Mansion Dubbed ‘Welsh Versailles’ with 122 Rooms At Auction May 13th With a GP of £750,000
Name: Kinmel Hall
No. of Keys: 122 rooms – make 100-room hotel
The Opportunity: Not for the faint-hearted! This 1874 mansion, dubbed ‘Welsh Versailles’ – Kinmel Hall, is a Welsh mansion designed by architect WE Nesfield in the style of the French palace. Completed in 1874, the building was used as a private home until 1929, before being converted into a ‘rheuma spa’.
Although rundown, there are 122 rooms it was built as a ‘calendar house’ since it has 365 windows, 122 rooms and 12 entrances. During WW2 it was used as a hospital and after the war, was turned into Clarendon School for girls but a fire in 1975 forced them to move.
It was restored and used as a Christian conference centre for a time but has been unoccupied, since 2000. After many attempts to sell the property and failed plans to turn it into a hotel at one point, it is now due to be sold at auction with the guide price of £750,000.
7,432 sqm (80,000 sqf) of floor space and a site around 7.09 Hectares (17.51 Acres). Inside the property, there is still a grand central staircase, impressive formal rooms, a former chapel and multiple bedrooms.
There is some amazing original detail still on show. The external Neo-Palladian style stable block is attributed to William Burn and was completed in the 1850s. The sale comes after The Friends of Kinmel Hall group called on the current owners to either restore it or sell it to prevent the impressive building falling into a state of complete disrepair.
The property will go to auction on May 13 through an auction house. There is a link to floor-plans, from 2006 when there were plans to turn it into a hotel, and video footage.
The Hall occupies an elevated position with views across neighbouring farmland to the north Welsh coast. It is approached from Primrose Hill, by means of a right of way through surrounding pasture which is in separate ownership. The main iron gates at the Hall open to a large surfaced courtyard and car park. There is a quadrangle stable block with barn storage to the south of the main Hall. Externally, there are garden areas which include the remains of a large circular ornamental fountain, a tennis court and part of a sunken service driveway
The property is in need of extensive renovation Prospective purchasers are advised to take care upon inspection!
The main Hall is Listed Grade 1, and the stable block Grades 1 and II, as being of special architectural and historic interest. The property is considered suitable for a variety of uses including hotel, residential conference centre, educational establishment or conversion to residential apartments, subject to obtaining all necessary consents
Past consents include the following – Ref 0/37798 – Change of use from training centre to hotel (this was a renewal of planning permission granted under code ref 0/31469). FINAL DECISION 30-03-2011. Approved with conditions 13.05.2011. Expired 2016.
Main Photo: Aerial shot of Kinmel Hall