With 106 rooms, Swansea’s Dragon Hotel is one of the city’s largest places to stay.
Opening in 1961, the hotel has been welcoming visitors to Swansea for over 50 years.
But, recently, the city-centre hotel has found itself surrounded by controversy and mystery.
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Back in December, 2021, the hotel closed its doors to the public with little to no warning and even less fanfare.
Rumours then began to surface about what was happening at the site, after the hotel apparently then began cancelling bookings, and there were false reports of staff being laid off.
One of the main theories was that the Home Office had earmarked the hotel to house asylum seekers.
In a video doing the rounds on social media, a Dragon Hotel representative said the hotel had a Government contract, but that he could not disclose any details. The representative said the hotel had been cleared.
This rumour was quashed, however, by Swansea Council leader Rob Stewart, who confirmed that asylum seekers would not be housed at the hotel. Cllr Stewart said the material posted on social media was inaccurate and misleading. It wasn’t the case, he said, that the hotel would be used for this purpose.
He said the council had been clear with the Home Office that hotel accommodation was not the right way to support such groups.
“I understand the Home Office will shortly be making a statement to confirm similar arrangements,” he said.
The Home Office also subsequently said it had no plans to accommodate asylum seekers at the hotel.
At the time, a spokesman for the Dragon Hotel said: “There have been a number of false rumours circulating on social media concerning the hotel and we are grateful for the city council for its support on the matter.”
He added: “In addition to the council leaderâs statement, we would also like to confirm that claims on social media of job losses are also completely untrue.”
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Yet, despite this, rumours online have continued to circulate about the hotel’s closure, with some commenting on social media that the venue looks ‘closed down’.
Currently, bookings for the hotel are unavailable both on it’s website, and through third party sites such as booking.com.
But there is now, finally, some firm news on the hotel’s future.
A spokesperson for The Dragon Hotel confirmed to Wales Online that the hotel was shut for refurbishment and was set to re-open and accept bookings from April 1 onwards.
This does still mean that the hotel will be closed for the up-coming Six Nations games, set to be hosted just a short journey away in Cardiff.
Some have taken to social media to confirm this, also stating that they have been told the reason for their cancelled booking is ‘refurbishment’.
The hotel did not comment on what work it was having done, but Swansea residents have already noticed changes to the landmark, such as new windows and a green wall.
It seems like it will be a case of ‘watch this space’.
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