owing to its condition it can only be considered Grade: 5. (The hotel itself? Still there and sounds great.)
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New York City, St. Moritz Hotel, view
The full name on the card: St. Moritz on-the-park, and this was the view of Central Park, upper Manhattan, and the Palisades. We are grateful to Wikipedia for telling us this: “The Hotel St. Moritz was a luxury hotel located at 50 Central Park South, on the east side of Sixth Avenue, in New York City. The structure was extensively rebuilt from 1999-2002 and today is a combination hotel/condominium known as The Ritz-Carlton New York, Central Park.” We will also tell you this was once owned by Donald Trump. Two unused cards are available. Grades: 1
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Ottawa (ON), Lord Elgin Hotel (Canada)
Unused “local” card, serrated edges. The hotel is still there, currently undergoing renovation (maybe when you read this, it will all be done), and reviews highlight its great location. So does the card’s caption. Grade: 1
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King Edward Hotel on fire (Hong Kong)
The fire was in 1929, on Hong Kong Island. The unused card probably dates from the late 1970s or early 1980s. Grade: 1
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Hotel Inter-Continental Cali (Colombia)
Not postally used, but with a 1972 message (and address) on the reverse. Grade: 4
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Caracas, Hotel Humboldt and cable car (Venezuela)
Unused Intana card 1500-3-12, aging but clean. Due to the colourful history of this hotel, we’re going to try here to abridge an online entry from Panamericanworld giving the story: “The Humboldt Hotel was built between May and November 1956. The hotel was part of the plan to unite with Caracas with the Littoral through a tourist and recreational complex involving the cable car as transportation. The building is 2,140 meters above sea level … The resort was opened in the government of General Marcos Pérez Jiménez on December 29th, 1956. The facilities were given in concession to the Sheraton hotel chain in the mid-60s, but eventually had to be closed due to operational problems and accidents in the cable car system. In the mid-80s, the hotel was rescued and inaugurated with the cable car system in Caracas on February 6th, 1986. Then the hotel was used as a school of tourism, however, not continued to provide services to the public. Two years later, the Investment Fund of Venezuela and Corpoturismo, privatized and the Humboldt Hotel and the Caracas Littoral cable-car system to the Tourist Consortium Investing Caracas, ITC with a public concession contract for thirty years. It was in July 2001, when it opened the Tourist Complex Ávila Mágica, in the administration of the company ITC, the Avila Magica Project rescued several originating areas, restaurants, swimming pools, skating ice area of playground and the possibility of offering casinos and hotel recovery and restoration of the cable car to Macuto.. This project was dropped in 2007 when the government expropriated the execution of the works.”
Sorry, that was long, but we were interested. And as of 2014 the hotel was under renovation again. As for the postcard, Grade: 1-
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Hotel Continental (Luanda, Angola)
Nowhere on this postally unused card does it show the name of the hotel, but quick searching (there aren’t that many options in Luanda) showed that this is Hotel Continental, whose online reviews are “OK” but we’ll never know first-hand. The Elmar card is aging and has a brief inscription written into the address area. Grade: 3
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Bielersee, Restaurant-Hotel St. Petersinsel (Switzerland)
Not postally used, and with a long message from 2013 fully covering the reverse. Grade: 4
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Hotel Polana, Maputo (Mozambique)
This apparently majestic hotel is still there, now the Polana Serena Hotel, and with enticing online reviews. We wish we could try! This is an old Minerva card, unmailed but with a short greeting written on the back. Grade: 4
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Hotel Turismo, Maputo (Mozambique)
This is an old card, again from Minerva. It’s very heavily aged and has some writing in the address area. Just for fun, we looked up the hotel online, and are confused about whether it became the Ibis and reverted to Turismo, or what. Either way, online reviews make it clear we should consider other options. Grade: 4
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Orlando, Disney World, Contemporary Resort (Florida, USA)
Unused card 01110252. The resort is still there, mixed online reviews. Bring money. (The postcard is cheaper.) Grade: 1
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Islander Hostel (Ascension Island)
Unused. Grade: 1
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Underwater Post Office – Waterproof – Hideaway Island Resort (Vanuatu)
Another in Vanuatu’s series of novelty postcards (waterproof, and meant to be posted underwater), unused and with Vanuatu Post postage pre-paid. On this card, the capital’s name (Port Vila) is spelled correctly. Grade: 1
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Kabul, Ibnisina Street, Hotel Kabul (Afghanistan)
Mailed in 1968, with stamp and Kabul postmark, a view of an older day. We couldn’t find anything about the hotel online. Most likely, it’s gone, or at the least, changed its name. Grade: 2
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Kabul, Spinzer (sic) Hotel (Afghanistan)
It seems like this hotel may still be there, though the name generally appears online as Spinzar. In any event, the unused hotel postcard is OK on the front but extremely heavily aged on the back, and has serrated edges. Grade: 4
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Greetings from Idaho (USA)
Unmailed E.C. Kropp card 16051, with a small notation inked entirely within the stamp area. Like many of these Large Letter cards, the individual views are identified in the caption on the back: Beauty Bay, Cabinet Gorge, Shoshone Falls, Sun Valley Lodge and Challenger Inn, and Canadian wild geese at Challenger Inn. Grade: 3
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Hotel Sahara, Smothers Brothers (Las Vegas, Nevada, USA)
We have two of these unused 4-3/4″ x 7″ cards available. Hotels and casinos in those days were generous: “You Address It – We Mail It”. Slight aging. Grades: 2
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Kabul, Hotel Inter-Continental (Afghanistan)
As you can see in the scan, a beaten-up old (unused) card of an older hotel that after so many problems is somehow still there and doing its job. Or it was, at the time of this writing. Online reviews are instructive. Grade: 4
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Club Marriott (Hong Kong)
Advertising card measuring 4″ x 8-1/4″ and mailed in Hong Kong in 2016, using Hongkong Post’s pre-printed English-language Circular Service postage. Very unusually, this card is blank on the reverse. Grade: 1
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Luanda, Vista parcial, and Hotel Panorama (Angola)
Despite its prominent status and location, the Panorama is now permanently closed. Whether the building is still there or not, we don’t know, but apparently the hotel (from the 1970s) didn’t close a minute too soon. The postcard was not mailed, but has a message covering the reverse. Grade: 4
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Cairo, Tahrir Square with Nile Hilton Hotel and Municipality Buildings
Iconic among Egypt postcards, an unused example from Lehnert & Landrock, captioned in four languages and with a small round bookseller’s “chop” in the stamp area. Aging but otherwise clean. Grade: 3
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Samburu Game Lodge (Kenya)
Mailed in the 1980s, with stamp and faint postmark. Grade: 2
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Tunis, Mosquee Zitouna et Hotel Africa (Tunisia)
Unused KAHIA card 1648, aging but clean. Hotel Africa still operates, as of this writing, with reviews praising the location and staff. If we were there, we’d give it a try. Grade: 1
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Zarzis, Hotel Sangho (Tunisia)
Editions KAHIA card 353, not postally used but with a rubber-stamped “chop” from a prominent collector on the reverse. As for the hotel, now Sangho Club Zarzis, it gets a few but wildly mixed reviews online. Grade: 3
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Amanpulo, Pamalican Island (Philippines)
Unused 5″ x 7″ card. Grade: 1
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Hotel Boise (Idaho, USA)
Interestingly, the caption on the back is not about the hotel, but some statistics about the state. Card was mailed in 1949, with stamp and clear postmark. Grade: 1
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Hamamatsu, Okura Act City Hotel, lobby (Japan)
The creative lengths hotels will take to make their postcards look different … unused card, mildly smudged on the reverse. Grade: 2
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Hamamatsu, Okura Act City Hotel, night view (Japan)
Unused. Grade: 1
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Tokyo, Prince Hotel Shinagawa, Le Jardin des Delices
Unused. Not a lot of room for a message, though. Grade: 1
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Tokyo, Prince Hotel Shinagawa, night view
Unused. Not a lot of room for a message, though. Grade: 1
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Binakayan, Kawit, Cavite, Island Cove Resort & Leisure Park (Philippines)
Unused and somewhat uninspiring. Grade: 1
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Pattaya Beach, Royal Cliff Hotel (Thailand)
From a series of (otherwise) unused, aging cards, probably 1970s or earlier, onto which a Buddhist association has overprinted a seasonal greeting in Chinese, in large red characters, on the reverse. In this series, the greeting is always the same. To see it, go to our scan for card #20326413. Captioned in English. The Royal Cliff Hotels Group has more than one (thus, “Group”) and we suppose this is the Royal Cliff Beach Hotel, with diverse and interesting online reviews. Grade: 2
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The Elton Hotel, Waterbury (Connecticut, USA)
We are grateful to Wikipedia for this information, which we have only slightly abridged: “The Elton Hotel is an early 20th-century building in the Second Renaissance Revival architectural style. It was built in 1904 to replace a lavish hotel lost in a fire that destroyed much of downtown Waterbury two years earlier. F. Scott Fitzgerald was a guest, and James Thurber is said to have written “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty”, during a stay. On the eve of the 1960 election, John F. Kennedy gave an early-morning speech from the hotel that was credited with helping him win Connecticut. It continued to be used as a hotel until the early 1970s. In 1983, it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Since then it has been converted into professional office space and senior housing.” There is a caption on the front bottom but you need to look hard to see it. The card was mailed in 1909, with clear postmark and a stamp whose corner is there, but torn. Grade: 3