Le Bristol, one of the hospitality landmarks of Lebanon, closed down its doors amid a severe economic crisis, not to mention the outbreak of Coronavirus that has been freezing most activities for over a month now.

The hotel’s general manager Joseph Coubat told the AFP: “It is because of the economic situation which is becoming unbearable. Now with the Coronavirus and the financial problems in the country, the occupancy rate has fallen to a very low level.” 

The hotel which was founded in 1951, completed a full renovation in 2015, with designs conceived by Galal Mahmoud. 

The five-star property, a part of Preferred Hotels and Resorts under the Luxury Collection,  hosted during its glory years many celebrities, including the former Shah of Iran Mohammad Reza Pahlavi and his wife Princess Soraya, the American aviator Charles Lindbergh, and the former French president Jacques Chirac.