Hotel Belvedere, Dubrovnik

Hotel Belvedere is the abandoned former luxury hotel spread across the steep coastal slope of Sveti Jakov, east of Dubrovnik’s historic centre. Its striking idea was to break a huge hotel into connected sections that step down the hillside towards the sea. Julije De Luca created the design with Mirko Bertić and Josip Dumančić, and the building opened on 26 May 1985 as the third de luxe hotel in the wider Dubrovnik area.

At its height, the complex held 210 accommodation units and 462 beds, along with restaurants, bars, conference spaces, pools, terraces and an amphitheatre beside the coastal promenade. The architects used reinforced concrete, broad glazed surfaces, stone and reddish aluminium panels, while a circulation tower was shaped to suggest a Romanesque tower and a Mediterranean connection. The hotel operated until 1991, when shelling during the Siege of Dubrovnik caused severe damage and fire destroyed part of the complex.

It was never restored, so this once prestigious resort remains out of use. The property was acquired by Vila Larus in 2014, and although a replacement resort was designed by 3LHD, the existing building still remains and construction has not begun as of September 2026.