I am in a position to reply to John Rizzo’s letter (November 15).

I am pleased to be in a position to reply to his query concerning the Athlone Hotel in Sliema.

During the first decade of the 20th century, the Athlone Hotel and Boarding House was frequently advertised in The Daily Malta Chronicle. It was subsequently refurbished and renamed The Modern Athlone Hotel under new management.

It was located at the intersection between Upper Victoria Terrace (that was later renamed Princess Nathalie Poutiatine Street) and that part of the then partially developed Dingli Street.

In all probability, the Athlone Hotel had been closed down during the mid-1930s by its owners, Messrs. A. and J. Vella, who were two leading pioneers of Sliema’s early hotel industry.