Grand banqueting halls, opulent lobbies and vast ballrooms; you could easily be forgiven for thinking this was a collection of photographs was documenting some of Europe’s grandest hotels. However, a closer look will reveal the majestic rooms to be engulfed in swathes of dust and moss; hotels that once hosted royals and high society abandoned to the elements. This is the latest result of urban exploration photography, going beyond “no entry” signs to capture images of dilapidated buildings across Europe. IT worker Thomas Windisch, from Graz in Austria, indulged his passion for photography by traveling across the continent, visiting over 100 abandoned hotels along the way. Here: inside a hotel in Austria. (Photo by Thomas Windisch/Caters News)

“A Brazilian hotel was evacuated in the capital, Brasilia, on Monday after a man took hostage an employee who was held for hours before he was safely released to police. Firefighters and police cordoned off the area and about 300 guests and other employees left the hotel – some reportedly told to leave by the man who took the employee hostage”. – Associated Press. (Photo by Evaristo Sa/AFP Photo)

Amazing gravity-defying photo manipulations by Ravshaniya, a photographer from Uzbekistan, teeters on the edge of levitation. Photo: Untitled. (Photo by Ravshaniya)

A shorn alpaca walks in a grass field at Alpaca-Land farm in Unken in the Austrian province of Salzburg, Sunday July, 6, 2014. The annual shearing makes the animals more comfortable for the summer months. (Photo by Kerstin Joensson/AP Photo)

Golden gate Bridge Fog Thick early morning fog engulfed a huge world famous bridge so that only the very tip of it is visible above the clouds. Photographer Ali Erturk, 33, hiked to the spot at 4am to capture the stunning sight of the Golden Gates bridge immersed in the dense swirls of fog. (Photo by Solent News and Photo Agency)

Lindsay Heimbach goes airborne while sledding down a hill on Mt. Lemmon December 27, 2008. (Photo by James Gregg/Arizona Daily Star)

Masked participants stand in St.Mark's Square during the Carnival on February 10, 2007 in Venice, Italy. (Photo by Marco Di Lauro). P.S. All pictures are presented in high resolution.

Some of London's telephone operators and engineers, trying out their gas masks at the anti-gas civilian training centre in Gloucester, where they were taught how to deal with gas attacks. (Photo by Harry Todd/Fox Photos/Getty Images). 13th February 1937