Iconic Abandoned Hotel with Weird History 

I see that building everyday from my living room in a high rise. The only thing that persists is a tree at the top, that someone survives year after year. Spooky.

Lol, I saw the thumbnail and was like "Wait...I know that ugly ass building!"

Good stuff, keep it up. Can’t wait to see what area of Houston you cover next. Should maybe do Clayton Homes before it gets torn down.

Beirut Hilton lol

When it was a Holiday Inn. On it's last days I went to a Christmas party there with Stewart and Stevenson.

It’s across from the YMCA and when you’re on the top level of the parking garage at night, looking at that building is just creepy as hell. Wish they’d demolish it.

Amazing, 50 years ago this Holiday Inn was the largest Holiday Inn property in their chain

A very interesting video! I have always been weirded out by the giant abandoned shell of a building in the middle of downtown Houston every time I drive through it, but thankfully I stumbled upon this video explaining what it is. Keep up the good work. For some reason RU-vid thinks you are speaking Vietnamese when you turn on the auto-generated captions. Guess that's just the RU-vid algorithm at work lol. The subtitles are pretty funny, though, at one point it says "paint is verified banker which ends all you've seen."

ive tagged that

Good to see the City Of Houston takes urban blight so seriously ... ! If it were banning abortion rights or books they don't like they would be all over it......

I’m just wondering what they are going to do with this Holiday Inn/days and that’s been sitting up abandon in Houston

I remember it as a DAYS INN. When I came to Houston in 1980, there were no less than (5) buildings going up simultaneously. I still have fond memories of downtown Houston of the ‘80’s and ‘90’s. ❤❤

I hate hate hated driving past that building when I lived in Houston. If I’m not mistaken, that building across 45 had someone drive their car through the brick wall of an upper level of a parking level. Man… this is all taking me back to nights at Sammy’s @ 2016 Main. What a time!

Gosh I love your channel. Thank you.

It should be demolished, and a 5 star or greater residential and hotel 2 tower combo should be built there. 820ft hotel, and 800ft residential.

Maharishi was guru to the Beetles! When they bought the hotel in 1993 they renamed it Heaven on Earth Inn. Before they stripped it in 2017 it was basically the world's largest trap house.

Beruit Hilton thats funny!

Redevelop it. Don't tear it down, if it's possible to bring it to code, keep it and do it up really big. It is Texas...

The main reason that the abandoned Days Inn remains is that it contains massive amounts of asbestos throughout the building. Because of the asbestos and the proximity to Interstate 45 that passes very close by, the building cannot simply be knocked down. Instead it will need to be dismantled from the top floor to the bottom, a cost that makes it unfeasible. Thus, it sits and deteriorates.

Great videos, Scott. You should do one on the original NASA buildings, before the Manned Spacecraft Center was opened in Clear Lake. Holler at me if you need pointers.

I remember when the Rice Hotel was sitting abandoned, beautiful 14 story brick building built in 1914, only made it in once on the first floor, it was dark and creepy!

Huh. Haven't explored downtown in years. I used to ride the metro a lot before I got my first car in 2016. I remember this building looking like the quick shot of it with full glass windows (some missing). Now I have to go look at it again but without any windows it's super unrecognizable. Like a completely different building.

Hahha. When i first moved to Houston. I know it was a days inn by the sign. Thanks bro. Ive been reading into the citys history. Like tracing down the old trams line etc. A1

Yes,that's the building.TABunch.😮😅😊😢

I remember when the Rice Hotel was sitting abandoned, beautiful 14 story brick building built in 1914, only made it in once on the first floor, it was dark and creepy!

Heck yeah! I love passing this building. I go down the pierce elevated at least once a week.

Great video. Love the aerial shots. Who was brave enough to paint the graffiti at the top of that building?

Why has the city not ordered that it be torn down? I had to walk past the eyesore for years when I worked downtown. Visitors have received a very bad impression of the area.

I've seen that building.Maybe you can answer this for me. There's a building in Downtown Houston that has a lighted Blue Cross*(*Not the insurance company) om the side. Do you know what it's called?? Your reply is appreciated.😮😅😊😢

Back in 2020, I went up to the top with a few buddies. Had a backpack full of beer, and we started drinkin. Left a bit after that, there were some Mexican kids up there waving around Glocks.

People would sneak up to top a few years back and shoot fireworks off, was nuts.

Houston having an abandoned tower 😂😂

I remember back in the 80s 81-82, I used to play drums in a band, we played down the lobby, it was a Holiday inn then, it was fun and it was a nice place, it's a shame to see it in the shape it is now 😞

I think I and my folks stayed there once back when it was a Holiday Inn.

Shessh been here so many times alll da wayyy up

Nice. Always Wondered what that building was. Hope they can figure out what to do with it.

I kind of like it the way it is haha...Among the gleaming skyscrapers built with money from keeping the world's lights on stands this monument to Houston's grit and realness, especially when you see that Southern sun setting through its hollow shell 🔥

I always see if new videos come out on this place good stuff man!!

Dangg I spent an hour trying to figure out where this building is and how come I’ve never seen it…turns out you could see a corner of the building and garage straight from my balcony hahaa never noticed it

I do enjoy your videos. Thank you for uploading this

Your uploads are fantastic.

Love it! We need to get you inside for a tour!

There should be one of these for the Celestial Penthouse Suite at what last I saw was a Crowne Plaza and once was the Astroworld Hotel. That Suite used to be where Judge Roy lived. At the very top of what he created.

ROWDY !!

Great as always!

I lived in this hotel in 1994 each floor had a little bit of everything - and i mean if you had the money u got anything u wanted on any floor

I went to party in this building when it was the Days Inn. The building was poorly kept and most of the elevators didn't even work.

Yo. That same guy made Heavenly Mountain in NC. Weird. He was all over.

A big issue with redeveloping that building is that it has very low ceilings with no opportunity for overhead utility chases - mostly air conditioning and wiring.

Yo, keep up the great videos! I enjoy them a lot

It was shut down in June 1998. NOT 1997.

I believe that's where they had us stay while processing in the military. I stayed there twice in 1997. It was still called the Days Inn when I stayed there. The television was stolen from my room.

Well done!!

Thanks for another great video. I used to work in a nearby tower (Leland FB) and would see people running around on the roof - kind of a nerve-wracking sight and at the time (2015-16 mainly) a lot of people (not necessarily homeless) were using Kush and having weird incidents like one where a relatively well-dressed young man just started seizing on the sidewalk in front of me; there were also dazed people wandering into traffic and it all was kind of like, more harmful to them than anyone else but there felt like a tragedy could be right around the corner. Or you could just get maimed by a piece of Dazed Inn glass falling on you on the sidewalk; probably the only thing worse than all the grackle shit. Those were the days! ..... On a different subject, you've probably thought of it already, but the Exxon building nearby (in several of these shots) is another story of a building that has been vacant for a while. Not as long and it's not such an eyesore - it's actually got some charm and at least appears to be in better shape - but also a reminder of how fickle the fate of buildings can be in downtown Houston. There's been some hopeful news this winter that the Exxon building is going to be redeveloped for apartments, but we'll see if they successfully complete the project. It's going to cost a fortune. But would be nice to see something preserved for once amongst all the demolition. And maybe that's the intrigue of Dazed Inn - somehow, the seemingly most-implodeable building seems to be protected and preserved in spite of the fact that seemingly nobody wants it. Beautiful, wanted buildings - even people's historic homes - get destroyed all the time. By the storms and the floods? No, by the pursuit of profit and the love of narrow homes that are all stairs. That's walkability? Then on a different track, the Astrodome is ... also in a strange limbo for something that arguably should be the city's crown jewel; the stadiums that followed it are mostly gone, but what's the confusion? So much happened there and it's still standing. There are a lot of parallel stories to tell and what they all add up to about the architectural ethos of Houston is probably a confusing mess. I hope we figure it out. It can't be all destruction and generic stuff yuppies will hate after they turn 35.

I didn’t know the galleria was that old

Has this property been shopped on a global level, to builders from across the world?

Joel Osteen is buying the building and it will be new site of OSTEEN UNIVERSITY.

Didn’t they tear it town?

There no way to get in anymore :(

Make subtitles available in ENGLISH NOT VIETNAMESE!!! Why would you even make them in Vietnamese?! Nobody speaks that language

I still like seeing this building thinking they will do something awesome and cool with it once a suitable buyer comes.

Houston's own Cecil Hotel, Netflix needs give Scott a call.

Great video!

Great stuff, Scott! I was just researching this hotel for a future project of mine, and I was amazed to find out about the previous plans for the "transcendental meditation center". You just can't make this stuff up! 🤯😂

Update 2023: it was nought and is basically lofts now. Super modern, but kept the original busted-up sign on top of the building (odd choice)