February 28, 2025 • 53 mins
The Wishing Well's Terrie Dean and Harry Reif discuss this week's travel news and Hot Deals!
In celebration of the Oscars, we dive into the world's most famous luxury hotels, the grand dames of hospitality that have graced award-winning films and legendary TV series. These iconic destinations are more than just places to rest your head; they are steeped in history, cinematic allure, and indulgence fit for Hollywood royalty. Discover the stories behind these glamorous hotels and their starring roles on the silver screen.
In celebration of the Oscars, we dive into the world's most famous luxury hotels, the grand dames of hospitality that have graced award-winning films and legendary TV series. These iconic destinations are more than just places to rest your head; they are steeped in history, cinematic allure, and indulgence fit for Hollywood royalty. Discover the stories behind these glamorous hotels and their starring roles on the silver screen.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
This is a Lifeless Ordinary. It's a travel show and
podcasts from your friends at the wishing Well two forty
three f Avenue in harsmerg and online It's a wishing
Well dot This. The wishing Well is your ultimate luxury concierge,
travel agency and a Lifeless Ordinary is a travel show
and podcast hosted by Terry Dean, bringing her over forty
years of experience in the travel industry to help guide
(00:20):
you to great experiences in your travel, whether it be
around the block, around the country, or around the world.
Let's bring in Terry Dean. Say hello, it's a wonderful
Saturday in the neighborhood. Chris. Always good to see you,
Always good to see you too. So what's going on.
Speaker 2 (00:35):
It's been busy, I'm telling you right now. We've got
all kinds of things going on. Papers slinging everywhere at
the wishing Well. It's a busy, busy place. Let me
tell you.
Speaker 1 (00:44):
Let's say good morning to Harry right from the wishing Well.
Is the story she's selling true, It's absolutely true, most
certainly true. We're not slinging papers at each other. But yeah,
you talk.
Speaker 3 (00:55):
About wild and crazy people are traveling. Chris which is
wonderful for us, can be sometimes a little no can
be extremely tiring because we're serving everybody. I think we're
serving everybody, Terry.
Speaker 1 (01:08):
It's good tired, though it is. It's a happy tired. Yeah.
Speaker 3 (01:12):
Time. We really do make people happy and they come
back and tell us stories about their trips, and that's
really nice too.
Speaker 1 (01:18):
So I just want with radio sometimes we miss the
visuals of what's happening. You look like springtime. Oh well,
thank you so much. I kind of feel like springtime.
You just have this look about your face today that says, Okay,
goodbye winter, welcome to hello summer. Let's not jump a gun.
Speaker 2 (01:40):
And I haven't even been in the tainning bit, but
thank you, Chris.
Speaker 1 (01:45):
So we've had a busy small changes every since. We've
had a busy week in the office, and it's been
a busy travel week in the news too.
Speaker 2 (01:53):
It has been, and you don't want to get started
with some of that. American Airlines actually just reported that
they are are going to be moving up their boarding times.
Speaker 1 (02:03):
Chris. You know, we've got time change coming pretty soon,
I think next week.
Speaker 2 (02:07):
So I think something got in the water and American
decided that it was probably time to move up their
boarding times. That just makes everybody say hallelujah. I'm sure,
but they're planning to begin boarding all of their domestic
mainline flights now five minutes earlier in an effort to,
they say, improve efficiency. Starting May first, American is going
(02:29):
to adjust their boarding process, with some flights set to
begin boarding thirty five to forty minutes before departure, and
that is five minutes more than what they were originally doing.
The airline says the additional five minutes they think is
going to help streamline boarding for both crew and passengers,
(02:50):
allowing more time for each American's nine boarding groups and
making it easier for travelers to find overhead bend space
for carry ons. I'm not sure five extra minutes is
going to do that, Chris, if you asked my opinion.
But improving the boarding process has been a focus for
American in recent months.
Speaker 1 (03:09):
They say.
Speaker 2 (03:10):
Last year, the airline introduced a policy cracking down on
gate jumpers. They rolled out new technology at more than
one hundred non hub US airports to prevent passengers from
boarding before their designated group. Shame on you, people. The
system rejects an earlier boarding past scan, It triggers an
(03:31):
audible alert to notify agents, and requires the passengers to
step aside until their group is called, and then they
carry you away in handcuffs.
Speaker 1 (03:41):
I'm just kidding about that last part. I'm going to
I don't know, this might be controversial. I don't care
how long it takes to board the plane. Can we
come up with a system to get me off the
plane faster?
Speaker 2 (03:53):
Look, I have a solution, but nobody follows it, so
I'm going to pass on my opinion.
Speaker 1 (03:59):
They need to to dboard.
Speaker 2 (04:01):
From the back, yes, yes, hello, And if you try
from the back and disembark from the front.
Speaker 1 (04:09):
And if they if they won't let you do that,
they should have a you know, like a dog collar
thing that SAPs you if you try to get up early.
They don't care.
Speaker 3 (04:17):
Where we have been problem is what causes a lot
of those delays, And the overhead bin problem can be
easily easily solved. And I've even got two solutions.
Speaker 1 (04:25):
For that one, Chris, all right, hit me with them.
Speaker 3 (04:27):
One is have some more space where passengers can store things.
And they have been, in fairness, they have been redesigning
some of the overhead bins, some of the airlines are
changing their interiors and they have bins that are larger.
But the other number one thing I think that causes
people to carry luggage on board is not lost luggage
anymore because they do a great job of tracking that.
(04:49):
You can even track it on your phone. But the
other thing is if they didn't charge exorbitant fees for
checking bags, people would check bags and not carry bag,
and it would speed the whole Tsia line process. It
would speed the whole boarding process, it would speed the
whole disembarking process. But that's just an idea.
Speaker 1 (05:10):
How do we get him nominated for like FAA director.
Speaker 2 (05:14):
Oh no, that's a big problem, you know. That's that's
that's your idea, Chris.
Speaker 3 (05:19):
Nobody out there can hear what we're saying right now
because they're all sharing my ideas, Chris.
Speaker 1 (05:24):
That's what's going on.
Speaker 3 (05:25):
Both christ and Terry, they're sharing my ideas. That's anybody
that's flown knows overhead bins and check luggage are two
of the biggest complaints that passengers have.
Speaker 2 (05:35):
Well, we are going to have a pretty exciting show
today because we're going to be talking about something to
do with red carpet. But right now, I want to
talk about a little something that has to do with
the Emerald Carpet in Ireland.
Speaker 1 (05:47):
Do you see what I did there a couple of
weeks away? Yeah, I know.
Speaker 2 (05:50):
Tourism Ireland has launched its Fill Your Heart with Ireland,
a twenty twenty five marketing plan in New York this
past it's prioritizing the United States actually for a straightforward reason.
They are Ireland's second largest source of overseas tourism revenue
and they are offering a strong return on the investment.
(06:13):
The focus is on attracting tourists who have value added
tourism traits, and they're defining that as people who are
likely to see more, do more, and therefore spend more
when they visit Ireland. The campaign is aimed at the
Island of Ireland, meaning both the Republic of Ireland and
Northern Ireland. Tourism Ireland is partnering with airlines including aer Lingus, Delta,
(06:40):
United American and JetBlue to inspire demand for those services
to Ireland, with an eye toward encouraging all season travel.
The destination is also focusing on events such as I'll
Bet You Can't Guess Saint Patrick's Day and Halloween, as
well as Tradefest that's an annual music and cultural festival
(07:01):
that's held in Dublin at the end of every January.
Now new for twenty twenty five is Slow Tourism Month
in June, designed to encourage visitors to fan out across
their country, working with local tourism entities to draw overnight
guests to areas that can be reached by rail, bus
or with tour partners. Of course, no discussion of tourism
(07:25):
to Ireland would be complete without mentioning golf, both as
a draw for sports minded tourists, but also as a
way to showcase the destination's beauty in golf media coverage
of key events. And I have a saying about Ireland.
I may have said it here before when we talked
I wifically about Ireland. It goes like this, if you're
(07:47):
good when you die, you go to Ireland, one of
the most beautiful places on the planet that I've ever
been to, And I would happily go back again, and
I applaud their marketing for twenty twenty five. Would happily
go back, and I'd like to see a lot of
other clients head that way. I think it's a fabulous place.
Speaker 3 (08:06):
But don't wait until you died doing for the police.
Speaker 1 (08:09):
Oh.
Speaker 3 (08:10):
Absolutely been there, and I think Terry, you're spot on.
It's really a beautiful, beautiful country, and the people are
just as beautiful.
Speaker 1 (08:18):
As absolutely they are.
Speaker 2 (08:20):
I don't think any new segment here on a Life
Less Ordinary would be complete if we did not talk
about some sort of transportation issue. The US Department of
Transportation has announced a new air traffic controller hiring plan.
They announced a plan to supercharge hiring of new air
traffic controllers with the goal of easing the staffing shortage
(08:42):
that we're seeing right now. As part of the new
plan announced by the DOT this past Friday, the FAA
is opening its hiring window to become an air traffic
controller if you have any interest in that, from now
through March the seventeenth, and the program also calls for
we sing starting salaries by thirty percent for candidates who
(09:04):
attend the Federal Aviation Administration's academy. The average certified professional
controller right now makes over. You got a guest, Chris.
Speaker 1 (09:13):
Oh, it's probably over one hundred and fifty.
Speaker 2 (09:15):
One hundred and sixty thousand dollars a year. Very close, dingdingding,
You get it. Streamlining hiring to improve efficiency by changing
the current eight step hiring process at the FAA to
just a five step process. The change is designed to
accelerate the time to hire by shaving more than four
months off that process. DOT also said today that once
(09:37):
trainees successfully pass through the academy, they will be assigned
to a tower or other facility across the country where
they're going to work with experienced air traffic controllers toward certification.
The US Travel Association expressed support today for the dot's
new hiring plan. Association President Jeff Freeman said that in
(09:58):
a statement that coot's actions will accelebrate accelerate the creation
of a world class aviation experience that travelers expect, demand
and deserve. So that kind of does it for news today.
I'm sure there's one hundred more news worthy stories. But Harry,
if I did that, we wouldn't have time for some
(10:20):
of the sales, and I want to make sure you
have time to cover those.
Speaker 3 (10:23):
And we talked about one of our favorite countries, Ireland.
Speaker 1 (10:26):
So how about this.
Speaker 3 (10:28):
I've got a sale.
Speaker 1 (10:28):
Going to Ireland. How about that?
Speaker 3 (10:30):
Yeah, how's that for a surprise, aer Lingus has announced
some special fears that are going between March fourth and
May sixteenth. Terry, this is going to blow your socks off.
Three hundred and seventy nine dollars to go to Ireland.
Speaker 1 (10:46):
I'm there. How about round trips sun me.
Speaker 3 (10:48):
To Ireland for three hundred and seventy.
Speaker 1 (10:50):
Nine dollars, Sign me up.
Speaker 3 (10:52):
Yeah, that's that's, you know, less expensive than it costs
to fly to a lot of places in the United States.
These flights are mainly going out of air Lingus's airports
up in the Northeast, like Boston and New York.
Speaker 1 (11:08):
But even if you have to add a short hop.
Speaker 3 (11:11):
To get up there to catch one of these flights,
it's a heck of a deal. Again, three hundred and
seventy nine dollars round trip. But these flights are from
March fourth through May the sixteenth on air Lingus, and
I think that's just a fantastic price. Another good deal
that I found this week if you have kids or grandkids,
(11:34):
Amtrak has been coming up with some tremendous specials. They've
got a fifty percent off special right now for children
age twenty excuse me, age two through twelve, so if
you get some kids or grandkids age two through twelve,
Amtrak's great. And one of the things that's nice about
Amtrack if you're traveling with kids, and we've used this
(11:55):
traveling with adults with adults, is Amtrak has something called
red Caps service. Have you ever heard of red cap service?
If you look at some of the old movies, you
see the Amtrak porters and they're red caps, and that
tradition carries on today. And those folks are there to
help you when you're a family or a special needs
kind of group. They'll help you with boarding, even early boarding.
(12:18):
They're like ambassadors concierges at the Amtrak stations. Amtrak also
has some activity centers for kids, lots of things they're
trying to encourage families to travel, and train travel is
absolutely a very easy, very painless way to go. You
don't have to deal with all the security, and you
(12:39):
have plenty of room in the seats and plenty of
room for your baggage. You carry on baggage. Last thing
I wanted to talk about in sales this morning has
to do with our friends over at Holland America. They're
doing a couple of good things. The first thing that
they're doing that they're doing lots of good things, a
couple specially good things. First thing I wanted to talk
about is they have opened up a new market for
(13:01):
Hawaii and Panama Canal where they've introduced some new cruises
and they've introduced some new activities. One of the things
that caught my eye there is they have a special
stopover in El Salvador, and people say, why would you
want to stop in El Salvador. There's some of the
most beautiful beaches there, amazingly preserved Mayan artifacts, and they've
(13:22):
scheduled a late night stay in Hawaii also on that
trip that will let you have a snorkeling with the
rays experience, something that I don't know if I could
handle myself, but I think that would be really cool
to think about. Yeah, So they're adding new destinations, they're
adding new experiences, and we're talking about sales.
Speaker 1 (13:43):
Well.
Speaker 3 (13:44):
Starting this coming week March fourth, they're having a one
week sale where you get an automatic one hundred dollars
on board credit for their cruises that go to Alaska, Canada,
and New England or Transatlantic cruises one hundred dollars on
board credit just over and above whatever other deals you have.
(14:04):
So if you want to go up and see the
Alaskan wildlife, if you want to schedule a cruise up
to New England, beautiful, beautiful part of the world in Canada,
this is your chance to get that extra hundred dollars
in the room and one other thing that they've got
offering right now. They have a ninety nine dollars deposit.
(14:25):
Lots of travel vendors come up with these limited time
ninety nine dollars deposit tours. And my advice for people
who are thinking about going somewhere but can't make a
decision real quickly, come in, find a great cruise and
go with that ninety nine dollars deposit. There's not a
lot at risk. You can hold it. You can think
(14:45):
about it for weeks in some cases, and that cruise
will hold at its special price, and all you have
at risk is ninety nine dollars. So if you're a procrastinator,
if you're someone who can't make a decision, if there's
someone who has to get a lot people together to
make a great decision, those ninety nine dollars deposit deals
are made for you. And holl In America has that
(15:08):
through the end of March, Terry you know before.
Speaker 2 (15:12):
And I want to really get to our show today, Chris,
because it's a lot of fun. I think you're going
to enjoy it. Looking for you guys to kind of
jump in in this show and really help out a
lot today. But before we go, I want to just
add on to the sales that Harry was talking about
and say to our listeners out there, A Lifeless Ordinary
(15:33):
is all about bringing you the world. That's why we're here,
that's what we do, that's what we want to bring
to your homes as you listen to us every Saturday,
week to week. First of all, we appreciate you so much.
We love the fact that you listen to us, that
you tell us you listen to us. But when it
comes to the sale fairs in travel, we don't give
(15:53):
you a list of everything that's out there. We try
to pick out some of the best and some of
the most popular. I want to encourage those that are
listening to us today. If you didn't hear something today
that Harry did mention that was what you were looking for,
don't hesitate to call us. We would love to help
you out with anything and any travel designs that you have.
Speaker 1 (16:15):
And that phone number is five four nine eight twenty
three thirty three. You can also find more information on
the wishing Well dot biz well.
Speaker 3 (16:23):
You can send us an email, so if you're up
in the middle of the night thinking about travel from
the website, there's a contact form there let us know
what you're thinking about. Every morning, the first thing we
do sometimes before we get to work as we check
our inboxes to find out all the new sales. And
we're ready to help you and get your great value
in a lifeless sord.
Speaker 1 (16:43):
So, Terry you mentioned earlier Red Carpet I did. Our
show today is entitled Lights Camera Luxury. It is we
are continuing on with our series of luxury travel and
I can't wait to find out how the Red Carpet
and Lights Camera Luxury all ties together. We'll find out
next here on a lifeless ordinary.
Speaker 3 (17:04):
Protect your vacation investment with guidance from a travel professional.
The wishing Well knows travel and help you avoid pitfalls
they can spoil your HRD earned vacation. We'll plan your
trip and have your back as you travel. All of
this without support or so called convenience fees. We're on
the web at the Wishingwell dot biz or call us
at five four zero nine zero eight two three three three.
(17:27):
That's five four zero nine zero eight two three three three.
The wishing Well really does make dreams come true.
Speaker 1 (17:33):
Hey, welcome back to a Lifeless Ordinary, the travel show
and podcast from your friends at the wishing Well. You
can give them a call and I encourage that five
four oh nine eight two three three three. That are
on nef Avenue and Harrisonburg. Also online at the Wishingwell
dot biz, where you will find a link in the
upper right hand corner to today's podcast and all the
(17:56):
past shows as well. You can listen to them online
and you can get caught up on our luxury series.
For the past what terry four or five weeks, we've
been talking luxury travel, and today our show is entitled Lights,
Camera Luxury. Tell Me Why. So I want to.
Speaker 2 (18:14):
Take just a quick minute, Chris to kind of catch
everybody up from the last couple of weeks. You alluded
to that we've been continuing our series on defining luxury
and we've been doing that in all sorts of ways.
We started out with the five c's of Luxury Travel.
If you don't know what that is, you're going to
want to go back and listen to that. We've talked
about some of our great travel providers and our suppliers
(18:36):
of luxury travel. If you didn't hear that, that's another
great one that you're going to want to go back
and listen to. And last week we talked more in
depth about what a luxury family vacation might look like. Well,
I want to have a little fun today with our topic.
So it's my show. I get to do that if
I want to. So in celebration of the Oscars that
(18:57):
are going to be airing tomorrow night, and it's all
always a big night for the stars and star watchers,
we're going to be checking into the world's most famous
luxury hotels. We call them the grand Dams of hospitality
that have played starring roles in award winning films and
(19:17):
legendary TV series. Now, these aren't just places Chris to
rest your head. They are destinations in their own right.
You're going to learn about that today. They are dripping
with history, that cinematic allure and indulgences that are actually
fit for Hollywood royalty. And I was excited about this
(19:39):
because I got to thinking about some of my own
favorite films. So I have to confess that I am
not probably not a real current movie fan. Because we
were talking a little bit off air about this. I
have the same feeling about movies sometimes, Chris. I think
you do when you sit down to watch movies, and
that is a minute I sat down in a movie theater,
(20:01):
I go, I don't have time for this. You know,
that's like the first thing I say in my own hit.
But with some of these that we're going to talk
about today, when I turned the table and looked at
it through the lens of travel, which you know I love,
everything changed. The perspective just instantly changed. So kind of
(20:22):
imagine sipping a martini at the Plaza in New York
where Home Alone two kicked up a lot of fun
and I mean mischief. Actually, that's where f Scott Fitzgerald
once found the inspiration for Gadsby's opulence. You can kind
of picture yourself walking down the gilded hallways of the
Beverly Wilshire, where you might remember the scene from Pretty
(20:45):
Woman the fairy tale romance, or check into the ice
blue elegance of Hotel di Perry in Monte Carlo, where
James Bond himself brushed shoulders with the very rich and
the very famous. I mean, we all loved James Bond
movies for that reason. They throw them up in these
beautiful excentric hotels and we go, where is that I
(21:07):
want to go to?
Speaker 1 (21:08):
There?
Speaker 2 (21:09):
Yeah, I mean those are the things that make us
love not just the movies, but where the movies take us,
you know. So we know this inspiration comes in a
lot of forms, and for a lot of travelers, the
destinations they want to visit come from seeing them on
the big screen.
Speaker 1 (21:27):
And you can easily be.
Speaker 2 (21:28):
Transported to say, beautiful beaches of Honolulu, Italian countrysides, right
from the comfort of the TV in your own home.
Nothing beats stepping into your main character's energy and booking
a room in the same hotel you saw on screen.
Production teams. I mean you look at what they do.
(21:51):
They know the best and they pick the absolute finest
hotels to set up shop, beautiful rooms with striking views,
alone sized pools, luxury spas. Oh, you know that reminds me.
I saw the most incredible luxury spa. I don't know
where this hotel was. I should have looked it up,
(22:11):
but it just popped into my mind on the Matrix.
I don't know if you've ever seen the Matrix movie
series with Keanu Reeves, one of my favorite actors of
all times, but there was a scene in a spa
in one of the last I think it's Matrix three,
where it was an incredible That spa was unlike anything
(22:36):
I've ever seen in my life. So if you guys
can help me and look that up, that was amazing.
But luxury spas, gorgeous, luxury gardens, just some of the
amenities that these hotels have to offer. And I want
to say to our listeners out there, I've actually had
the privilege of stepping into a good number of those
that I'm gonna profile today, into their cinematic dreamscape, kind
(23:00):
of feel the weight of the history there and the
sheer indulgence of their service. And I can say this,
the moment you arrive at some of these hotels, you
understand why the directors and the actors actually chose those
settings to bring their stories to life. Marble lobbies, gilded ballrooms,
sweeping terraces, beautiful landscapes, Each detail is perfectly crafted, and
(23:26):
each stay is really an experience worthy of its own screenplay.
So this morning, Chris and Harry, I want you to
pack your finest luggage. I hope it's Louisviton, and we're
going to prepare for that red carpet worthy stay because
we're going to explore some of these legendary hotels that
have been more than just backdrops. They've been characters in
(23:50):
the stories we love. So welcome to the ultimate luxury
movie set experience. And I know both of you are
few curiously searching for my spot in the Matrix movie.
But I know there's people out there right now that
are listening to me, going, Terry, it's this, this is
the one. But before the show is over, we're going
(24:12):
to find that and we're going to announce to you
what it was and where it was. But it was incredible.
But I do want to start out with my favorites,
and I'm going to ask both of you all to
kind of chime in, and if you've got one of
your own favorites, we'll listen to that too. But my
first movie, and this has to be one of my
favorites of all time. It was my favorites because of
(24:34):
where it was, how it made me feel the storyline
of the movie, everything about it just was perfect for me.
And the movie is called Under the Tuscan Sun. It's
an American romantic drama. Was produced and filmed almost entirely
in Italy in two thousand and three, and the movie
was based on the memoirs of the author Francis Mays,
(24:58):
who is also the main character he in the film adaptation.
It's based on the storyline of a recently divorced woman
who visits Italy and bays a villa in Tuscany on
a whim that she wants to stop being afraid of
attracting good things to her life. The movie was nominated
(25:19):
for the Art Director's Guild Excellence in Production Design Award.
And the film's main protagonist, who plays Francis Mays, who
is an actress, also one of my favorites, Diane Lane.
She got a Golden Globe Award nomination for her contribution
to the success of this critically acclaimed film.
Speaker 1 (25:39):
Now I want.
Speaker 2 (25:39):
To take a little closer look at the property that
actually put this movie in cinema history books. The property
is called Villa Laura And if you want to right
now while you're listening to me travelers out there and
travel hopefuls and just dream lovers. Villa Laura is a
(26:00):
beautifully restored seventeenth century estate just outside the walls of Courtana, Tuscany,
available right now actually for weekly rentals throughout the year.
This property, you guys, dates back to sixteen I'm sorry,
to six hundred AD, and it was built on over
(26:21):
the centuries. Of course they've continued to build on it.
There are three buildings there, the villa, the farmhouse and
then another building, all lovingly restored in two thousand and
six after it was used as the set for Under
the Tuscan Sun in two thousand and three. Now the
property alone would certainly be enough, but there is just
(26:42):
something very alluring about the Tuscany area of Italy. Americans
love Tuscany for many reasons. There's the landscape, the lifestyle
among them, and we have that particular region of Italy
to thank for a lot of treasures in art and history.
(27:02):
Actually Tuscany is the birthplace of the Italian Renaissance. But
you have culture there, most importantly wine and food. That's
I mean for our clients at the Wishing Well that
want to go to Tuscany, that is their number one
attraction to go to Tuscany and to that region. You
fly into Florence, that's where you would actually go into
(27:23):
to enter Tuscany. This is where you're going to find
the Leaning Tower of Pisa, all of that. But really
people love wine and food. So for all those reasons
and my love for this movie, Chris Villa Laura is
going to take my number one spot today on a
lifeless ordinary for some of the most luxurious cinema properties.
Speaker 1 (27:44):
In the world.
Speaker 2 (27:45):
I absolutely love the movie, love the property. And if
you have a chance, and you're in front of your
computer even right now, just go ahead and look up
Villa Laura. It is a storybook website. It's just amazing,
just amazing. Now, the next movie I want to highlight
is another one of my favorites. I'm sure once I
tell people what it is, there's gonna be a lot
(28:07):
of people. We're gonna hear this thunderous applause. The name
of the movie is Pretty Woman. Okay, oh yeah, most
people I know will have seen this wonderful movie. But basically,
the premise of the movie is a triumphant journey of
a young woman who becomes more than she thought she
ever could be against all odds, and an unlikely romance
between someone who has paired with someone who has not,
(28:32):
and the perils that occur as a result. But ultimately
it's the story of true love and how love really
does conquer all. It's a great movie. I am not
going to give you any spoiler alerts here, but it's
a great movie, Sarry.
Speaker 1 (28:45):
It's been out for like thirty five years, I know,
but I still know people who haven't seen it yet.
Then they're not going to Yeah, probably not.
Speaker 2 (28:52):
But I do want to talk about the property that's
involved in this movie, because it's amazing. It's in the
rococo splendid decor of the Beverly will Shire. This is
a four seasons hotel built in nineteen twenty eight. And
you might remember when I came back from Nashville just
recently on a Virtuoso conference that I attended Chris. When
(29:16):
I came back, I said to you, and I actually
even said this to Harry. I am now officially a
four seasons girl. Let me tell you, if you've ever
had the opportunity to stay in four seasons, I don't
know that you will ever stay anywhere else. It is
an experience like none other. It's absolutely amazing, no wonder
(29:38):
to me they picked it for this particular movie. The
hotel was built, as I said in nineteen twenty eight,
it was actually once even a contemporary home to both
Elvis Presley and John Lennon. That prostitute Vivian Julia Roberts,
who played the lead role in Pretty Woman. She lives
it up in this hotel with millionaire Richard gar whose
(30:00):
character was named Edward Lewis, and just like time traveling
chimps Zira and Cornelius of the nineteen seventy one's movie
Escape from the Planet of the Apes before them. So
this movie has been kind of the host to a
lot of different movies, but Pretty Woman in particular. Disappointingly though,
(30:20):
that that floor picnic with Julia Roberts and Richard Gear,
even the bath scenes were actually filmed on set. But
the hotel this is interesting. They still offer a Pretty
Woman for a day package and that includes a trip
to Rodeo Drive, presumably without the insults, two nights in
a specialty suite, even with a butler drawn bubble bath
(30:43):
in which you can sing. Julie Roberts famous ode to
Kiss If you want to know everything that's included in
this package, I'll tell you your stay of course in
a signature suite or the Presidential Suite. You have the
luxury transportation, including your Chaufford car, a shopping spree with
a celebrity stylist on rodeo drive. You have the dining
(31:08):
at the pool bar and cafe. You have customized treatments
at the Forbes five star spa at this hotel, a
bespoke picnic with a musical serenade. You have a ninety
minute massage, a hand drawn bath with personalized aromatherapy oils,
and a feeling pretty cocktail, all to celebrate another one
(31:32):
of my second favorite movies, Pretty Woman at the wils
Shire Beverly Hotel, which is a four seasons hotel in
Los Angeles. My favorite. Now we're moving on to my
third favorite movie, which is one that maybe a lot
of people haven't seen, but this one I love. Also
(31:53):
it's called The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. You ever
seen that one?
Speaker 1 (31:56):
I haven't seen that one.
Speaker 2 (31:57):
This is a pretty intense murder mystery movie. The Girl
with the Dragon Tattoo. Actually, Chris tells the story of
a disgraced journalist by the name of Michael Bloomvist. He's
hired a wealthy industrialist to investigate the disappearance of his niece,
whose name was Harriet Vanger, which happened decades ago. Now
(32:22):
to solve the mystery, this guy teams up with a
gal by the name of Elizabeth Slander, and she's a
highly skilled computer hacker with a troubled past. They kind
of uncovering dark secrets within this Vanger family and the
Swedish elite. And I think it's worth noting that in
(32:42):
twenty twelve, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo received five Oscars,
one for Best Cinematography and no wonder the setting was extraordinary.
So again, if you are sitting in front of your
computer this morning, man, you got to check out this property.
This is unreal. So I love the movie. But then
(33:06):
after I started investigating, Okay, exactly where was this movie filmed?
What was the hotel that was the setting for this movie.
It's a place called the Dolder Grand Hotel. First of all,
it is perched on one of the highest points in
all of Zurich, Switzerland. I mean to tell you it
is all striking. One of the most opulent yet contemporary
(33:31):
hotels in all of Europe. We personally love it because
it's one of our partner Virtuoso pop properties, which means
when you book this property through our agency, you get
multiple amenities that are afforded to you that you would
not receive if you booked it on your own. That's
number one, one hundred and seventy five luxurious rooms and suites,
world class restaurants, a spa that covers four thousand square meters,
(33:57):
spacious event facilities, and an art collection boasting more than
one hundred works that include originals from Takashi Miurakami and
Salvador Dali. The Dolder Grand, which opened in eighteen ninety
nine as the Dolder Grand Hotel, is a luxurious city
(34:20):
resort in the truest sense of the word. The hotel
treats its guests to magnificent views over Zurich, which is
a beautiful city. We were there just a couple of
years ago when Harry and I hosted a Viking river
cruise through some of the most beautiful areas of Switzerland.
(34:41):
The Alps also, and the Dolder Ground Spa and the
nearby woods just offer all this opportunity for relaxation and
those who would rather dive into vibrancy of one of
Europe's most beautiful cities. They can reach the center of
Zurich in just a matter of minutes. This place, it's
more than just a place to stay for the night.
(35:03):
The hotel is kind of a melting pot of Switzerland's
top addresses when it comes to culinary delights. The acclaimed
restaurant there that is headed by that one of the
most top chefs in all of Switzerland's has two Michelin
stars and it is an absolute delight to catch a mellion.
(35:24):
Just if you didn't stay there, if you just actually
dined there, it would be worth the visit. So again,
the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and the Dolder Grand
Hotel another one of my top regards to the Red
Carpet and Hollywood Terry.
Speaker 1 (35:41):
I'm going to tell you if we were using my list,
this would be an entirely different show because as you're
talking these classic movies, I'm thinking Guardians of the Galaxy.
I'm not even sure that hotel exists yet it does not.
I don't think show today is entitled lights, Camera Luxury.
(36:02):
It's part of our Luxury Travel series. As we dig
deeper into exactly what luxury travel is, what to expect,
and how to get it. We'll talk more about some
of these great hotels from Terry's list of favorite movies
coming up next here on a life less Ordinary.
Speaker 3 (36:20):
Who would think of driving off to a new destination
without guidance from Google or Siri. Let the Wishing World
guide your next travel experience. Travel the world as you
enjoy the very best destinations and all they offer at
the best prices. Our mobile travel app keeps your vacation
on track and keeps you connected with our team of
experts for help. If you need it, call us at
five four zero nine zero eight two thirty three three
(36:43):
Stop buy two forty three nap Avenue, or visit us
at the Wishingwell dot biz.
Speaker 1 (36:49):
And welcome back to a Lifeless Ordinary. Our show today
is entitled Lights, Camera, Luxury, and as you've been listening today,
if you're inspired to book a luxury trip to stay
in one of these hotels that you've seen in one
of your favorite movies, I encourage you to call The
Wishing Well. Their phone number is five four nine eight
twenty three thirty three. Can also find more information online
(37:11):
at the Wishingwell dot biz or stop by and say hi.
You can talk to him in person there on ne
f Avenue in Harrisonburg. All right, we've hit three or
four hotels from Terry's favorite movies that feature luxury hotels,
and we're going to continue to work our way through
your list, and I'm really hoping something from The Avengers
(37:35):
the Marvel Universe makes your list, but you know, we'll
see where it goes.
Speaker 2 (37:40):
I like those action movies too, and I have a
huge correction to make, okay, because I had originally said,
when I was talking about the spa scene in a
Matrix movie, what I was actually picturing was a Keanu
Reeves movie. But I got it wrong, Chris, this was
a John wit.
Speaker 1 (38:01):
So.
Speaker 2 (38:02):
The spa scene that I was talking about was in
a John Wicks movie and it was at the Air
Ancient Bads in New York City, actually in Tribeca, New York,
of all places, not a hotel at all, but it
is the Air Ancient Bads and you can still go
there to that spa. It's absolutely a fabulous looking place.
(38:23):
I've never I confess I've never been there, but we
are going to take our little mission here lights camera
luxury on a bit of a adventurer's I guess you'd
say my next favorite movie is on my list is
The Dark Knight. And The Dark Knight is about Batman's
(38:43):
fight against the Joker, who was kind of a sadistic,
criminal minded mastermind who brings chaos to Gotham City, and
the film explores some themes I guess you would say,
of justice, corruption, morality, and as we all know, it
was also during the filming of this movie, sadly that
Heath Ledger died from an accidental overdose. Switch in many
(39:06):
ways sort of added to the dark tone of this movie,
I think. And one of the film's iconic scenes Batman
dives from the top of the International Financial Center tower
that is home to the Four Seasons Hong Kong, and
that he did that to capture some dude and bring
(39:27):
him back to Gotham. And The Dark Knight was recognized
as one of the best films of two thousand and eight,
and it took home an Academy Award for the Best
Supporting Actor, posthumously awarded to Heath Ledger, Best Cinematography, Best
Visual Effects, and Best Film Editing. Among a few, and
(39:48):
then the property. Let's just talk about this property, the
Four Seasons Hong Kong for a minute. Take excellent service,
splurge worthy restaurants, and convenient location near the best locations
in Hong Kong, and you've got one of the top hotels.
We're talking eight Michelin Stars under one roof. Can you
(40:13):
believe that?
Speaker 1 (40:14):
Now?
Speaker 2 (40:14):
I know the only seven star property in the world
is one that maybe you're gonna have some time to
talk about, which is the Khalifa in the Burj Khalifa
in Dubai. Yeah, but this is an eight Michelin stars hotel. Now,
how does it strike you on arrival? Well, it's adjacent to,
(40:35):
as I said, Hong Kong's International Finance Center and office towers.
The Four Seasons is an unbeatable location if you are
in Hong Kong on business. But you book a private
Mercedes Benz or Bentley transfer, Yeah, on arrival, and that
really is the best way to get to the hotel.
Speaker 1 (40:55):
The good stuff.
Speaker 2 (40:56):
What about your room, Well, they start with a welcome
fruit and a pot of tea.
Speaker 1 (41:01):
Is a welcome gift for you.
Speaker 2 (41:03):
There might even be a surprise if you're celebrating an occasion,
but the four hundred and eighty four square foot Deluxe
Harbor View Room has wonderful skyline views. But if you're
on the fence about upgrading to a clubroom, just do
it because the executive room's there. In suites come with
some of the most amazing perks. Best of all, access
(41:25):
to the fantastic top floor lounge where you have private
check in, all day refreshments, complimentary cocktails, and wall to
wall windows making it extremely difficult to leave. And again,
this is one of our beloved Virtuoso properties, so a
lot of extra amenities come with your four seasons reservations
(41:47):
when you book this through the wishing Well. Kind of
makes me sad that it was associated with a movie
called Dark Knight, because there is nothing dark about it,
absolutely nothing. And here you are waving your hands at
me like a yeah, one is on your mind.
Speaker 1 (42:02):
Well, like a crazy person.
Speaker 3 (42:04):
Now, it was very kind of you to say like
a crazy as though you were crazy, that's what you're
really thinking.
Speaker 1 (42:11):
Anyway.
Speaker 3 (42:12):
I can't believe, Terry, that you've left off one of
the most iconic movies of all time. It was filmed
at a hotel in Salzburg, Austria. Why don't you tell
us about it. I'm thinking about the Sound of Music. Okay,
everybody's seen the Sound of Music. And if you haven't
seen the movie, I'm sure you've seen it in a
(42:32):
high school musical somewhere. But it was filmed in Salzburg, Austria,
at the Schloss, which is a castle Leopoldskron, a very
interesting place, a very beautiful castle, and you can stay there.
So if you are building your list of different places
around the world, if you haven't added the Sound of Music,
I think you're missing a lot.
Speaker 2 (42:51):
I don't think it gets more luxurious than staying at
a castle, Harry, and you're right. It should have been
on my list, but it didn't make it quite there,
and that's because the last one on my list is
actually surrounding the location for Home Alone two Sleepless in Seattle,
north By Northwest, and I am, of course exactly These
(43:14):
are all classics. The Plaza Hotel has been home to
a number of movies, even Hitchcock's north By Northwest. Carry
Grant was living in an apartment in the Plaza Hotel
at the time, making for a really convenient commute for him.
Sleepless in Seattle Megrind's character Annie Reid taken to the
(43:35):
hotel by her boyfriend Walter played by Bill Pullman. And
in Home Alone two, how could we could forget that
Kevin spends a night there alone before getting kidnapped and
his family returns to after their stay to look for him.
The Plaza Virtuoso benefits, let me just tell you about that.
You get an upgrade upon arrival that's subject to availability,
(43:58):
of course. You get a Continental Breakfast daily for two
guests one hundred dollars spa service credit to be utilized
during your stay, and early check in and check out,
and complimentary Wi Fi. The property, the Plaza Hotel has
been the grandame on Central Park South and it is
(44:18):
as New York as it gets. And that really is
my entire list of my favorite movies for the Cinema
week that we are celebrating and the Oscars Night which
is tomorrow night. Chris, do you have any favorite movies
that you can think of right off?
Speaker 1 (44:38):
I mean, seriously, my genre of films are the action films,
the you know, the Marvel Universe and all that. Yeah,
the only one I could come up with that kind
of fits into what I have seen be maybe one
of the Mission Impossible films. Oh, I love those.
Speaker 2 (44:58):
I love Tom does he ever even age age?
Speaker 1 (45:02):
He does all of his own stuff.
Speaker 2 (45:03):
Know that is so incredible to me. I love that
about him. I mean he's really an adventure seeker, I
would say.
Speaker 1 (45:11):
And you know, speaking of lives on the edge, acting
like a crazy guy. But an amazing actor.
Speaker 2 (45:17):
You know, And you know that's a good point. I
don't know how I would feel about him personally as
a friend, but as an actor, I don't know too
many actors that are as good as he is. That
that guy is amazing. He was made to be on screen.
Speaker 1 (45:33):
The film that I came up with was The Mission
Impossible Ghost Protocol Okay out in twenty eleven. So the
hotel that was used was set as a Indian billionaire's
luxury home. But the hotel is the Jumera Zurbil Surrey Okay, okay,
(45:55):
and it is in Dubai. It is it's on one
of the the Mira Palm with has nine restaurants in it,
a spa, has a snow room. Over would love that.
I tell you know, luxury is involved when you're in
dubaias they either have a ski slope or a snow room.
They've got a turkey shpath, twenty four hour butler service,
(46:16):
and the Royal Residences, and there's a water park on tap.
Speaker 2 (46:20):
Oh my gosh, Now you know one of the other
locations that I forgot to put on my list. But
it just occurs to me as we're all kind of
sitting here talking a little more casually.
Speaker 1 (46:31):
But I loved Elvis Presley.
Speaker 2 (46:33):
I mean, Elvis Presley, in my opinion, was one of
the greatest actors, greatest singer's, greatest entertainers of all time.
And I remember when I went to Hawaii on my
very first visit. I actually went to the island of Kawaii,
where I was told he filmed almost all of his
Hawaiian movies. They were filmed on location there at Kuwaii,
(46:56):
and I actually stayed in the hotel that he filmed
a good number of those, and it was the Coco Palms,
and every room in that hotel, not unlike Graceland, which
is actually where he got the idea for this, was
at the Cocoa Palms in Kawaii. Every room at the
Cocoa Palms was decorated differently, and I remember the room
(47:17):
that I stayed in. My sink in my hotel room
was this enormous kunk shell that was what my sink
was in the back. And I remember this is some
forty five years ago. Now I thought I died and
gone to heaven. I'm like, I know Elvis stayed in
this room. I am so happy right now. I had
to go around, of course, and touch every facet of
(47:38):
the room because I was just sure there was some
part of Elvis's DNA that had to still be there.
Speaker 1 (47:43):
You were trying to channel him. Maybe I was. I
don't know, There you go.
Speaker 2 (47:46):
But it was just amazing, you know, to actually be
able to touch in field those places.
Speaker 1 (47:51):
Well, and there are a.
Speaker 3 (47:52):
Lot of hotels we haven't talked about this morning, and
we don't have time to talk about this morning, where
very famous people have stick. There's a room, you know,
where Paul and Lynda McCartney wrote some of their very
favorite songs, very famous songs. So you can find hotels
that have these special meetings, that have these special kind
(48:13):
of memories that they can involune or feelings or whatever.
It's interesting to look at a hotel, look at the
themed room like you're talking about Terry stay in a
room where something fantastic has happened. I remember when we
visited Cuba, we were in the room where something very
famous happened. Remember so where Ernest Hemingway used to stay
(48:37):
and do a lot of his writing. Everybody's got somebody
that they really think is special. Find out where that
person were, was what they did, and go back and
try and do as Terry did, try and channel yourself
into that moment.
Speaker 2 (48:53):
And most recently, on one of my family vacations, we
went to Toronto and I had the great pleasure of
staying in the Fairmont Hotel, which is really just above
the underground city that's in Toronto, and enjoyed the stay
in the Fairmont Hotel, which famously John Lennon and Yoko
(49:15):
Ono did their sleep in at this hotel for a
period of about a week and they this is where
they wrote Give Piece a Chance.
Speaker 1 (49:24):
Yep, it was fabulous day. I can't believe I didn't
think of the Peabody in Memphis. I go there every
year when I visit Saint Jude, and it's been featured
in a couple of films. Really, it was once the
firm with Tom Cruise in nineteen ninety three. My favorites. Yeah,
I love that the Peabody, Is that right?
Speaker 3 (49:44):
All right?
Speaker 1 (49:44):
Just thought I should add on that I've been somewhere
that's been on a movie and not.
Speaker 3 (49:48):
Only do you see the famous movies and think about
the famous movies that were filmed there, but you get
to watch those ducks.
Speaker 1 (49:54):
They have their creation. Yeah, every day, these ducks are
treated like roy They live on the roof. They have
a penthouse, duckhouse up on the roof, and they bring
them down. There's a duck master, and they put up
the velvet rope and they roll a carpet out. They
shut the elevators down so that the ducks can ride
down in the elevators. Well, ducks don't do well on stairs, Chris.
(50:17):
And it's a long way. I mean, it's stories or something. Yeah.
So yeah, if you're ever in Memphis, you don't have
to actually be staying at the Peabody to go in
and watch the duck parade. It happens.
Speaker 3 (50:28):
It happens in the afternoon right around I think four o'clock.
I've visited a couple of times. It's absolutely magnificent.
Speaker 1 (50:34):
So yeah, it's a fun time.
Speaker 2 (50:36):
Now the interesting thing about Today's show, at least for me.
I don't know about you all. I am not a
starstruck person. Typically, I'm just not. And I don't read
the you know, pavarazzi magazines. I don't really follow them
much on Instagram or Facebook or even in emails you
(50:57):
know where they dump all this information in your inbox
about the stars.
Speaker 1 (51:02):
I don't.
Speaker 2 (51:02):
But when it came to putting Today's show together and
I got to connect these properties with some of these movies,
I did get pretty excited.
Speaker 1 (51:14):
I won't lie.
Speaker 2 (51:14):
I mean, this was for me a great opportunity to
marry two loves. I do like some movies. I don't
like to sit and watch them too much, too long anymore,
but I do enjoy the movies, and I enjoy the
settings such movies.
Speaker 3 (51:30):
The thing that's special about every single hotel we've spoken
about today, and about the ones that we didn't have
time to speak about today, is that it's got a
connection with luxury. Somehow, some way. That hotel was singled
out as being unique either for its location, either for
some characteristics inside the hotel, either for you know, just
(51:51):
something special about that place that inspired a movie director
and a film crew to want to travel there and
film at that property, and that tells me as a traveler,
there's something worth seeing. So even if you're not enamored
by what you might know has happened there, you know
(52:11):
that you're going to a great place because it's been
personally selected, personally vetted.
Speaker 1 (52:16):
And you can also say I've been.
Speaker 2 (52:19):
There exactly, and when you watch the movie, even with
your kids or your grandkids, you can say, I know
what that's like.
Speaker 1 (52:27):
I've been there, and I know what it's like.
Speaker 2 (52:29):
And then it also I think it really helped, especially
if you're watching movies with your a lot of friends
get together, maybe family members, and you can say, let
me tell you the inside story about this hotel.
Speaker 1 (52:42):
I've been there, and that's what I love.
Speaker 2 (52:43):
Like the one that I talked about, Villa Laura, the
one in under the Tuscan Sun. I mean, that's a
property that I would want to go and stay in
and make my own memories there. The movie itself was amazing,
but these are that you want to go and you
want to have your own, your own screenplay.
Speaker 1 (53:04):
Terry, I wish we could talk about this for another hour,
but we're really out of time. How do we get
in touch with you at the wishing Well.
Speaker 2 (53:10):
Wishing Well's easy to find. We're located at two forty
three NEF Avenue in the Valley Center in Heresonburg, Virginia.
You can call us at five four oh nine oh
eight two three thirty three or look us up on
the web. We are at the Wishingwell dot biz.
Speaker 1 (53:25):
This has been a life Less Ordinary, the travel show
from your friends at the wishing Well at two forty
three NEP Avenue in Harsenburg. If you have any questions
on topics discussed today, please reach out to the wishing
Well online at the Wishingwell dot biz or five four
oh nine oh eight twenty three thirty three. Past episodes
are available on the iHeartRadio app. And we'll see again
next Saturday morning at ten for a life Less Ordinary
(53:47):
from the wishing Well
This is a Lifeless Ordinary. It's a travel show and
podcasts from your friends at the wishing Well two forty
three f Avenue in harsmerg and online It's a wishing
Well dot This. The wishing Well is your ultimate luxury concierge,
travel agency and a Lifeless Ordinary is a travel show
and podcast hosted by Terry Dean, bringing her over forty
years of experience in the travel industry to help guide
(00:20):
you to great experiences in your travel, whether it be
around the block, around the country, or around the world.
Let's bring in Terry Dean. Say hello, it's a wonderful
Saturday in the neighborhood. Chris. Always good to see you,
Always good to see you too. So what's going on.
Speaker 2 (00:35):
It's been busy, I'm telling you right now. We've got
all kinds of things going on. Papers slinging everywhere at
the wishing Well. It's a busy, busy place. Let me
tell you.
Speaker 1 (00:44):
Let's say good morning to Harry right from the wishing Well.
Is the story she's selling true, It's absolutely true, most
certainly true. We're not slinging papers at each other. But yeah,
you talk.
Speaker 3 (00:55):
About wild and crazy people are traveling. Chris which is
wonderful for us, can be sometimes a little no can
be extremely tiring because we're serving everybody. I think we're
serving everybody, Terry.
Speaker 1 (01:08):
It's good tired, though it is. It's a happy tired. Yeah.
Speaker 3 (01:12):
Time. We really do make people happy and they come
back and tell us stories about their trips, and that's
really nice too.
Speaker 1 (01:18):
So I just want with radio sometimes we miss the
visuals of what's happening. You look like springtime. Oh well,
thank you so much. I kind of feel like springtime.
You just have this look about your face today that says, Okay,
goodbye winter, welcome to hello summer. Let's not jump a gun.
Speaker 2 (01:40):
And I haven't even been in the tainning bit, but
thank you, Chris.
Speaker 1 (01:45):
So we've had a busy small changes every since. We've
had a busy week in the office, and it's been
a busy travel week in the news too.
Speaker 2 (01:53):
It has been, and you don't want to get started
with some of that. American Airlines actually just reported that
they are are going to be moving up their boarding times.
Speaker 1 (02:03):
Chris. You know, we've got time change coming pretty soon,
I think next week.
Speaker 2 (02:07):
So I think something got in the water and American
decided that it was probably time to move up their
boarding times. That just makes everybody say hallelujah. I'm sure,
but they're planning to begin boarding all of their domestic
mainline flights now five minutes earlier in an effort to,
they say, improve efficiency. Starting May first, American is going
(02:29):
to adjust their boarding process, with some flights set to
begin boarding thirty five to forty minutes before departure, and
that is five minutes more than what they were originally doing.
The airline says the additional five minutes they think is
going to help streamline boarding for both crew and passengers,
(02:50):
allowing more time for each American's nine boarding groups and
making it easier for travelers to find overhead bend space
for carry ons. I'm not sure five extra minutes is
going to do that, Chris, if you asked my opinion.
But improving the boarding process has been a focus for
American in recent months.
Speaker 1 (03:09):
They say.
Speaker 2 (03:10):
Last year, the airline introduced a policy cracking down on
gate jumpers. They rolled out new technology at more than
one hundred non hub US airports to prevent passengers from
boarding before their designated group. Shame on you, people. The
system rejects an earlier boarding past scan, It triggers an
(03:31):
audible alert to notify agents, and requires the passengers to
step aside until their group is called, and then they
carry you away in handcuffs.
Speaker 1 (03:41):
I'm just kidding about that last part. I'm going to
I don't know, this might be controversial. I don't care
how long it takes to board the plane. Can we
come up with a system to get me off the
plane faster?
Speaker 2 (03:53):
Look, I have a solution, but nobody follows it, so
I'm going to pass on my opinion.
Speaker 1 (03:59):
They need to to dboard.
Speaker 2 (04:01):
From the back, yes, yes, hello, And if you try
from the back and disembark from the front.
Speaker 1 (04:09):
And if they if they won't let you do that,
they should have a you know, like a dog collar
thing that SAPs you if you try to get up early.
They don't care.
Speaker 3 (04:17):
Where we have been problem is what causes a lot
of those delays, And the overhead bin problem can be
easily easily solved. And I've even got two solutions.
Speaker 1 (04:25):
For that one, Chris, all right, hit me with them.
Speaker 3 (04:27):
One is have some more space where passengers can store things.
And they have been, in fairness, they have been redesigning
some of the overhead bins, some of the airlines are
changing their interiors and they have bins that are larger.
But the other number one thing I think that causes
people to carry luggage on board is not lost luggage
anymore because they do a great job of tracking that.
(04:49):
You can even track it on your phone. But the
other thing is if they didn't charge exorbitant fees for
checking bags, people would check bags and not carry bag,
and it would speed the whole Tsia line process. It
would speed the whole boarding process, it would speed the
whole disembarking process. But that's just an idea.
Speaker 1 (05:10):
How do we get him nominated for like FAA director.
Speaker 2 (05:14):
Oh no, that's a big problem, you know. That's that's
that's your idea, Chris.
Speaker 3 (05:19):
Nobody out there can hear what we're saying right now
because they're all sharing my ideas, Chris.
Speaker 1 (05:24):
That's what's going on.
Speaker 3 (05:25):
Both christ and Terry, they're sharing my ideas. That's anybody
that's flown knows overhead bins and check luggage are two
of the biggest complaints that passengers have.
Speaker 2 (05:35):
Well, we are going to have a pretty exciting show
today because we're going to be talking about something to
do with red carpet. But right now, I want to
talk about a little something that has to do with
the Emerald Carpet in Ireland.
Speaker 1 (05:47):
Do you see what I did there a couple of
weeks away? Yeah, I know.
Speaker 2 (05:50):
Tourism Ireland has launched its Fill Your Heart with Ireland,
a twenty twenty five marketing plan in New York this
past it's prioritizing the United States actually for a straightforward reason.
They are Ireland's second largest source of overseas tourism revenue
and they are offering a strong return on the investment.
(06:13):
The focus is on attracting tourists who have value added
tourism traits, and they're defining that as people who are
likely to see more, do more, and therefore spend more
when they visit Ireland. The campaign is aimed at the
Island of Ireland, meaning both the Republic of Ireland and
Northern Ireland. Tourism Ireland is partnering with airlines including aer Lingus, Delta,
(06:40):
United American and JetBlue to inspire demand for those services
to Ireland, with an eye toward encouraging all season travel.
The destination is also focusing on events such as I'll
Bet You Can't Guess Saint Patrick's Day and Halloween, as
well as Tradefest that's an annual music and cultural festival
(07:01):
that's held in Dublin at the end of every January.
Now new for twenty twenty five is Slow Tourism Month
in June, designed to encourage visitors to fan out across
their country, working with local tourism entities to draw overnight
guests to areas that can be reached by rail, bus
or with tour partners. Of course, no discussion of tourism
(07:25):
to Ireland would be complete without mentioning golf, both as
a draw for sports minded tourists, but also as a
way to showcase the destination's beauty in golf media coverage
of key events. And I have a saying about Ireland.
I may have said it here before when we talked
I wifically about Ireland. It goes like this, if you're
(07:47):
good when you die, you go to Ireland, one of
the most beautiful places on the planet that I've ever
been to, And I would happily go back again, and
I applaud their marketing for twenty twenty five. Would happily
go back, and I'd like to see a lot of
other clients head that way. I think it's a fabulous place.
Speaker 3 (08:06):
But don't wait until you died doing for the police.
Speaker 1 (08:09):
Oh.
Speaker 3 (08:10):
Absolutely been there, and I think Terry, you're spot on.
It's really a beautiful, beautiful country, and the people are
just as beautiful.
Speaker 1 (08:18):
As absolutely they are.
Speaker 2 (08:20):
I don't think any new segment here on a Life
Less Ordinary would be complete if we did not talk
about some sort of transportation issue. The US Department of
Transportation has announced a new air traffic controller hiring plan.
They announced a plan to supercharge hiring of new air
traffic controllers with the goal of easing the staffing shortage
(08:42):
that we're seeing right now. As part of the new
plan announced by the DOT this past Friday, the FAA
is opening its hiring window to become an air traffic
controller if you have any interest in that, from now
through March the seventeenth, and the program also calls for
we sing starting salaries by thirty percent for candidates who
(09:04):
attend the Federal Aviation Administration's academy. The average certified professional
controller right now makes over. You got a guest, Chris.
Speaker 1 (09:13):
Oh, it's probably over one hundred and fifty.
Speaker 2 (09:15):
One hundred and sixty thousand dollars a year. Very close, dingdingding,
You get it. Streamlining hiring to improve efficiency by changing
the current eight step hiring process at the FAA to
just a five step process. The change is designed to
accelerate the time to hire by shaving more than four
months off that process. DOT also said today that once
(09:37):
trainees successfully pass through the academy, they will be assigned
to a tower or other facility across the country where
they're going to work with experienced air traffic controllers toward certification.
The US Travel Association expressed support today for the dot's
new hiring plan. Association President Jeff Freeman said that in
(09:58):
a statement that coot's actions will accelebrate accelerate the creation
of a world class aviation experience that travelers expect, demand
and deserve. So that kind of does it for news today.
I'm sure there's one hundred more news worthy stories. But Harry,
if I did that, we wouldn't have time for some
(10:20):
of the sales, and I want to make sure you
have time to cover those.
Speaker 3 (10:23):
And we talked about one of our favorite countries, Ireland.
Speaker 1 (10:26):
So how about this.
Speaker 3 (10:28):
I've got a sale.
Speaker 1 (10:28):
Going to Ireland. How about that?
Speaker 3 (10:30):
Yeah, how's that for a surprise, aer Lingus has announced
some special fears that are going between March fourth and
May sixteenth. Terry, this is going to blow your socks off.
Three hundred and seventy nine dollars to go to Ireland.
Speaker 1 (10:46):
I'm there. How about round trips sun me.
Speaker 3 (10:48):
To Ireland for three hundred and seventy.
Speaker 1 (10:50):
Nine dollars, Sign me up.
Speaker 3 (10:52):
Yeah, that's that's, you know, less expensive than it costs
to fly to a lot of places in the United States.
These flights are mainly going out of air Lingus's airports
up in the Northeast, like Boston and New York.
Speaker 1 (11:08):
But even if you have to add a short hop.
Speaker 3 (11:11):
To get up there to catch one of these flights,
it's a heck of a deal. Again, three hundred and
seventy nine dollars round trip. But these flights are from
March fourth through May the sixteenth on air Lingus, and
I think that's just a fantastic price. Another good deal
that I found this week if you have kids or grandkids,
(11:34):
Amtrak has been coming up with some tremendous specials. They've
got a fifty percent off special right now for children
age twenty excuse me, age two through twelve, so if
you get some kids or grandkids age two through twelve,
Amtrak's great. And one of the things that's nice about
Amtrack if you're traveling with kids, and we've used this
(11:55):
traveling with adults with adults, is Amtrak has something called
red Caps service. Have you ever heard of red cap service?
If you look at some of the old movies, you
see the Amtrak porters and they're red caps, and that
tradition carries on today. And those folks are there to
help you when you're a family or a special needs
kind of group. They'll help you with boarding, even early boarding.
(12:18):
They're like ambassadors concierges at the Amtrak stations. Amtrak also
has some activity centers for kids, lots of things they're
trying to encourage families to travel, and train travel is
absolutely a very easy, very painless way to go. You
don't have to deal with all the security, and you
(12:39):
have plenty of room in the seats and plenty of
room for your baggage. You carry on baggage. Last thing
I wanted to talk about in sales this morning has
to do with our friends over at Holland America. They're
doing a couple of good things. The first thing that
they're doing that they're doing lots of good things, a
couple specially good things. First thing I wanted to talk
about is they have opened up a new market for
(13:01):
Hawaii and Panama Canal where they've introduced some new cruises
and they've introduced some new activities. One of the things
that caught my eye there is they have a special
stopover in El Salvador, and people say, why would you
want to stop in El Salvador. There's some of the
most beautiful beaches there, amazingly preserved Mayan artifacts, and they've
(13:22):
scheduled a late night stay in Hawaii also on that
trip that will let you have a snorkeling with the
rays experience, something that I don't know if I could
handle myself, but I think that would be really cool
to think about. Yeah, So they're adding new destinations, they're
adding new experiences, and we're talking about sales.
Speaker 1 (13:43):
Well.
Speaker 3 (13:44):
Starting this coming week March fourth, they're having a one
week sale where you get an automatic one hundred dollars
on board credit for their cruises that go to Alaska, Canada,
and New England or Transatlantic cruises one hundred dollars on
board credit just over and above whatever other deals you have.
(14:04):
So if you want to go up and see the
Alaskan wildlife, if you want to schedule a cruise up
to New England, beautiful, beautiful part of the world in Canada,
this is your chance to get that extra hundred dollars
in the room and one other thing that they've got
offering right now. They have a ninety nine dollars deposit.
(14:25):
Lots of travel vendors come up with these limited time
ninety nine dollars deposit tours. And my advice for people
who are thinking about going somewhere but can't make a
decision real quickly, come in, find a great cruise and
go with that ninety nine dollars deposit. There's not a
lot at risk. You can hold it. You can think
(14:45):
about it for weeks in some cases, and that cruise
will hold at its special price, and all you have
at risk is ninety nine dollars. So if you're a procrastinator,
if you're someone who can't make a decision, if there's
someone who has to get a lot people together to
make a great decision, those ninety nine dollars deposit deals
are made for you. And holl In America has that
(15:08):
through the end of March, Terry you know before.
Speaker 2 (15:12):
And I want to really get to our show today, Chris,
because it's a lot of fun. I think you're going
to enjoy it. Looking for you guys to kind of
jump in in this show and really help out a
lot today. But before we go, I want to just
add on to the sales that Harry was talking about
and say to our listeners out there, A Lifeless Ordinary
(15:33):
is all about bringing you the world. That's why we're here,
that's what we do, that's what we want to bring
to your homes as you listen to us every Saturday,
week to week. First of all, we appreciate you so much.
We love the fact that you listen to us, that
you tell us you listen to us. But when it
comes to the sale fairs in travel, we don't give
(15:53):
you a list of everything that's out there. We try
to pick out some of the best and some of
the most popular. I want to encourage those that are
listening to us today. If you didn't hear something today
that Harry did mention that was what you were looking for,
don't hesitate to call us. We would love to help
you out with anything and any travel designs that you have.
Speaker 1 (16:15):
And that phone number is five four nine eight twenty
three thirty three. You can also find more information on
the wishing Well dot biz well.
Speaker 3 (16:23):
You can send us an email, so if you're up
in the middle of the night thinking about travel from
the website, there's a contact form there let us know
what you're thinking about. Every morning, the first thing we
do sometimes before we get to work as we check
our inboxes to find out all the new sales. And
we're ready to help you and get your great value
in a lifeless sord.
Speaker 1 (16:43):
So, Terry you mentioned earlier Red Carpet I did. Our
show today is entitled Lights Camera Luxury. It is we
are continuing on with our series of luxury travel and
I can't wait to find out how the Red Carpet
and Lights Camera Luxury all ties together. We'll find out
next here on a lifeless ordinary.
Speaker 3 (17:04):
Protect your vacation investment with guidance from a travel professional.
The wishing Well knows travel and help you avoid pitfalls
they can spoil your HRD earned vacation. We'll plan your
trip and have your back as you travel. All of
this without support or so called convenience fees. We're on
the web at the Wishingwell dot biz or call us
at five four zero nine zero eight two three three three.
(17:27):
That's five four zero nine zero eight two three three three.
The wishing Well really does make dreams come true.
Speaker 1 (17:33):
Hey, welcome back to a Lifeless Ordinary, the travel show
and podcast from your friends at the wishing Well. You
can give them a call and I encourage that five
four oh nine eight two three three three. That are
on nef Avenue and Harrisonburg. Also online at the Wishingwell
dot biz, where you will find a link in the
upper right hand corner to today's podcast and all the
(17:56):
past shows as well. You can listen to them online
and you can get caught up on our luxury series.
For the past what terry four or five weeks, we've
been talking luxury travel, and today our show is entitled Lights,
Camera Luxury. Tell Me Why. So I want to.
Speaker 2 (18:14):
Take just a quick minute, Chris to kind of catch
everybody up from the last couple of weeks. You alluded
to that we've been continuing our series on defining luxury
and we've been doing that in all sorts of ways.
We started out with the five c's of Luxury Travel.
If you don't know what that is, you're going to
want to go back and listen to that. We've talked
about some of our great travel providers and our suppliers
(18:36):
of luxury travel. If you didn't hear that, that's another
great one that you're going to want to go back
and listen to. And last week we talked more in
depth about what a luxury family vacation might look like. Well,
I want to have a little fun today with our topic.
So it's my show. I get to do that if
I want to. So in celebration of the Oscars that
(18:57):
are going to be airing tomorrow night, and it's all
always a big night for the stars and star watchers,
we're going to be checking into the world's most famous
luxury hotels. We call them the grand Dams of hospitality
that have played starring roles in award winning films and
(19:17):
legendary TV series. Now, these aren't just places Chris to
rest your head. They are destinations in their own right.
You're going to learn about that today. They are dripping
with history, that cinematic allure and indulgences that are actually
fit for Hollywood royalty. And I was excited about this
(19:39):
because I got to thinking about some of my own
favorite films. So I have to confess that I am
not probably not a real current movie fan. Because we
were talking a little bit off air about this. I
have the same feeling about movies sometimes, Chris. I think
you do when you sit down to watch movies, and
that is a minute I sat down in a movie theater,
(20:01):
I go, I don't have time for this. You know,
that's like the first thing I say in my own hit.
But with some of these that we're going to talk
about today, when I turned the table and looked at
it through the lens of travel, which you know I love,
everything changed. The perspective just instantly changed. So kind of
(20:22):
imagine sipping a martini at the Plaza in New York
where Home Alone two kicked up a lot of fun
and I mean mischief. Actually, that's where f Scott Fitzgerald
once found the inspiration for Gadsby's opulence. You can kind
of picture yourself walking down the gilded hallways of the
Beverly Wilshire, where you might remember the scene from Pretty
(20:45):
Woman the fairy tale romance, or check into the ice
blue elegance of Hotel di Perry in Monte Carlo, where
James Bond himself brushed shoulders with the very rich and
the very famous. I mean, we all loved James Bond
movies for that reason. They throw them up in these
beautiful excentric hotels and we go, where is that I
(21:07):
want to go to?
Speaker 1 (21:08):
There?
Speaker 2 (21:09):
Yeah, I mean those are the things that make us
love not just the movies, but where the movies take us,
you know. So we know this inspiration comes in a
lot of forms, and for a lot of travelers, the
destinations they want to visit come from seeing them on
the big screen.
Speaker 1 (21:27):
And you can easily be.
Speaker 2 (21:28):
Transported to say, beautiful beaches of Honolulu, Italian countrysides, right
from the comfort of the TV in your own home.
Nothing beats stepping into your main character's energy and booking
a room in the same hotel you saw on screen.
Production teams. I mean you look at what they do.
(21:51):
They know the best and they pick the absolute finest
hotels to set up shop, beautiful rooms with striking views,
alone sized pools, luxury spas. Oh, you know that reminds me.
I saw the most incredible luxury spa. I don't know
where this hotel was. I should have looked it up,
(22:11):
but it just popped into my mind on the Matrix.
I don't know if you've ever seen the Matrix movie
series with Keanu Reeves, one of my favorite actors of
all times, but there was a scene in a spa
in one of the last I think it's Matrix three,
where it was an incredible That spa was unlike anything
(22:36):
I've ever seen in my life. So if you guys
can help me and look that up, that was amazing.
But luxury spas, gorgeous, luxury gardens, just some of the
amenities that these hotels have to offer. And I want
to say to our listeners out there, I've actually had
the privilege of stepping into a good number of those
that I'm gonna profile today, into their cinematic dreamscape, kind
(23:00):
of feel the weight of the history there and the
sheer indulgence of their service. And I can say this,
the moment you arrive at some of these hotels, you
understand why the directors and the actors actually chose those
settings to bring their stories to life. Marble lobbies, gilded ballrooms,
sweeping terraces, beautiful landscapes, Each detail is perfectly crafted, and
(23:26):
each stay is really an experience worthy of its own screenplay.
So this morning, Chris and Harry, I want you to
pack your finest luggage. I hope it's Louisviton, and we're
going to prepare for that red carpet worthy stay because
we're going to explore some of these legendary hotels that
have been more than just backdrops. They've been characters in
(23:50):
the stories we love. So welcome to the ultimate luxury
movie set experience. And I know both of you are
few curiously searching for my spot in the Matrix movie.
But I know there's people out there right now that
are listening to me, going, Terry, it's this, this is
the one. But before the show is over, we're going
(24:12):
to find that and we're going to announce to you
what it was and where it was. But it was incredible.
But I do want to start out with my favorites,
and I'm going to ask both of you all to
kind of chime in, and if you've got one of
your own favorites, we'll listen to that too. But my
first movie, and this has to be one of my
favorites of all time. It was my favorites because of
(24:34):
where it was, how it made me feel the storyline
of the movie, everything about it just was perfect for me.
And the movie is called Under the Tuscan Sun. It's
an American romantic drama. Was produced and filmed almost entirely
in Italy in two thousand and three, and the movie
was based on the memoirs of the author Francis Mays,
(24:58):
who is also the main character he in the film adaptation.
It's based on the storyline of a recently divorced woman
who visits Italy and bays a villa in Tuscany on
a whim that she wants to stop being afraid of
attracting good things to her life. The movie was nominated
(25:19):
for the Art Director's Guild Excellence in Production Design Award.
And the film's main protagonist, who plays Francis Mays, who
is an actress, also one of my favorites, Diane Lane.
She got a Golden Globe Award nomination for her contribution
to the success of this critically acclaimed film.
Speaker 1 (25:39):
Now I want.
Speaker 2 (25:39):
To take a little closer look at the property that
actually put this movie in cinema history books. The property
is called Villa Laura And if you want to right
now while you're listening to me travelers out there and
travel hopefuls and just dream lovers. Villa Laura is a
(26:00):
beautifully restored seventeenth century estate just outside the walls of Courtana, Tuscany,
available right now actually for weekly rentals throughout the year.
This property, you guys, dates back to sixteen I'm sorry,
to six hundred AD, and it was built on over
(26:21):
the centuries. Of course they've continued to build on it.
There are three buildings there, the villa, the farmhouse and
then another building, all lovingly restored in two thousand and
six after it was used as the set for Under
the Tuscan Sun in two thousand and three. Now the
property alone would certainly be enough, but there is just
(26:42):
something very alluring about the Tuscany area of Italy. Americans
love Tuscany for many reasons. There's the landscape, the lifestyle
among them, and we have that particular region of Italy
to thank for a lot of treasures in art and history.
(27:02):
Actually Tuscany is the birthplace of the Italian Renaissance. But
you have culture there, most importantly wine and food. That's
I mean for our clients at the Wishing Well that
want to go to Tuscany, that is their number one
attraction to go to Tuscany and to that region. You
fly into Florence, that's where you would actually go into
(27:23):
to enter Tuscany. This is where you're going to find
the Leaning Tower of Pisa, all of that. But really
people love wine and food. So for all those reasons
and my love for this movie, Chris Villa Laura is
going to take my number one spot today on a
lifeless ordinary for some of the most luxurious cinema properties.
Speaker 1 (27:44):
In the world.
Speaker 2 (27:45):
I absolutely love the movie, love the property. And if
you have a chance, and you're in front of your
computer even right now, just go ahead and look up
Villa Laura. It is a storybook website. It's just amazing,
just amazing. Now, the next movie I want to highlight
is another one of my favorites. I'm sure once I
tell people what it is, there's gonna be a lot
(28:07):
of people. We're gonna hear this thunderous applause. The name
of the movie is Pretty Woman. Okay, oh yeah, most
people I know will have seen this wonderful movie. But basically,
the premise of the movie is a triumphant journey of
a young woman who becomes more than she thought she
ever could be against all odds, and an unlikely romance
between someone who has paired with someone who has not,
(28:32):
and the perils that occur as a result. But ultimately
it's the story of true love and how love really
does conquer all. It's a great movie. I am not
going to give you any spoiler alerts here, but it's
a great movie, Sarry.
Speaker 1 (28:45):
It's been out for like thirty five years, I know,
but I still know people who haven't seen it yet.
Then they're not going to Yeah, probably not.
Speaker 2 (28:52):
But I do want to talk about the property that's
involved in this movie, because it's amazing. It's in the
rococo splendid decor of the Beverly will Shire. This is
a four seasons hotel built in nineteen twenty eight. And
you might remember when I came back from Nashville just
recently on a Virtuoso conference that I attended Chris. When
(29:16):
I came back, I said to you, and I actually
even said this to Harry. I am now officially a
four seasons girl. Let me tell you, if you've ever
had the opportunity to stay in four seasons, I don't
know that you will ever stay anywhere else. It is
an experience like none other. It's absolutely amazing, no wonder
(29:38):
to me they picked it for this particular movie. The
hotel was built, as I said in nineteen twenty eight,
it was actually once even a contemporary home to both
Elvis Presley and John Lennon. That prostitute Vivian Julia Roberts,
who played the lead role in Pretty Woman. She lives
it up in this hotel with millionaire Richard gar whose
(30:00):
character was named Edward Lewis, and just like time traveling
chimps Zira and Cornelius of the nineteen seventy one's movie
Escape from the Planet of the Apes before them. So
this movie has been kind of the host to a
lot of different movies, but Pretty Woman in particular. Disappointingly though,
(30:20):
that that floor picnic with Julia Roberts and Richard Gear,
even the bath scenes were actually filmed on set. But
the hotel this is interesting. They still offer a Pretty
Woman for a day package and that includes a trip
to Rodeo Drive, presumably without the insults, two nights in
a specialty suite, even with a butler drawn bubble bath
(30:43):
in which you can sing. Julie Roberts famous ode to
Kiss If you want to know everything that's included in
this package, I'll tell you your stay of course in
a signature suite or the Presidential Suite. You have the
luxury transportation, including your Chaufford car, a shopping spree with
a celebrity stylist on rodeo drive. You have the dining
(31:08):
at the pool bar and cafe. You have customized treatments
at the Forbes five star spa at this hotel, a
bespoke picnic with a musical serenade. You have a ninety
minute massage, a hand drawn bath with personalized aromatherapy oils,
and a feeling pretty cocktail, all to celebrate another one
(31:32):
of my second favorite movies, Pretty Woman at the wils
Shire Beverly Hotel, which is a four seasons hotel in
Los Angeles. My favorite. Now we're moving on to my
third favorite movie, which is one that maybe a lot
of people haven't seen, but this one I love. Also
(31:53):
it's called The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. You ever
seen that one?
Speaker 1 (31:56):
I haven't seen that one.
Speaker 2 (31:57):
This is a pretty intense murder mystery movie. The Girl
with the Dragon Tattoo. Actually, Chris tells the story of
a disgraced journalist by the name of Michael Bloomvist. He's
hired a wealthy industrialist to investigate the disappearance of his niece,
whose name was Harriet Vanger, which happened decades ago. Now
(32:22):
to solve the mystery, this guy teams up with a
gal by the name of Elizabeth Slander, and she's a
highly skilled computer hacker with a troubled past. They kind
of uncovering dark secrets within this Vanger family and the
Swedish elite. And I think it's worth noting that in
(32:42):
twenty twelve, The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo received five Oscars,
one for Best Cinematography and no wonder the setting was extraordinary.
So again, if you are sitting in front of your
computer this morning, man, you got to check out this property.
This is unreal. So I love the movie. But then
(33:06):
after I started investigating, Okay, exactly where was this movie filmed?
What was the hotel that was the setting for this movie.
It's a place called the Dolder Grand Hotel. First of all,
it is perched on one of the highest points in
all of Zurich, Switzerland. I mean to tell you it
is all striking. One of the most opulent yet contemporary
(33:31):
hotels in all of Europe. We personally love it because
it's one of our partner Virtuoso pop properties, which means
when you book this property through our agency, you get
multiple amenities that are afforded to you that you would
not receive if you booked it on your own. That's
number one, one hundred and seventy five luxurious rooms and suites,
world class restaurants, a spa that covers four thousand square meters,
(33:57):
spacious event facilities, and an art collection boasting more than
one hundred works that include originals from Takashi Miurakami and
Salvador Dali. The Dolder Grand, which opened in eighteen ninety
nine as the Dolder Grand Hotel, is a luxurious city
(34:20):
resort in the truest sense of the word. The hotel
treats its guests to magnificent views over Zurich, which is
a beautiful city. We were there just a couple of
years ago when Harry and I hosted a Viking river
cruise through some of the most beautiful areas of Switzerland.
(34:41):
The Alps also, and the Dolder Ground Spa and the
nearby woods just offer all this opportunity for relaxation and
those who would rather dive into vibrancy of one of
Europe's most beautiful cities. They can reach the center of
Zurich in just a matter of minutes. This place, it's
more than just a place to stay for the night.
(35:03):
The hotel is kind of a melting pot of Switzerland's
top addresses when it comes to culinary delights. The acclaimed
restaurant there that is headed by that one of the
most top chefs in all of Switzerland's has two Michelin
stars and it is an absolute delight to catch a mellion.
(35:24):
Just if you didn't stay there, if you just actually
dined there, it would be worth the visit. So again,
the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo and the Dolder Grand
Hotel another one of my top regards to the Red
Carpet and Hollywood Terry.
Speaker 1 (35:41):
I'm going to tell you if we were using my list,
this would be an entirely different show because as you're
talking these classic movies, I'm thinking Guardians of the Galaxy.
I'm not even sure that hotel exists yet it does not.
I don't think show today is entitled lights, Camera Luxury.
(36:02):
It's part of our Luxury Travel series. As we dig
deeper into exactly what luxury travel is, what to expect,
and how to get it. We'll talk more about some
of these great hotels from Terry's list of favorite movies
coming up next here on a life less Ordinary.
Speaker 3 (36:20):
Who would think of driving off to a new destination
without guidance from Google or Siri. Let the Wishing World
guide your next travel experience. Travel the world as you
enjoy the very best destinations and all they offer at
the best prices. Our mobile travel app keeps your vacation
on track and keeps you connected with our team of
experts for help. If you need it, call us at
five four zero nine zero eight two thirty three three
(36:43):
Stop buy two forty three nap Avenue, or visit us
at the Wishingwell dot biz.
Speaker 1 (36:49):
And welcome back to a Lifeless Ordinary. Our show today
is entitled Lights, Camera, Luxury, and as you've been listening today,
if you're inspired to book a luxury trip to stay
in one of these hotels that you've seen in one
of your favorite movies, I encourage you to call The
Wishing Well. Their phone number is five four nine eight
twenty three thirty three. Can also find more information online
(37:11):
at the Wishingwell dot biz or stop by and say hi.
You can talk to him in person there on ne
f Avenue in Harrisonburg. All right, we've hit three or
four hotels from Terry's favorite movies that feature luxury hotels,
and we're going to continue to work our way through
your list, and I'm really hoping something from The Avengers
(37:35):
the Marvel Universe makes your list, but you know, we'll
see where it goes.
Speaker 2 (37:40):
I like those action movies too, and I have a
huge correction to make, okay, because I had originally said,
when I was talking about the spa scene in a
Matrix movie, what I was actually picturing was a Keanu
Reeves movie. But I got it wrong, Chris, this was
a John wit.
Speaker 1 (38:01):
So.
Speaker 2 (38:02):
The spa scene that I was talking about was in
a John Wicks movie and it was at the Air
Ancient Bads in New York City, actually in Tribeca, New York,
of all places, not a hotel at all, but it
is the Air Ancient Bads and you can still go
there to that spa. It's absolutely a fabulous looking place.
(38:23):
I've never I confess I've never been there, but we
are going to take our little mission here lights camera
luxury on a bit of a adventurer's I guess you'd
say my next favorite movie is on my list is
The Dark Knight. And The Dark Knight is about Batman's
(38:43):
fight against the Joker, who was kind of a sadistic,
criminal minded mastermind who brings chaos to Gotham City, and
the film explores some themes I guess you would say,
of justice, corruption, morality, and as we all know, it
was also during the filming of this movie, sadly that
Heath Ledger died from an accidental overdose. Switch in many
(39:06):
ways sort of added to the dark tone of this movie,
I think. And one of the film's iconic scenes Batman
dives from the top of the International Financial Center tower
that is home to the Four Seasons Hong Kong, and
that he did that to capture some dude and bring
(39:27):
him back to Gotham. And The Dark Knight was recognized
as one of the best films of two thousand and eight,
and it took home an Academy Award for the Best
Supporting Actor, posthumously awarded to Heath Ledger, Best Cinematography, Best
Visual Effects, and Best Film Editing. Among a few, and
(39:48):
then the property. Let's just talk about this property, the
Four Seasons Hong Kong for a minute. Take excellent service,
splurge worthy restaurants, and convenient location near the best locations
in Hong Kong, and you've got one of the top hotels.
We're talking eight Michelin Stars under one roof. Can you
(40:13):
believe that?
Speaker 1 (40:14):
Now?
Speaker 2 (40:14):
I know the only seven star property in the world
is one that maybe you're gonna have some time to
talk about, which is the Khalifa in the Burj Khalifa
in Dubai. Yeah, but this is an eight Michelin stars hotel. Now,
how does it strike you on arrival? Well, it's adjacent to,
(40:35):
as I said, Hong Kong's International Finance Center and office towers.
The Four Seasons is an unbeatable location if you are
in Hong Kong on business. But you book a private
Mercedes Benz or Bentley transfer, Yeah, on arrival, and that
really is the best way to get to the hotel.
Speaker 1 (40:55):
The good stuff.
Speaker 2 (40:56):
What about your room, Well, they start with a welcome
fruit and a pot of tea.
Speaker 1 (41:01):
Is a welcome gift for you.
Speaker 2 (41:03):
There might even be a surprise if you're celebrating an occasion,
but the four hundred and eighty four square foot Deluxe
Harbor View Room has wonderful skyline views. But if you're
on the fence about upgrading to a clubroom, just do
it because the executive room's there. In suites come with
some of the most amazing perks. Best of all, access
(41:25):
to the fantastic top floor lounge where you have private
check in, all day refreshments, complimentary cocktails, and wall to
wall windows making it extremely difficult to leave. And again,
this is one of our beloved Virtuoso properties, so a
lot of extra amenities come with your four seasons reservations
(41:47):
when you book this through the wishing Well. Kind of
makes me sad that it was associated with a movie
called Dark Knight, because there is nothing dark about it,
absolutely nothing. And here you are waving your hands at
me like a yeah, one is on your mind.
Speaker 1 (42:02):
Well, like a crazy person.
Speaker 3 (42:04):
Now, it was very kind of you to say like
a crazy as though you were crazy, that's what you're
really thinking.
Speaker 1 (42:11):
Anyway.
Speaker 3 (42:12):
I can't believe, Terry, that you've left off one of
the most iconic movies of all time. It was filmed
at a hotel in Salzburg, Austria. Why don't you tell
us about it. I'm thinking about the Sound of Music. Okay,
everybody's seen the Sound of Music. And if you haven't
seen the movie, I'm sure you've seen it in a
(42:32):
high school musical somewhere. But it was filmed in Salzburg, Austria,
at the Schloss, which is a castle Leopoldskron, a very
interesting place, a very beautiful castle, and you can stay there.
So if you are building your list of different places
around the world, if you haven't added the Sound of Music,
I think you're missing a lot.
Speaker 2 (42:51):
I don't think it gets more luxurious than staying at
a castle, Harry, and you're right. It should have been
on my list, but it didn't make it quite there,
and that's because the last one on my list is
actually surrounding the location for Home Alone two Sleepless in Seattle,
north By Northwest, and I am, of course exactly These
(43:14):
are all classics. The Plaza Hotel has been home to
a number of movies, even Hitchcock's north By Northwest. Carry
Grant was living in an apartment in the Plaza Hotel
at the time, making for a really convenient commute for him.
Sleepless in Seattle Megrind's character Annie Reid taken to the
(43:35):
hotel by her boyfriend Walter played by Bill Pullman. And
in Home Alone two, how could we could forget that
Kevin spends a night there alone before getting kidnapped and
his family returns to after their stay to look for him.
The Plaza Virtuoso benefits, let me just tell you about that.
You get an upgrade upon arrival that's subject to availability,
(43:58):
of course. You get a Continental Breakfast daily for two
guests one hundred dollars spa service credit to be utilized
during your stay, and early check in and check out,
and complimentary Wi Fi. The property, the Plaza Hotel has
been the grandame on Central Park South and it is
(44:18):
as New York as it gets. And that really is
my entire list of my favorite movies for the Cinema
week that we are celebrating and the Oscars Night which
is tomorrow night. Chris, do you have any favorite movies
that you can think of right off?
Speaker 1 (44:38):
I mean, seriously, my genre of films are the action films,
the you know, the Marvel Universe and all that. Yeah,
the only one I could come up with that kind
of fits into what I have seen be maybe one
of the Mission Impossible films. Oh, I love those.
Speaker 2 (44:58):
I love Tom does he ever even age age?
Speaker 1 (45:02):
He does all of his own stuff.
Speaker 2 (45:03):
Know that is so incredible to me. I love that
about him. I mean he's really an adventure seeker, I
would say.
Speaker 1 (45:11):
And you know, speaking of lives on the edge, acting
like a crazy guy. But an amazing actor.
Speaker 2 (45:17):
You know, And you know that's a good point. I
don't know how I would feel about him personally as
a friend, but as an actor, I don't know too
many actors that are as good as he is. That
that guy is amazing. He was made to be on screen.
Speaker 1 (45:33):
The film that I came up with was The Mission
Impossible Ghost Protocol Okay out in twenty eleven. So the
hotel that was used was set as a Indian billionaire's
luxury home. But the hotel is the Jumera Zurbil Surrey Okay, okay,
(45:55):
and it is in Dubai. It is it's on one
of the the Mira Palm with has nine restaurants in it,
a spa, has a snow room. Over would love that.
I tell you know, luxury is involved when you're in
dubaias they either have a ski slope or a snow room.
They've got a turkey shpath, twenty four hour butler service,
(46:16):
and the Royal Residences, and there's a water park on tap.
Speaker 2 (46:20):
Oh my gosh, Now you know one of the other
locations that I forgot to put on my list. But
it just occurs to me as we're all kind of
sitting here talking a little more casually.
Speaker 1 (46:31):
But I loved Elvis Presley.
Speaker 2 (46:33):
I mean, Elvis Presley, in my opinion, was one of
the greatest actors, greatest singer's, greatest entertainers of all time.
And I remember when I went to Hawaii on my
very first visit. I actually went to the island of Kawaii,
where I was told he filmed almost all of his
Hawaiian movies. They were filmed on location there at Kuwaii,
(46:56):
and I actually stayed in the hotel that he filmed
a good number of those, and it was the Coco Palms,
and every room in that hotel, not unlike Graceland, which
is actually where he got the idea for this, was
at the Cocoa Palms in Kawaii. Every room at the
Cocoa Palms was decorated differently, and I remember the room
(47:17):
that I stayed in. My sink in my hotel room
was this enormous kunk shell that was what my sink
was in the back. And I remember this is some
forty five years ago. Now I thought I died and
gone to heaven. I'm like, I know Elvis stayed in
this room. I am so happy right now. I had
to go around, of course, and touch every facet of
(47:38):
the room because I was just sure there was some
part of Elvis's DNA that had to still be there.
Speaker 1 (47:43):
You were trying to channel him. Maybe I was. I
don't know, There you go.
Speaker 2 (47:46):
But it was just amazing, you know, to actually be
able to touch in field those places.
Speaker 1 (47:51):
Well, and there are a.
Speaker 3 (47:52):
Lot of hotels we haven't talked about this morning, and
we don't have time to talk about this morning, where
very famous people have stick. There's a room, you know,
where Paul and Lynda McCartney wrote some of their very
favorite songs, very famous songs. So you can find hotels
that have these special meetings, that have these special kind
(48:13):
of memories that they can involune or feelings or whatever.
It's interesting to look at a hotel, look at the
themed room like you're talking about Terry stay in a
room where something fantastic has happened. I remember when we
visited Cuba, we were in the room where something very
famous happened. Remember so where Ernest Hemingway used to stay
(48:37):
and do a lot of his writing. Everybody's got somebody
that they really think is special. Find out where that
person were, was what they did, and go back and
try and do as Terry did, try and channel yourself
into that moment.
Speaker 2 (48:53):
And most recently, on one of my family vacations, we
went to Toronto and I had the great pleasure of
staying in the Fairmont Hotel, which is really just above
the underground city that's in Toronto, and enjoyed the stay
in the Fairmont Hotel, which famously John Lennon and Yoko
(49:15):
Ono did their sleep in at this hotel for a
period of about a week and they this is where
they wrote Give Piece a Chance.
Speaker 1 (49:24):
Yep, it was fabulous day. I can't believe I didn't
think of the Peabody in Memphis. I go there every
year when I visit Saint Jude, and it's been featured
in a couple of films. Really, it was once the
firm with Tom Cruise in nineteen ninety three. My favorites. Yeah,
I love that the Peabody, Is that right?
Speaker 3 (49:44):
All right?
Speaker 1 (49:44):
Just thought I should add on that I've been somewhere
that's been on a movie and not.
Speaker 3 (49:48):
Only do you see the famous movies and think about
the famous movies that were filmed there, but you get
to watch those ducks.
Speaker 1 (49:54):
They have their creation. Yeah, every day, these ducks are
treated like roy They live on the roof. They have
a penthouse, duckhouse up on the roof, and they bring
them down. There's a duck master, and they put up
the velvet rope and they roll a carpet out. They
shut the elevators down so that the ducks can ride
down in the elevators. Well, ducks don't do well on stairs, Chris.
(50:17):
And it's a long way. I mean, it's stories or something. Yeah.
So yeah, if you're ever in Memphis, you don't have
to actually be staying at the Peabody to go in
and watch the duck parade. It happens.
Speaker 3 (50:28):
It happens in the afternoon right around I think four o'clock.
I've visited a couple of times. It's absolutely magnificent.
Speaker 1 (50:34):
So yeah, it's a fun time.
Speaker 2 (50:36):
Now the interesting thing about Today's show, at least for me.
I don't know about you all. I am not a
starstruck person. Typically, I'm just not. And I don't read
the you know, pavarazzi magazines. I don't really follow them
much on Instagram or Facebook or even in emails you
(50:57):
know where they dump all this information in your inbox
about the stars.
Speaker 1 (51:02):
I don't.
Speaker 2 (51:02):
But when it came to putting Today's show together and
I got to connect these properties with some of these movies,
I did get pretty excited.
Speaker 1 (51:14):
I won't lie.
Speaker 2 (51:14):
I mean, this was for me a great opportunity to
marry two loves. I do like some movies. I don't
like to sit and watch them too much, too long anymore,
but I do enjoy the movies, and I enjoy the
settings such movies.
Speaker 3 (51:30):
The thing that's special about every single hotel we've spoken
about today, and about the ones that we didn't have
time to speak about today, is that it's got a
connection with luxury. Somehow, some way. That hotel was singled
out as being unique either for its location, either for
some characteristics inside the hotel, either for you know, just
(51:51):
something special about that place that inspired a movie director
and a film crew to want to travel there and
film at that property, and that tells me as a traveler,
there's something worth seeing. So even if you're not enamored
by what you might know has happened there, you know
(52:11):
that you're going to a great place because it's been
personally selected, personally vetted.
Speaker 1 (52:16):
And you can also say I've been.
Speaker 2 (52:19):
There exactly, and when you watch the movie, even with
your kids or your grandkids, you can say, I know
what that's like.
Speaker 1 (52:27):
I've been there, and I know what it's like.
Speaker 2 (52:29):
And then it also I think it really helped, especially
if you're watching movies with your a lot of friends
get together, maybe family members, and you can say, let
me tell you the inside story about this hotel.
Speaker 1 (52:42):
I've been there, and that's what I love.
Speaker 2 (52:43):
Like the one that I talked about, Villa Laura, the
one in under the Tuscan Sun. I mean, that's a
property that I would want to go and stay in
and make my own memories there. The movie itself was amazing,
but these are that you want to go and you
want to have your own, your own screenplay.
Speaker 1 (53:04):
Terry, I wish we could talk about this for another hour,
but we're really out of time. How do we get
in touch with you at the wishing Well.
Speaker 2 (53:10):
Wishing Well's easy to find. We're located at two forty
three NEF Avenue in the Valley Center in Heresonburg, Virginia.
You can call us at five four oh nine oh
eight two three thirty three or look us up on
the web. We are at the Wishingwell dot biz.
Speaker 1 (53:25):
This has been a life Less Ordinary, the travel show
from your friends at the wishing Well at two forty
three NEP Avenue in Harsenburg. If you have any questions
on topics discussed today, please reach out to the wishing
Well online at the Wishingwell dot biz or five four
oh nine oh eight twenty three thirty three. Past episodes
are available on the iHeartRadio app. And we'll see again
next Saturday morning at ten for a life Less Ordinary
(53:47):
from the wishing Well
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