The historic Wawona Hotel will be closing its doors later this year without a definite reopening date.
The National Park Service announced that the 168-year-old Wawona Hotel will close on Dec. 2 to conduct an intensive conditions assessment.
The big picture: While the National Park Service recently undertook a roof replacement project on the main hotel building, it revealed the need for a more intense investigation and assessment of the hotel, the National Park Service stated on social media.
- The Wawona Hotel said on social media that all reservation holders for Dec. 2 and beyond have been contacted for refunds or possible lodging alternatives.
- “At this time, there is no estimated reopening date for the hotel,” the Wawona Hotel wrote on Facebook.
Driving the news: The Wawona Hotel first opened in 1856 and got its name in 1882, predating The Ahwahnee hotel by several decades.
- But the past several years have shown the hotel’s age, with a 2023 National Park Service Report finding significant deterioration and rot in the hotel’s railings.
- A hotel guest was leaning on a rail last year and fell when it gave out, the report found.
- The Wawona Hotel has over 100 rooms, and the surrounding complex features a nine-hole golf course, swimming pool and a horseback riding stable.
- It had to close down briefly during the 2022 Washburn Fire but was ultimately not affected.
