October 4, 2024 • 45 mins
Before the first leaf even hits the ground, you can hear thousands of people shouting, "Sweatah weathah!" in their best (or worst) New York accents. Yes, the autumnal equinox has finally passed, and we are able to share some top tier choices for hotels near glorious fall foliage, including the oldest resort in the country and a few paying homage to their Victorian roots.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
Hotel History is created for adult audiences.
(00:03):
Content may not be suitable for all listeners.
Discretion is advised.
You're listening to Hotel History.
We take you with us through the sordid history and scandals
of some of the world's most famous and infamous hotels.
I'm D'Etta.
And I'm Yael.
(00:24):
Let's get started.
It's the most special time of year, right?
Yes.
Is I believe sweater weather.
Sweatah weathah.
It's not really sweater weather.
I can't freaking say it without the accent.
It's sweatah weathah.
You can't even say it without.
(00:44):
It's impossible.
It's impossible.
But the seasons are changing.
The new TV shows are coming out.
Yes, so we know the weather is changing in LA.
That's how we know.
Even though we just had a heat wave.
But yeah, it's the fall.
Also, Gilmore Girl season.
(01:04):
That's what everyone's been calling it on TikTok.
They're like, oh, what's that?
It's September.
You know what we gotta do.
One of my favorite sounds that I keep hearing is Richard Gilmore
being like, "I am an autumn."
Yeah.
Yeah, that is like.
But they knew what they were doing because the whole entire beginning is in sepia tone.
(01:25):
Yes.
And it was like fall leaves and everything.
But yeah, you know, other than that, we also we start to drink apple cider,
everything and pumpkin.
Everything.
Just bought my first jug of apple cider last.
Is it the season?
I'm so excited.
Yes, this is this is an apple orchard.
I remember last year we went to do something and it rained.
(01:48):
Yes, we went to pick apples a couple hours away from L.A.
Oh, and we and we went to we went to the creepiest, the creepiest,
weirdest apple orchard place where I I was freaking out and you're like, it's fine.
And I looked at her like we're in the forest with a woman who's breastfeeding her child
(02:08):
on the floor.
And it's just like, yeah, you can pick some apples if you want.
And I'm like, do you know what kind of apple she's like?
I don't know.
I'm like, they only had one apple tree and all the other trees were other kinds of fruit
that were not ready yet.
It was not maintained.
This was just someone's backyard.
It was a couple of hippies that were like living off the land and trying to grow these
(02:31):
fruit trees that they had bought.
And I don't even know how I found it.
It's because I think we both found it when you Google it, it pops.
Yeah.
And they're like, yeah, we don't know why people are coming here.
And I'm like, they were nice hippies.
Very nice.
As many of them, not the brightest.
I don't feel like they bathe.
(02:53):
Well, typically.
No.
And it was just like kind of shacky.
They're like, it was weird.
I felt like this could go really bad.
Yeah.
Yael had very "Hills Have Eyes" vibes from it where I was like, no, it's great.
Because you're from Texas.
Yeah.
You're like, these are my people.
These are my people like, oh, this is just Bob, my neighbor who sells the local crack
(03:17):
and the firewood.
So and the firewood.
A two for one deal.
Excuse me.
I'm from a meth town.
So I'm sorry, meth.
You see, I don't know.
I'm from Brooklyn where it's we don't I mean, there is meth, but it's more crack.
But well, it's funny because I feel like if we were in Brooklyn or like we go
somewhere and someone is being really suspicious or like just like very moody,
(03:41):
I'd be like, what's up?
And you'd be like, ah, I'm like, no, it's just a Tuesday in Brooklyn.
You know, different triggers.
We should be triggered by all of it.
The regional triggers are so interesting.
Should we do apple picking again?
This time, not at that place.
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Yeah, we should go to the second place we went to.
I wish I could remember its name.
I'd give them a shout out, but I don't remember.
Yeah, the second we went to two.
Yeah, the second place was great.
They had live music and super good baked like apple goods that from the store.
I still have some apple brandy that I bought from there.
Oh, yeah.
(04:22):
Yeah.
OK, I remember that.
Yeah, let's let's do that one.
And hopefully it won't rain.
I don't think it will.
It was really rainy last year.
It was pouring.
We had to stay in the store till it stopped raining, but that was fun.
But because we're in the spirit of that season and it's bringing back such fun memories,
we decided we're going to list out some of the most beautiful hotels in the country that
(04:48):
you can experience the fall foliage and really get the nice vibe of.
Yeah, the leaves changing colors, the trees.
And it's not going to be in Southern California.
No, it's not.
It's definitely not.
Or like the South.
I mean, I know that fall foliage like happens.
They show the map of like how it happens throughout the country and the different phases.
(05:12):
But like when you think of it, it's Northeast.
Yeah, that's what you definitely think of.
There are some some nice places in the Pacific Northwest in like the South and Mississippi
and Arkansas.
But we stayed pretty far north here.
I think Virginia is as south as we go today.
I think it's a part of it is the cool weather.
(05:33):
Yeah.
So in the South, it doesn't get as cold as it quickly as it does in the North.
So it's like you think of like cozy and warm Vermont.
It just they own it.
Yeah, you want to wear a sweater when you're going to see the fall.
You want to wear a sweater when it's sweat.
Sweat.
You don't want to be like sweating.
(05:55):
Which is what we'd be here.
Although one year, this was like five years ago, I went with my ex to a cabin in the woods
around here.
I think it was the San Bernardino Mountain area.
Has a weird name.
I don't remember the name, but it was like in the mountains.
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It was a cabin which was like exactly what you think it would be.
There was an open fireplace, rugs, everything everywhere.
All the wood was it just looked so cabin and
you see the hole and trees were all around.
And we took like a hike and it was the most fall thing and it was chilly.
Well, here's the funniest thing in the woods went to like 60 degrees and below.
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We drove back to LA, 90 degrees to 100 degrees.
He had no AC in his car at the time.
Yeah.
So I had to switch from like sweat, sweat up to sweating.
Yeah.
Real bad, but it was fun.
That was like the most fall, I think.
And I think it was next to Arrowhead Lake.
(07:02):
Oh yeah.
That area.
It does get cool and crisp there.
It gets really nice.
Yeah.
I mean, it's LA so you could at least go somewhere to experience that.
But you want to be able to walk around and see the leaves.
And I miss that about Brooklyn.
We have five hotels we put on the list.
(07:23):
There's about a bajillion that deserve to be on the list.
We just randomly went through.
We asked some people, I asked my cousin, Debbie, shout out to her.
She likes to go and travel like the Northeast a lot.
She lives in Brooklyn.
And so right away I was like, you would know.
And she gave us a good recommendation.
(07:48):
We're starting off with the Fairmont Le Chateau Frontenac.
In Quebec City, Canada.
I think that is the most proper pronunciation that I could possibly give
with my terrible French accent.
From now on, it will be Frontenac.
Frontenac?
Frontenac.
Frontenac.
Yeah.
(08:09):
Okay.
So the Fairmont Le Chateau Frontenac, I would say worse, in Quebec City.
And you've never been to Quebec City.
I've never been to Canada.
You've never been to Canada?
No, I want to so badly.
Oh my God.
It's not that exciting.
No, Canada's beautiful.
I definitely want to go to this particular part of Canada.
(08:30):
It looks gorgeous.
That was a joke.
I've been to Canada.
I've been to only the East side of Canada and it's gorgeous.
Canada's great.
It's beautiful.
The people are so friendly and it has a lot of nature.
And I'm not trying to hate on Canada at all.
But that was a joke.
But it's not like, I mean, it depends on what you like to do.
(08:51):
Because if you like tropical adventures, Canada is not for you.
But I've been to Quebec City.
It's stunning.
It's very clean, very French.
Some people don't even speak English.
Yeah.
I believe or I remember.
But the thing is it's French.
There is no other culture except the French culture.
(09:12):
So just be aware if you're looking for multi-cultures, it's not there.
But it's really pretty.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Well, the Frontenac is a five-star luxury hotel.
And this chateau has a lot of Gothic elements in its architecture too.
So it's this very stately but also palatial looking building.
(09:38):
It looks and feels like a five-star hotel.
Like you see it, you're like, that's five-star.
It's clean.
It's beautiful.
Detailed.
It gives the chateau vibe.
But it's not tiny.
It's not like cozy.
No.
I feel like it's a little bit like grand.
Yes.
You know, it has a gorgeous ballroom.
People should check out the website.
(09:59):
They do a great job of giving you a full tour of the place.
You could do 3D tours, which is really nice.
And the rooms do feel cozy though.
They have some personality.
They're not like just only standard rooms.
There's a little.
Oh, that's nice.
Yeah.
They received the 2022 Global Hotel of the Year Award from the World Luxury Awards.
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And they also were the global winner in the luxury castle hotel category.
I love that there's a luxury castle hotel category.
Should we?
I feel like we need to go on this website and look at all the castle hotels because that sounds really nice.
Yeah.
Yes, we will be pulling some ideas.
I guess there are so many castle hotels or castles that turned into hotels.
(10:44):
They had to make the category for it.
Yeah.
Probably most of them are in Europe.
Yeah, I was going to say.
But Quebec City feels like Europe, so it makes perfect sense.
This hotel opened in 1893 and was designed by Bruce Price and was built by the Canadian Pacific
Railway Company, which is not what you think of when you think this, you know, big chateau castle
(11:07):
to be built by a railway.
But it's one of the first completed grand railway hotels, which I didn't even know was a category
that existed.
But Canada's grand railway hotels are a series of hotels across the country, each a national landmark.
And they all have these gorgeous architectures and histories.
(11:31):
And some are considered to be grand hotels of the British Empire.
This OK, but this makes so much sense because if it opened in 1893, that's when the railroads
were like really at their peak.
Yes.
And so I guess I what does it say?
They don't what came first, the hotels or the railroads or it was like we both basically
(11:53):
facilitated their own growth.
They were like, well, it was like a business trade off.
That's why it sounds like the railroad company was.
Yeah, vertical integration.
Yeah.
But there must be so many that means.
Yes, I think there are.
So look for that in an upcoming episode.
Yeah, they have special themed suites in the hotel to pay homage to iconic guests like
(12:17):
Queen Elizabeth II, Celine Dion, of course, of course, Alfred Hitchock and the Trudeaus.
Now, so Justin Trudeau, the prime minister, he his whole family is like super well known.
And his father was also a prime minister.
Oh, OK.
Yeah. So it's called the Trudeau and Trudeau Suite.
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And they all have their own very specific themes to them to and there were even more
besides just these and they all looked really, really nice.
They probably had to.
I mean, if you're if a suite is being named after you, you got.
Yeah.
Imagine like the Shaq Trudeau.
(12:58):
Like no one wants that.
But first of all, I love out of everyone, I just love that Celine Dion.
Canada, I think Canada's gem is so good.
Yes.
Well, and apparently it's decorated with photos done by her family photographer.
So it's like very.
It's so sweet.
She's really nice.
Yeah.
Yeah.
(13:19):
I didn't know Alfred Hitchock was Canadian.
He filmed a movie at this hotel.
Wait, which movie?
Yeah, he was at Northwest.
Let me scroll.
Ah, in 1952, the Chateau was transformed into a movie set for I Confess.
I don't know that.
Yeah, that's not a better known Hitchcock movie, I guess.
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I got to watch it.
He made really good movies.
But yeah, that's so sweet that they dedicated that.
I guess they brought in a lot of business from that.
Probably so.
Yeah.
And then a lot of, you know, celebrities are going to stay there.
Yeah.
Because of that as well.
Well, it seems like one of the main luxury hotels in Quebec City.
I'm sure there's a lot, but it seemed, you know, the big one.
(14:06):
So a lot of famous people have stayed there.
A lot of British royalty.
Let's see, who?
King George VI, Queen Elizabeth in 1939.
Is that the only time?
Oh, I'm sure they probably stayed more, but I think that was their official visit.
Yeah.
Prince Grace of Monaco.
(14:28):
So Grace Kelly in 1969.
Prince Andrew and Lady Sarah Ferguson of England.
A lot of politicians and world leaders.
This was interesting.
So during World War II in 1943 and 1944, the Chateau actually became the center
of the Quebec Conference of World War II.
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So, yeah, so U.S. President Franklin Roosevelt, the British Prime Minister Winston Churchill,
and the Canadian Prime Minister William Leone Mackenzie King all met there to figure out war stuff.
Like always, hotels are the center of World War II.
This is like a common theme we see everywhere.
(15:12):
Yeah, every hotel that existed at World War II has a story, had a part to play.
Yeah.
A pretty important part.
It sounds like, yeah, and just like so many world leaders have stayed at this place.
Let's see.
Theodore Roosevelt, Dwight Eisenhower, Richard Nixon, Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan,
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Pierre Elliott Trudeau, Justin Trudeau.
Okay, so they're, yeah, they're just going over all the leaders ever.
Who is Brian Mulroney?
Is that also a former Prime Minister?
Oh, he was a Canadian lawyer, businessman, and politician who served as the 18th Prime Minister
of Canada.
Basically, every single celebrity and politician have stayed here.
(15:57):
It sounds like Charlie Chaplin, Jane Seymour, Anthony Quinn, James Cagney, Barbara Steinwick,
Celine Dion, Paul McCartney, Sting, Steven Spielberg, Leonardo DiCaprio, and Angelina Jolie.
And I'm assuming a shit ton more.
Probably, yeah.
That just like, these are just the biggest.
The highlights, the ones you gotta brag about.
Yeah.
So the hotel has three different restaurants on site, which just goes to show you like
(16:22):
how massive this place is that they need three restaurants.
But they have a bee sustainable program.
So they host four queen honey bees and hives on the hotel's rooftop garden.
The honey is harvested three times a year and is used by the hotel's restaurants.
The hotel has nearly 70,000 honey bees producing 650 pounds of honey a year.
(16:49):
Oh my God.
And then the apiary also has a pollinator hotel.
Wow.
Yeah.
So hotel within a hotel.
Yes.
Hotel for the bees.
I wonder if they sell the honey.
They probably do sell the honey.
Oh, I'm sure they do.
I'm sure the gift shop has a nice big honey display.
That's really sweet.
I love hearing that, like when people use their resources they have and then, you know,
(17:12):
kind of renew what it was.
It's not recycling.
It's just like sustainable.
Yeah.
Like I'm sure the vegetables in their rooftop garden end up in their restaurants.
I love that.
There's a few restaurants like that.
And even there is when I worked at a brewery, they had on their roof, they had a little
(17:35):
farm and the farmer who came to, he like collected the malt that they use for the beer and in
exchange he would help them with their farm on their roof.
It was really nice.
It was like so old school and kind of like a trade off where, or I just feel like that's
lost.
We need to bring that back.
(17:56):
I don't know if they're trading their bees for or their honey for anything, but that's
so cute.
We like this place.
Hopefully one day we'll get to stay there.
So the next hotel on our list is the Omni Homestead Resort in Hot Springs, Virginia,
(18:18):
which we just became familiar with this one recently.
Yes, it is gorgeous.
It's in the Appalachian Mountains, right?
That's like, whenever someone asks me what I'm talking about, I'm like, it needs to be
a distinct location.
(18:39):
Otherwise people are like, I don't know why you're talking to me about this.
You should check out the website because it's beautiful.
Like this, you are surrounded by nature.
You're in it.
This is the place you want to be for fall foliage.
It's gorgeous.
Yeah, it spans 2,300 acres in the heart of the Shenandoah Valley in Virginia.
(19:01):
So you can just imagine just meandering through all of this space covered in gorgeous trees
changing.
And it's huge.
Like the hotel, I mean, it has obviously 2,300 acres, but the property, not the property,
but the hotel itself on the property is so big.
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And it's also located near Mineral Hot Springs.
And everyone knows like you go to that area to go to the Hot Springs.
And of course, it's originally Native American and people go there for rejuvenating properties.
Like apparently Hot Springs are supposed to solve all your problems.
(19:46):
Have you ever been to a Hot Springs?
I haven't.
There are some like not super far from LA that I want to go to, but I don't know if I've been.
I've been in a mineral pool.
I've been to the Dead Sea.
I've been to the Dead Sea.
I haven't done a Hot Spring.
I guess we got to go.
Guess we got to go.
Omni Homestead Resort.
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Yeah, we really need to go.
I think what it's beautiful in general and then the Hot Springs really add to it.
And I think on their website, they have a mineral pool or something.
They have like a spa in their hotel.
Yes.
Yeah.
The whole one of the major draws for them is the spa offerings that they have.
So a little bit on their history is that Captain Thomas, I'm going to say bullet,
(20:33):
and Charles and Andrew Lewis, who were part of the militia and surveyors during the French
and Indian War, were told about the healing qualities in these Hot Springs.
So in 1764, at the end of the war, Bullet and the Lewis brothers bought 300 acres,
(20:53):
which contained seven natural mineral springs for the bargain price of 30 shillings.
How much is a shilling?
Two bits.
Four bits.
I don't know.
Two shakes of lamb's tail.
Like, what is that?
This reminds me of, but this is way before they built the hotel.
(21:14):
No, this is the hotel. They built a hotel here.
These guys.
So this is really old.
This is very old.
American history level.
Yeah. They knew what they had and they immediately built
a small hotel for people to come visit the mineral springs.
This, I can't help it, but it reminds me of the episodes of Outlander when she goes
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to the American, well, she goes to the States before they were States, I guess.
And they bought all this land and it was like the whole thing.
If you haven't watched the show, I'm sorry to spoil it, but it's really good.
But I'm learning all my history through TV shows.
I feel like they weren't there.
I feel like James Frazier was there.
(21:58):
I mentioned him in more than one episode.
I mean, if there are some scenes of him in the Hot Springs, I'm willing to take 30 minutes
out of my schedule.
How much would that cost 30 shilling?
30 shilling. Oh my God.
So one of the most significant guests at this small hotel was Thomas Jefferson,
who stayed there in 1818.
(22:20):
He had bad rheumatoid arthritis and was looking for some solutions.
And he declared this location as being one of the best places to vacation in the whole country,
which I mean, in the whole country in 1818.
Yeah.
Don't think coast to coast.
Think 1818 borders.
How many states were there at the time?
(22:42):
12? 13?
At least 13.
I think a few more had joined by 1818.
But that's high praise.
Yes.
And then some other presidents visited later on, including Franklin Roosevelt, Eisenhower,
JFK, and Ronald Reagan.
Those presidents really got around to a lot of different hotels.
They were travelers.
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Roosevelt and Eisenhower, like specifically, I feel like.
Yeah, they had a lot of.
But they were president during hard times.
Yeah.
Not that the other ones weren't, but it wasn't quite.
Yeah, these presidents are famous for reasons.
And it's usually because they had to lead the country through some bullshit.
In 1832, Dr. Thomas Goode and his family purchased the resort from the Bullitt family,
(23:28):
along with the resort in Warm Springs and Healing Springs.
He was a prominent physician and is responsible for the European style of many different spa therapies.
Ooh, thank you, Dr. Goode.
One of the most famous treatments known as The Cure involved a salt scrub that was immediately
followed by a relaxing Swiss shower.
(23:50):
The service is still offered today.
Wow.
Wait, what the hell is a Swiss shower?
Oh, good question.
I don't know.
Is it like showering with Swiss cheese?
Like what?
Like a snack?
Like, I don't know.
Oh, is it like a cold shower?
I feel like that would be a cold shower.
(24:10):
Let's Google.
Yeah, let's Google that.
A Swiss shower is a shower in which jets of water are sprayed onto the body from above
and also from numerous nozzles on the side.
Sounds nice.
Okay, so just like, oh, like a power.
Yeah, power shower.
Power shower.
Power shower.
(24:31):
And it's offered to the state.
Well, I wonder what it cures.
Probably just some stress.
Also a significant part of the Omni's history is that in July of 1901, a fire broke out,
which started in the pastry shop.
That's so sad.
All those.
It burned the entire resort down.
(24:52):
Holy crap.
This is a huge resort.
Yeah, I'm not sure how big it had gotten by 1901.
It's definitely not as big as it is now, but they, you know, they were adding buildings
pretty regularly.
With the resort not being at full capacity, everyone was able to escape without any serious
injury or loss of life.
That's really good to hear.
(25:13):
The staff was able to save the spa, casino, the cottages in Cottage Row and the Virginia
Hotel.
So they were okay.
Well, the spa, I guess that was really, that one would be hard to burn in a fire, right?
Cause it's all wet.
It's pretty moist, pretty humid.
I feel like a lot of hotels have these histories of damage, you know?
(25:38):
And fires are like a really big deal with hotels.
Yeah, especially before fire brigades really became a thing.
Yeah, this was at a time there was like no fire safety.
And this is out in the middle of the valley.
There's not a lot in this area anyway.
So even trying to get enough water to put a fire like that out, that's not going to happen.
(26:02):
But it rains there, no?
Oh yeah, it does.
It's very green.
At least it didn't cause a wildfire.
Yeah, so it's not like a wildfire problem like here.
But still, like all wooden buildings back then, I mean, probably don't have a lot of
codes like they have now.
That's true.
I mean, it was just so different.
And these fires are what change a lot of these fires that happen change the way that
(26:28):
hotels and buildings are built, the way that procedures are done.
So it's like a blessing in disguise, I guess.
How are they supposed to know if...
Yeah, the whole industry benefits indirectly from disasters, unfortunately,
that are going to make regulations more strict for everybody.
(26:50):
But they were able to rebuild the resort.
So within a year, actually, the Great Hall was completed and the homestead was back.
So it didn't have a devastating effect on it.
It's just a minor setback.
And actually in 2016, they celebrated their 250th anniversary.
So they're coming up on 260 years.
(27:11):
Wow.
I think this makes them the oldest running resort in the country, for sure.
You think so?
I think so.
I feel like to be looked at, it must be.
It must have 250.
It's older than America itself.
Yes.
Because it was bought in 1764.
(27:32):
64, did we say?
Yeah.
So this is older than the country.
Wow.
And it's been continuously operated as a hotel, too, which a lot of places that claim to be
that old, the building is that old, but it was not operated the whole time as a hotel.
Right.
We should mention that the Omni Homestead is a part of the Historic Hotels of America,
(27:57):
and they are hosting their annual conference and award ceremony there this year in November.
So it's probably a beautiful time to go and check it out.
Not to go check out the hotel if you're not invited to the ceremony, but I could imagine
whoever is going.
And if you paid to go, it's beautiful because it's peak foliage in that area.
(28:19):
Yeah, that probably really will be sweater weather by November.
Yeah.
And a shout out to the Historic Hotels of America.
We were big fans, and we got to talk with some of the people there, and they were really
kind and nice.
And yeah, it's very interesting that they even have that, that America has this thing
that like focuses on old hotels and just appreciates them.
(28:44):
Next up is the Mohunk Mountain House in Hudson Valley, New York.
And what did you say?
I like to say Mohunk Mo Problems.
This was the recommendation from my cousin.
So because she's in New York and she would, she would be like,
(29:07):
and she was perfect person to ask what's in that area.
But if anyone hasn't been to the Hudson Valley, highly recommend to go.
It's gorgeous there.
There's so many fun places to go.
Yeah, we talked a little bit about the Hudson Valley last year when we featured Sleepy Hollow
hotels, right?
Yeah.
That whole area is just, it's stunning.
(29:29):
It's really, really nice.
And it's not far from New York, like New York City.
It's in New York, but like when I say New York, I mean New York City.
So it's like you can get two for one.
If you have the time, you can go to the city and you can go up in the country and enjoy,
you know, the beautiful fall foliage.
You can go apple picking and pumpkin picking.
(29:49):
And it's so nice there.
Bike riding through that area is a really big thing, right?
Um, I think so.
I think there are people that do it.
I've never done it, but it is nice.
It's probably really nice.
Like it's pretty safe too, because it's not as, it's not congested.
(30:10):
You can just like bike along the roads.
Yeah.
And, um, I'm sure people do it.
This hotel is not quite as old as the Omni Homestead, but it's still got quite a bit of
history.
It was founded by the Smiley family in 1869.
It's another castle.
This one's a Victorian castle nestled in 40,000 acres of protected forest overlooking a glacial
(30:37):
lake.
Oh my God.
So if you're looking for a little fall foliage, I think you might find it here.
Yeah.
I have to say, if you go to their website right away, you see this, like the hotel and
then the lake.
It's they're not joking.
It's a part of the hotel, but, um, one, I love the fact that the Smiley family.
(30:58):
Yes.
That's who gave them that name.
Was that their real last name?
I got to know, but these rooms in this hotel is so cute.
They're so homie.
They feel like a Victorian house inside.
There's like rooms with little fireplaces and wood framing of the windows and a little
like wood credenza and wood.
Like you got to look at the website.
(31:20):
It's so cute.
I really want to stay here.
Yes.
They're also a national historic landmark and they're very committed to environmental
stewardship and sustainability.
I love that they have so many trails.
They have 85 miles of hiking paths and trails for you to just hopefully not get lost in,
(31:42):
but, you know, take your time through.
And they have a lot of carriage roads that were first built in 1871 using, you know,
that good old fashioned American tools of horsepower and dynamite.
Oh God, that's so cute.
That's so cute.
That's very Demure.
(32:02):
That's very Demure.
So the hotel also has a Victorian show garden that was developed in the late 1880s by the
founder Albert Smiley.
And I believe some of the members of the Smiley family, I think they still own it or they
must be still involved because I just saw on their website, they have a retreat and
it's led by Nina Smiley.
(32:24):
Oh, okay.
So that's cool that it's still in the family somehow, but they have a lot of things going
on in this hotel.
Their spa, whoa, they have like every treatment possible.
It's crazy.
And you can go into like the natural springs and lake and get the cure there.
Yeah, I really love that they have like museum showcases as well with items dating back to
(32:49):
the 1800s, including like Victorian era carriages, antique farm and kitchen equipment, a 1929
model day Ford station wagon.
Oh my God.
It's like a history lesson along with your massage.
And they have this really cool augmented reality experience called Hidden Histories.
(33:10):
So it's an app that was developed for Mohonk where you're going to be sent on kind of like
a scavenger hunt to locate 12 different pieces of artwork.
That's so fun.
It's a game for you and the kids.
Yeah, I love that.
Okay.
How are we going there?
We need to go here.
(33:30):
We need to get a spa treatment in the Mohonk.
Mohonk.
The Mohonk.
I keep on saying Mohonk because it's so easy.
This place looks so beautiful.
I'm really happy about the suggestion because like, wow, it has everything.
I like that they really lean into their 1800s history and they're just like,
oh, you're here.
(33:50):
Let me teach you something.
And then go relax.
Yeah, more hotels need to do that.
Next is Copper Beach Inn in Essex, Connecticut.
This is an intimate country hotel that is actually in the hamlet of Ivoryton,
(34:14):
which is one of three small villages within the historic town of Essex on the Connecticut River.
That's so New England.
It's so new.
If you, okay, this looks like a house.
I mean, because it's an inn, so it has that house vibe, but it does.
This will make you feel Stars Hollow.
Yes, that's why I like this one so much.
(34:36):
Yeah.
It's very dragonfly inn.
There's a picture.
You got to go to this website.
It's so dragonfly inn.
And it's also very independence and mixed in, but mixed with dragonfly.
It's like a good perfect combo.
Yeah, perfect combo.
There is a picture on their website, the bottom of their page, and it says private dinners,
and it looks up, looks exactly like the Bracebridge dinner,
(34:58):
like the setup and everything you can just imagine.
Oh my gosh.
And there's also all these cool little areas that you can go check out along the way.
When you're in Essex, they say you can go look at downtown Chester,
which gives you the small town Stars Hollow vibe.
I've been to some of these places because I wanted to go see
(35:21):
what it was based off, like Gilmore Girls, and it really feels that way.
Obviously, it's a little bit different than the show,
but these places are so beautiful because the local grocery store looks like an old house.
And everyone, like the lawyers office is old house.
Yes.
Yeah, like the playhouse in Ivoryton looks like that was someone's mansion.
(35:43):
Oh, if you needed a castle, there's one nearby, Gillette Castle.
And they also have a spa, and you can have a wedding here too.
You just got everything.
They have in-room massage therapy services.
You know, you go and they'll give you crackers and cheese and champagne.
And it's just breakfast is included, so that already I'm sold.
(36:08):
Yes.
You got comfy bathrobes.
What else do you need?
Stationary?
I'm in.
I'm not even that interested in the internet that they provide.
I want the stationary.
So this end dates back to 1889 when Archibald Welsh corn stock.
(36:29):
That is a name.
Or is that Comstock?
That's Comstock.
I think I like corn stock better, but yeah, it's Comstock.
The history of this end dates back to 1889 when Archibald Welsh Comstock,
he gets the award for the best founder's name today,
built his grand house and outbuildings on 53 acres.
(36:51):
So he was the son of Samuel Comstock, who had founded the SM Comstock Company.
They imported Ivory.
Ah, bad.
Bad.
Bad.
We already know what that means.
And manufactured piano keys.
And then they also later built, did billiard balls, dominoes and combs.
(37:16):
So back when Ivory was just thriving.
Yeah, it was a different time.
In 1940, he died and left the estate to his wife, Harriet.
And then in 1954, the property was sold and soon thereafter became
a restaurant known as the Johnny Cake Inn.
Oh, God, that's cute.
Yeah.
(37:37):
Unfortunately, that closed in 1966.
And I guess the property just kind of languished until the early 70s
when Robert and Joe McKenzie bought it and created the Copper Beach Inn.
Oh, wow.
I like that they went back to its roots.
Yeah.
You know, but yeah, they saw the potential.
(37:57):
They were like, I mean, it probably is just screaming to be an inn.
If you look at the house, it's so cute and has that like wrap around porch and everything.
I want to stay there.
But what I like is that this is another historic property that started in the 1800s.
We got a thing going on, apparently.
It's really cute.
(38:17):
But yeah, that's another one on my bucket list.
I got it. We have to make it our business to visit every single hotel that we've launched.
We won't have enough time in our lives to do anything else,
but I feel like it's worth dedicating our whole entire existence.
I'm available.
(38:41):
OK, so our fifth and final hotel is the Hotel Portsmouth.
So here's the controversy.
Is it Portsmouth or Portsmouth?
I would pronounce it Portsmouth.
But it's probably Portsmouth.
If you're British?
Portsmouth.
If you're American, Portsmouth.
(39:06):
So I'm going to say Portsmouth because it sounds fancier.
It's in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, which is also New England.
We're really keeping a theme here,
but it's also just one of those really beautiful family owned places.
And the location of the original house in Portsmouth is 40 Court Street
(39:30):
and was owned by the family of Lucy Marsh.
I like that name.
Yeah, me too.
I don't know why.
She and her husband, Johnny Sice.
Sice?
Let's say Sice.
The names here, really, we just get confused.
And they're not common enough to be able to Google
(39:50):
and know for sure you've got the pronunciation.
Yeah, Sice.
We're doing the best we can.
I feel like it would be Sice.
It probably originally was.
They purchased the property and demolished it to build their own dream house.
A stick style mansion in 1881.
Again, 1800s.
It's where it's at.
It was passed down to Lucy and John's daughter and her husband, Alfred Gooding.
(40:14):
The...
Oh, God, this word is going to kill me.
Antiquarian?
Am I saying that right?
The antiquarian minister of the South Church.
Is that what he did?
Yeah, I guess so.
So who doubled the size of the original house.
So they expanded the house once they inherited it.
It was expanded again in 1985 and opened as the Sisy-In.
(40:39):
But that's not the name.
Sice-In?
The Sice-In.
Sice.
S-A.
Today, the mansion has been preserved as a classic example of Queen Anne Victorian architecture
and one of Portsmouth's grand old homes.
So although in 1985, it was opened as the...
Size.
Size.
Size.
Size-In.
(41:00):
I can't.
I don't know why my brain won't let me.
It is now Hotel Portsmouth.
It reopened as the Hotel Portsmouth in 2014 after a renovation of the property.
Earlier this year in 2024, they again refreshed the design with eco-conscious materials,
(41:21):
some art and repurposed antiques to serve as a testament to Portsmouth's history,
but also trying to keep the character a little bit more modern.
So it's a really nice blend.
Yeah, old and new.
Kind of like, you know, everyone's trying to be green, I guess.
And it's easier to do because they've been around so long that they can just find something
(41:48):
in the basement, reuse it and say, oh my God, we're eco-friendly.
This one's rooms are very Americana.
This, okay.
So I'm on their Instagram.
The house itself is so freaking cute.
So cute.
It's right next to the water.
You see like they got boats.
(42:08):
You probably could rent a boat or.
You know, I'm not surprised that it was owned by a minister.
It has just a little bit of a church like look to it.
It does have a churchy look.
Yeah.
Each room is so unique, by the way.
They're like very unique rooms.
Yes.
Different wallpaper, different
They really did a good job of mixing patterns without it being like clasher or overwhelming.
(42:35):
They did a really, really good job.
Whoever designed it did a phenomenal job because it gives it a warmth, a coziness, but it's
not cheesy.
It's not old lady.
Yeah.
They, they steered clear of the old lady roses vibe, you know, but it's modern, it's modern.
(42:55):
But it's kind of old and it's, it's a classic.
They really towed the line perfectly.
Yeah.
It's a beautiful, beautiful inn and I really want to go.
I've never been to New Hampshire, but I hear it during the summer.
The like the New Hampshire coast is supposed to be just perfect.
(43:17):
You know, what's really sad growing up in New York, it's like, you think I'd be everywhere
in New England.
I've been to like three States there.
I've been to like Massachusetts, well, Rhode Island, Connecticut, maybe not three States,
but like really I avoided a lot of them, not on purpose, but like I have not seen enough
of New England.
(43:37):
I just kind of stayed in my little bubble.
Yeah.
You know, it's like Jersey was the farthest.
Now it wasn't the farthest, but it's just, I think, yeah, if you live there, do yourself
a favor before you go traveling, like all across the world or the country travel in
the area.
(43:57):
It's really stunning.
Whenever I did get to go a little farther out, like in the Hudson Valley or upstate,
it was a whole different world.
It's like, wait, why are we not vacationing or driving up to these places?
Not that far.
And they, they do have trains and stuff like that.
It's, it's a really nice little place to go and I regret not going more.
(44:19):
I have to go back.
And we're going to have to fix that.
Do a little tour.
Thanks for listening to Hotel History.
You can follow us on most social media platforms, Patreon and Substack by searching for Hotel
History or Hotel History Podcast.
If you like what you hear, please leave us a five-star review on Apple podcasts and Spotify
(44:44):
so we can reach more listeners.
Hotel History is created for adult audiences.
(00:03):
Content may not be suitable for all listeners.
Discretion is advised.
You're listening to Hotel History.
We take you with us through the sordid history and scandals
of some of the world's most famous and infamous hotels.
I'm D'Etta.
And I'm Yael.
(00:24):
Let's get started.
It's the most special time of year, right?
Yes.
Is I believe sweater weather.
Sweatah weathah.
It's not really sweater weather.
I can't freaking say it without the accent.
It's sweatah weathah.
You can't even say it without.
(00:44):
It's impossible.
It's impossible.
But the seasons are changing.
The new TV shows are coming out.
Yes, so we know the weather is changing in LA.
That's how we know.
Even though we just had a heat wave.
But yeah, it's the fall.
Also, Gilmore Girl season.
(01:04):
That's what everyone's been calling it on TikTok.
They're like, oh, what's that?
It's September.
You know what we gotta do.
One of my favorite sounds that I keep hearing is Richard Gilmore
being like, "I am an autumn."
Yeah.
Yeah, that is like.
But they knew what they were doing because the whole entire beginning is in sepia tone.
(01:25):
Yes.
And it was like fall leaves and everything.
But yeah, you know, other than that, we also we start to drink apple cider,
everything and pumpkin.
Everything.
Just bought my first jug of apple cider last.
Is it the season?
I'm so excited.
Yes, this is this is an apple orchard.
I remember last year we went to do something and it rained.
(01:48):
Yes, we went to pick apples a couple hours away from L.A.
Oh, and we and we went to we went to the creepiest, the creepiest,
weirdest apple orchard place where I I was freaking out and you're like, it's fine.
And I looked at her like we're in the forest with a woman who's breastfeeding her child
(02:08):
on the floor.
And it's just like, yeah, you can pick some apples if you want.
And I'm like, do you know what kind of apple she's like?
I don't know.
I'm like, they only had one apple tree and all the other trees were other kinds of fruit
that were not ready yet.
It was not maintained.
This was just someone's backyard.
It was a couple of hippies that were like living off the land and trying to grow these
(02:31):
fruit trees that they had bought.
And I don't even know how I found it.
It's because I think we both found it when you Google it, it pops.
Yeah.
And they're like, yeah, we don't know why people are coming here.
And I'm like, they were nice hippies.
Very nice.
As many of them, not the brightest.
I don't feel like they bathe.
(02:53):
Well, typically.
No.
And it was just like kind of shacky.
They're like, it was weird.
I felt like this could go really bad.
Yeah.
Yael had very "Hills Have Eyes" vibes from it where I was like, no, it's great.
Because you're from Texas.
Yeah.
You're like, these are my people.
These are my people like, oh, this is just Bob, my neighbor who sells the local crack
(03:17):
and the firewood.
So and the firewood.
A two for one deal.
Excuse me.
I'm from a meth town.
So I'm sorry, meth.
You see, I don't know.
I'm from Brooklyn where it's we don't I mean, there is meth, but it's more crack.
But well, it's funny because I feel like if we were in Brooklyn or like we go
somewhere and someone is being really suspicious or like just like very moody,
(03:41):
I'd be like, what's up?
And you'd be like, ah, I'm like, no, it's just a Tuesday in Brooklyn.
You know, different triggers.
We should be triggered by all of it.
The regional triggers are so interesting.
Should we do apple picking again?
This time, not at that place.
(04:02):
Yeah, we should go to the second place we went to.
I wish I could remember its name.
I'd give them a shout out, but I don't remember.
Yeah, the second we went to two.
Yeah, the second place was great.
They had live music and super good baked like apple goods that from the store.
I still have some apple brandy that I bought from there.
Oh, yeah.
(04:22):
Yeah.
OK, I remember that.
Yeah, let's let's do that one.
And hopefully it won't rain.
I don't think it will.
It was really rainy last year.
It was pouring.
We had to stay in the store till it stopped raining, but that was fun.
But because we're in the spirit of that season and it's bringing back such fun memories,
we decided we're going to list out some of the most beautiful hotels in the country that
(04:48):
you can experience the fall foliage and really get the nice vibe of.
Yeah, the leaves changing colors, the trees.
And it's not going to be in Southern California.
No, it's not.
It's definitely not.
Or like the South.
I mean, I know that fall foliage like happens.
They show the map of like how it happens throughout the country and the different phases.
(05:12):
But like when you think of it, it's Northeast.
Yeah, that's what you definitely think of.
There are some some nice places in the Pacific Northwest in like the South and Mississippi
and Arkansas.
But we stayed pretty far north here.
I think Virginia is as south as we go today.
I think it's a part of it is the cool weather.
(05:33):
Yeah.
So in the South, it doesn't get as cold as it quickly as it does in the North.
So it's like you think of like cozy and warm Vermont.
It just they own it.
Yeah, you want to wear a sweater when you're going to see the fall.
You want to wear a sweater when it's sweat.
Sweat.
You don't want to be like sweating.
(05:55):
Which is what we'd be here.
Although one year, this was like five years ago, I went with my ex to a cabin in the woods
around here.
I think it was the San Bernardino Mountain area.
Has a weird name.
I don't remember the name, but it was like in the mountains.
(06:15):
It was a cabin which was like exactly what you think it would be.
There was an open fireplace, rugs, everything everywhere.
All the wood was it just looked so cabin and
you see the hole and trees were all around.
And we took like a hike and it was the most fall thing and it was chilly.
Well, here's the funniest thing in the woods went to like 60 degrees and below.
(06:40):
We drove back to LA, 90 degrees to 100 degrees.
He had no AC in his car at the time.
Yeah.
So I had to switch from like sweat, sweat up to sweating.
Yeah.
Real bad, but it was fun.
That was like the most fall, I think.
And I think it was next to Arrowhead Lake.
(07:02):
Oh yeah.
That area.
It does get cool and crisp there.
It gets really nice.
Yeah.
I mean, it's LA so you could at least go somewhere to experience that.
But you want to be able to walk around and see the leaves.
And I miss that about Brooklyn.
We have five hotels we put on the list.
(07:23):
There's about a bajillion that deserve to be on the list.
We just randomly went through.
We asked some people, I asked my cousin, Debbie, shout out to her.
She likes to go and travel like the Northeast a lot.
She lives in Brooklyn.
And so right away I was like, you would know.
And she gave us a good recommendation.
(07:48):
We're starting off with the Fairmont Le Chateau Frontenac.
In Quebec City, Canada.
I think that is the most proper pronunciation that I could possibly give
with my terrible French accent.
From now on, it will be Frontenac.
Frontenac?
Frontenac.
Frontenac.
Yeah.
(08:09):
Okay.
So the Fairmont Le Chateau Frontenac, I would say worse, in Quebec City.
And you've never been to Quebec City.
I've never been to Canada.
You've never been to Canada?
No, I want to so badly.
Oh my God.
It's not that exciting.
No, Canada's beautiful.
I definitely want to go to this particular part of Canada.
(08:30):
It looks gorgeous.
That was a joke.
I've been to Canada.
I've been to only the East side of Canada and it's gorgeous.
Canada's great.
It's beautiful.
The people are so friendly and it has a lot of nature.
And I'm not trying to hate on Canada at all.
But that was a joke.
But it's not like, I mean, it depends on what you like to do.
(08:51):
Because if you like tropical adventures, Canada is not for you.
But I've been to Quebec City.
It's stunning.
It's very clean, very French.
Some people don't even speak English.
Yeah.
I believe or I remember.
But the thing is it's French.
There is no other culture except the French culture.
(09:12):
So just be aware if you're looking for multi-cultures, it's not there.
But it's really pretty.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Well, the Frontenac is a five-star luxury hotel.
And this chateau has a lot of Gothic elements in its architecture too.
So it's this very stately but also palatial looking building.
(09:38):
It looks and feels like a five-star hotel.
Like you see it, you're like, that's five-star.
It's clean.
It's beautiful.
Detailed.
It gives the chateau vibe.
But it's not tiny.
It's not like cozy.
No.
I feel like it's a little bit like grand.
Yes.
You know, it has a gorgeous ballroom.
People should check out the website.
(09:59):
They do a great job of giving you a full tour of the place.
You could do 3D tours, which is really nice.
And the rooms do feel cozy though.
They have some personality.
They're not like just only standard rooms.
There's a little.
Oh, that's nice.
Yeah.
They received the 2022 Global Hotel of the Year Award from the World Luxury Awards.
(10:21):
And they also were the global winner in the luxury castle hotel category.
I love that there's a luxury castle hotel category.
Should we?
I feel like we need to go on this website and look at all the castle hotels because that sounds really nice.
Yeah.
Yes, we will be pulling some ideas.
I guess there are so many castle hotels or castles that turned into hotels.
(10:44):
They had to make the category for it.
Yeah.
Probably most of them are in Europe.
Yeah, I was going to say.
But Quebec City feels like Europe, so it makes perfect sense.
This hotel opened in 1893 and was designed by Bruce Price and was built by the Canadian Pacific
Railway Company, which is not what you think of when you think this, you know, big chateau castle
(11:07):
to be built by a railway.
But it's one of the first completed grand railway hotels, which I didn't even know was a category
that existed.
But Canada's grand railway hotels are a series of hotels across the country, each a national landmark.
And they all have these gorgeous architectures and histories.
(11:31):
And some are considered to be grand hotels of the British Empire.
This OK, but this makes so much sense because if it opened in 1893, that's when the railroads
were like really at their peak.
Yes.
And so I guess I what does it say?
They don't what came first, the hotels or the railroads or it was like we both basically
(11:53):
facilitated their own growth.
They were like, well, it was like a business trade off.
That's why it sounds like the railroad company was.
Yeah, vertical integration.
Yeah.
But there must be so many that means.
Yes, I think there are.
So look for that in an upcoming episode.
Yeah, they have special themed suites in the hotel to pay homage to iconic guests like
(12:17):
Queen Elizabeth II, Celine Dion, of course, of course, Alfred Hitchock and the Trudeaus.
Now, so Justin Trudeau, the prime minister, he his whole family is like super well known.
And his father was also a prime minister.
Oh, OK.
Yeah. So it's called the Trudeau and Trudeau Suite.
(12:38):
And they all have their own very specific themes to them to and there were even more
besides just these and they all looked really, really nice.
They probably had to.
I mean, if you're if a suite is being named after you, you got.
Yeah.
Imagine like the Shaq Trudeau.
(12:58):
Like no one wants that.
But first of all, I love out of everyone, I just love that Celine Dion.
Canada, I think Canada's gem is so good.
Yes.
Well, and apparently it's decorated with photos done by her family photographer.
So it's like very.
It's so sweet.
She's really nice.
Yeah.
Yeah.
(13:19):
I didn't know Alfred Hitchock was Canadian.
He filmed a movie at this hotel.
Wait, which movie?
Yeah, he was at Northwest.
Let me scroll.
Ah, in 1952, the Chateau was transformed into a movie set for I Confess.
I don't know that.
Yeah, that's not a better known Hitchcock movie, I guess.
(13:43):
I got to watch it.
He made really good movies.
But yeah, that's so sweet that they dedicated that.
I guess they brought in a lot of business from that.
Probably so.
Yeah.
And then a lot of, you know, celebrities are going to stay there.
Yeah.
Because of that as well.
Well, it seems like one of the main luxury hotels in Quebec City.
I'm sure there's a lot, but it seemed, you know, the big one.
(14:06):
So a lot of famous people have stayed there.
A lot of British royalty.
Let's see, who?
King George VI, Queen Elizabeth in 1939.
Is that the only time?
Oh, I'm sure they probably stayed more, but I think that was their official visit.
Yeah.
Prince Grace of Monaco.
(14:28):
So Grace Kelly in 1969.
Prince Andrew and Lady Sarah Ferguson of England.
A lot of politicians and world leaders.
This was interesting.
So during World War II in 1943 and 1944, the Chateau actually became the center
of the Quebec Conference of World War II.
(14:50):
So, yeah, so U.S. President Franklin Roosevelt, the British Prime Minister Winston Churchill,
and the Canadian Prime Minister William Leone Mackenzie King all met there to figure out war stuff.
Like always, hotels are the center of World War II.
This is like a common theme we see everywhere.
(15:12):
Yeah, every hotel that existed at World War II has a story, had a part to play.
Yeah.
A pretty important part.
It sounds like, yeah, and just like so many world leaders have stayed at this place.
Let's see.
Theodore Roosevelt, Dwight Eisenhower, Richard Nixon, Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan,
(15:35):
Pierre Elliott Trudeau, Justin Trudeau.
Okay, so they're, yeah, they're just going over all the leaders ever.
Who is Brian Mulroney?
Is that also a former Prime Minister?
Oh, he was a Canadian lawyer, businessman, and politician who served as the 18th Prime Minister
of Canada.
Basically, every single celebrity and politician have stayed here.
(15:57):
It sounds like Charlie Chaplin, Jane Seymour, Anthony Quinn, James Cagney, Barbara Steinwick,
Celine Dion, Paul McCartney, Sting, Steven Spielberg, Leonardo DiCaprio, and Angelina Jolie.
And I'm assuming a shit ton more.
Probably, yeah.
That just like, these are just the biggest.
The highlights, the ones you gotta brag about.
Yeah.
So the hotel has three different restaurants on site, which just goes to show you like
(16:22):
how massive this place is that they need three restaurants.
But they have a bee sustainable program.
So they host four queen honey bees and hives on the hotel's rooftop garden.
The honey is harvested three times a year and is used by the hotel's restaurants.
The hotel has nearly 70,000 honey bees producing 650 pounds of honey a year.
(16:49):
Oh my God.
And then the apiary also has a pollinator hotel.
Wow.
Yeah.
So hotel within a hotel.
Yes.
Hotel for the bees.
I wonder if they sell the honey.
They probably do sell the honey.
Oh, I'm sure they do.
I'm sure the gift shop has a nice big honey display.
That's really sweet.
I love hearing that, like when people use their resources they have and then, you know,
(17:12):
kind of renew what it was.
It's not recycling.
It's just like sustainable.
Yeah.
Like I'm sure the vegetables in their rooftop garden end up in their restaurants.
I love that.
There's a few restaurants like that.
And even there is when I worked at a brewery, they had on their roof, they had a little
(17:35):
farm and the farmer who came to, he like collected the malt that they use for the beer and in
exchange he would help them with their farm on their roof.
It was really nice.
It was like so old school and kind of like a trade off where, or I just feel like that's
lost.
We need to bring that back.
(17:56):
I don't know if they're trading their bees for or their honey for anything, but that's
so cute.
We like this place.
Hopefully one day we'll get to stay there.
So the next hotel on our list is the Omni Homestead Resort in Hot Springs, Virginia,
(18:18):
which we just became familiar with this one recently.
Yes, it is gorgeous.
It's in the Appalachian Mountains, right?
That's like, whenever someone asks me what I'm talking about, I'm like, it needs to be
a distinct location.
(18:39):
Otherwise people are like, I don't know why you're talking to me about this.
You should check out the website because it's beautiful.
Like this, you are surrounded by nature.
You're in it.
This is the place you want to be for fall foliage.
It's gorgeous.
Yeah, it spans 2,300 acres in the heart of the Shenandoah Valley in Virginia.
(19:01):
So you can just imagine just meandering through all of this space covered in gorgeous trees
changing.
And it's huge.
Like the hotel, I mean, it has obviously 2,300 acres, but the property, not the property,
but the hotel itself on the property is so big.
(19:24):
And it's also located near Mineral Hot Springs.
And everyone knows like you go to that area to go to the Hot Springs.
And of course, it's originally Native American and people go there for rejuvenating properties.
Like apparently Hot Springs are supposed to solve all your problems.
(19:46):
Have you ever been to a Hot Springs?
I haven't.
There are some like not super far from LA that I want to go to, but I don't know if I've been.
I've been in a mineral pool.
I've been to the Dead Sea.
I've been to the Dead Sea.
I haven't done a Hot Spring.
I guess we got to go.
Guess we got to go.
Omni Homestead Resort.
(20:07):
Yeah, we really need to go.
I think what it's beautiful in general and then the Hot Springs really add to it.
And I think on their website, they have a mineral pool or something.
They have like a spa in their hotel.
Yes.
Yeah.
The whole one of the major draws for them is the spa offerings that they have.
So a little bit on their history is that Captain Thomas, I'm going to say bullet,
(20:33):
and Charles and Andrew Lewis, who were part of the militia and surveyors during the French
and Indian War, were told about the healing qualities in these Hot Springs.
So in 1764, at the end of the war, Bullet and the Lewis brothers bought 300 acres,
(20:53):
which contained seven natural mineral springs for the bargain price of 30 shillings.
How much is a shilling?
Two bits.
Four bits.
I don't know.
Two shakes of lamb's tail.
Like, what is that?
This reminds me of, but this is way before they built the hotel.
(21:14):
No, this is the hotel. They built a hotel here.
These guys.
So this is really old.
This is very old.
American history level.
Yeah. They knew what they had and they immediately built
a small hotel for people to come visit the mineral springs.
This, I can't help it, but it reminds me of the episodes of Outlander when she goes
(21:36):
to the American, well, she goes to the States before they were States, I guess.
And they bought all this land and it was like the whole thing.
If you haven't watched the show, I'm sorry to spoil it, but it's really good.
But I'm learning all my history through TV shows.
I feel like they weren't there.
I feel like James Frazier was there.
(21:58):
I mentioned him in more than one episode.
I mean, if there are some scenes of him in the Hot Springs, I'm willing to take 30 minutes
out of my schedule.
How much would that cost 30 shilling?
30 shilling. Oh my God.
So one of the most significant guests at this small hotel was Thomas Jefferson,
who stayed there in 1818.
(22:20):
He had bad rheumatoid arthritis and was looking for some solutions.
And he declared this location as being one of the best places to vacation in the whole country,
which I mean, in the whole country in 1818.
Yeah.
Don't think coast to coast.
Think 1818 borders.
How many states were there at the time?
(22:42):
12? 13?
At least 13.
I think a few more had joined by 1818.
But that's high praise.
Yes.
And then some other presidents visited later on, including Franklin Roosevelt, Eisenhower,
JFK, and Ronald Reagan.
Those presidents really got around to a lot of different hotels.
They were travelers.
(23:03):
Roosevelt and Eisenhower, like specifically, I feel like.
Yeah, they had a lot of.
But they were president during hard times.
Yeah.
Not that the other ones weren't, but it wasn't quite.
Yeah, these presidents are famous for reasons.
And it's usually because they had to lead the country through some bullshit.
In 1832, Dr. Thomas Goode and his family purchased the resort from the Bullitt family,
(23:28):
along with the resort in Warm Springs and Healing Springs.
He was a prominent physician and is responsible for the European style of many different spa therapies.
Ooh, thank you, Dr. Goode.
One of the most famous treatments known as The Cure involved a salt scrub that was immediately
followed by a relaxing Swiss shower.
(23:50):
The service is still offered today.
Wow.
Wait, what the hell is a Swiss shower?
Oh, good question.
I don't know.
Is it like showering with Swiss cheese?
Like what?
Like a snack?
Like, I don't know.
Oh, is it like a cold shower?
I feel like that would be a cold shower.
(24:10):
Let's Google.
Yeah, let's Google that.
A Swiss shower is a shower in which jets of water are sprayed onto the body from above
and also from numerous nozzles on the side.
Sounds nice.
Okay, so just like, oh, like a power.
Yeah, power shower.
Power shower.
Power shower.
(24:31):
And it's offered to the state.
Well, I wonder what it cures.
Probably just some stress.
Also a significant part of the Omni's history is that in July of 1901, a fire broke out,
which started in the pastry shop.
That's so sad.
All those.
It burned the entire resort down.
(24:52):
Holy crap.
This is a huge resort.
Yeah, I'm not sure how big it had gotten by 1901.
It's definitely not as big as it is now, but they, you know, they were adding buildings
pretty regularly.
With the resort not being at full capacity, everyone was able to escape without any serious
injury or loss of life.
That's really good to hear.
(25:13):
The staff was able to save the spa, casino, the cottages in Cottage Row and the Virginia
Hotel.
So they were okay.
Well, the spa, I guess that was really, that one would be hard to burn in a fire, right?
Cause it's all wet.
It's pretty moist, pretty humid.
I feel like a lot of hotels have these histories of damage, you know?
(25:38):
And fires are like a really big deal with hotels.
Yeah, especially before fire brigades really became a thing.
Yeah, this was at a time there was like no fire safety.
And this is out in the middle of the valley.
There's not a lot in this area anyway.
So even trying to get enough water to put a fire like that out, that's not going to happen.
(26:02):
But it rains there, no?
Oh yeah, it does.
It's very green.
At least it didn't cause a wildfire.
Yeah, so it's not like a wildfire problem like here.
But still, like all wooden buildings back then, I mean, probably don't have a lot of
codes like they have now.
That's true.
I mean, it was just so different.
And these fires are what change a lot of these fires that happen change the way that
(26:28):
hotels and buildings are built, the way that procedures are done.
So it's like a blessing in disguise, I guess.
How are they supposed to know if...
Yeah, the whole industry benefits indirectly from disasters, unfortunately,
that are going to make regulations more strict for everybody.
(26:50):
But they were able to rebuild the resort.
So within a year, actually, the Great Hall was completed and the homestead was back.
So it didn't have a devastating effect on it.
It's just a minor setback.
And actually in 2016, they celebrated their 250th anniversary.
So they're coming up on 260 years.
(27:11):
Wow.
I think this makes them the oldest running resort in the country, for sure.
You think so?
I think so.
I feel like to be looked at, it must be.
It must have 250.
It's older than America itself.
Yes.
Because it was bought in 1764.
(27:32):
64, did we say?
Yeah.
So this is older than the country.
Wow.
And it's been continuously operated as a hotel, too, which a lot of places that claim to be
that old, the building is that old, but it was not operated the whole time as a hotel.
Right.
We should mention that the Omni Homestead is a part of the Historic Hotels of America,
(27:57):
and they are hosting their annual conference and award ceremony there this year in November.
So it's probably a beautiful time to go and check it out.
Not to go check out the hotel if you're not invited to the ceremony, but I could imagine
whoever is going.
And if you paid to go, it's beautiful because it's peak foliage in that area.
(28:19):
Yeah, that probably really will be sweater weather by November.
Yeah.
And a shout out to the Historic Hotels of America.
We were big fans, and we got to talk with some of the people there, and they were really
kind and nice.
And yeah, it's very interesting that they even have that, that America has this thing
that like focuses on old hotels and just appreciates them.
(28:44):
Next up is the Mohunk Mountain House in Hudson Valley, New York.
And what did you say?
I like to say Mohunk Mo Problems.
This was the recommendation from my cousin.
So because she's in New York and she would, she would be like,
(29:07):
and she was perfect person to ask what's in that area.
But if anyone hasn't been to the Hudson Valley, highly recommend to go.
It's gorgeous there.
There's so many fun places to go.
Yeah, we talked a little bit about the Hudson Valley last year when we featured Sleepy Hollow
hotels, right?
Yeah.
That whole area is just, it's stunning.
(29:29):
It's really, really nice.
And it's not far from New York, like New York City.
It's in New York, but like when I say New York, I mean New York City.
So it's like you can get two for one.
If you have the time, you can go to the city and you can go up in the country and enjoy,
you know, the beautiful fall foliage.
You can go apple picking and pumpkin picking.
(29:49):
And it's so nice there.
Bike riding through that area is a really big thing, right?
Um, I think so.
I think there are people that do it.
I've never done it, but it is nice.
It's probably really nice.
Like it's pretty safe too, because it's not as, it's not congested.
(30:10):
You can just like bike along the roads.
Yeah.
And, um, I'm sure people do it.
This hotel is not quite as old as the Omni Homestead, but it's still got quite a bit of
history.
It was founded by the Smiley family in 1869.
It's another castle.
This one's a Victorian castle nestled in 40,000 acres of protected forest overlooking a glacial
(30:37):
lake.
Oh my God.
So if you're looking for a little fall foliage, I think you might find it here.
Yeah.
I have to say, if you go to their website right away, you see this, like the hotel and
then the lake.
It's they're not joking.
It's a part of the hotel, but, um, one, I love the fact that the Smiley family.
(30:58):
Yes.
That's who gave them that name.
Was that their real last name?
I got to know, but these rooms in this hotel is so cute.
They're so homie.
They feel like a Victorian house inside.
There's like rooms with little fireplaces and wood framing of the windows and a little
like wood credenza and wood.
Like you got to look at the website.
(31:20):
It's so cute.
I really want to stay here.
Yes.
They're also a national historic landmark and they're very committed to environmental
stewardship and sustainability.
I love that they have so many trails.
They have 85 miles of hiking paths and trails for you to just hopefully not get lost in,
(31:42):
but, you know, take your time through.
And they have a lot of carriage roads that were first built in 1871 using, you know,
that good old fashioned American tools of horsepower and dynamite.
Oh God, that's so cute.
That's so cute.
That's very Demure.
(32:02):
That's very Demure.
So the hotel also has a Victorian show garden that was developed in the late 1880s by the
founder Albert Smiley.
And I believe some of the members of the Smiley family, I think they still own it or they
must be still involved because I just saw on their website, they have a retreat and
it's led by Nina Smiley.
(32:24):
Oh, okay.
So that's cool that it's still in the family somehow, but they have a lot of things going
on in this hotel.
Their spa, whoa, they have like every treatment possible.
It's crazy.
And you can go into like the natural springs and lake and get the cure there.
Yeah, I really love that they have like museum showcases as well with items dating back to
(32:49):
the 1800s, including like Victorian era carriages, antique farm and kitchen equipment, a 1929
model day Ford station wagon.
Oh my God.
It's like a history lesson along with your massage.
And they have this really cool augmented reality experience called Hidden Histories.
(33:10):
So it's an app that was developed for Mohonk where you're going to be sent on kind of like
a scavenger hunt to locate 12 different pieces of artwork.
That's so fun.
It's a game for you and the kids.
Yeah, I love that.
Okay.
How are we going there?
We need to go here.
(33:30):
We need to get a spa treatment in the Mohonk.
Mohonk.
The Mohonk.
I keep on saying Mohonk because it's so easy.
This place looks so beautiful.
I'm really happy about the suggestion because like, wow, it has everything.
I like that they really lean into their 1800s history and they're just like,
oh, you're here.
(33:50):
Let me teach you something.
And then go relax.
Yeah, more hotels need to do that.
Next is Copper Beach Inn in Essex, Connecticut.
This is an intimate country hotel that is actually in the hamlet of Ivoryton,
(34:14):
which is one of three small villages within the historic town of Essex on the Connecticut River.
That's so New England.
It's so new.
If you, okay, this looks like a house.
I mean, because it's an inn, so it has that house vibe, but it does.
This will make you feel Stars Hollow.
Yes, that's why I like this one so much.
(34:36):
Yeah.
It's very dragonfly inn.
There's a picture.
You got to go to this website.
It's so dragonfly inn.
And it's also very independence and mixed in, but mixed with dragonfly.
It's like a good perfect combo.
Yeah, perfect combo.
There is a picture on their website, the bottom of their page, and it says private dinners,
and it looks up, looks exactly like the Bracebridge dinner,
(34:58):
like the setup and everything you can just imagine.
Oh my gosh.
And there's also all these cool little areas that you can go check out along the way.
When you're in Essex, they say you can go look at downtown Chester,
which gives you the small town Stars Hollow vibe.
I've been to some of these places because I wanted to go see
(35:21):
what it was based off, like Gilmore Girls, and it really feels that way.
Obviously, it's a little bit different than the show,
but these places are so beautiful because the local grocery store looks like an old house.
And everyone, like the lawyers office is old house.
Yes.
Yeah, like the playhouse in Ivoryton looks like that was someone's mansion.
(35:43):
Oh, if you needed a castle, there's one nearby, Gillette Castle.
And they also have a spa, and you can have a wedding here too.
You just got everything.
They have in-room massage therapy services.
You know, you go and they'll give you crackers and cheese and champagne.
And it's just breakfast is included, so that already I'm sold.
(36:08):
Yes.
You got comfy bathrobes.
What else do you need?
Stationary?
I'm in.
I'm not even that interested in the internet that they provide.
I want the stationary.
So this end dates back to 1889 when Archibald Welsh corn stock.
(36:29):
That is a name.
Or is that Comstock?
That's Comstock.
I think I like corn stock better, but yeah, it's Comstock.
The history of this end dates back to 1889 when Archibald Welsh Comstock,
he gets the award for the best founder's name today,
built his grand house and outbuildings on 53 acres.
(36:51):
So he was the son of Samuel Comstock, who had founded the SM Comstock Company.
They imported Ivory.
Ah, bad.
Bad.
Bad.
We already know what that means.
And manufactured piano keys.
And then they also later built, did billiard balls, dominoes and combs.
(37:16):
So back when Ivory was just thriving.
Yeah, it was a different time.
In 1940, he died and left the estate to his wife, Harriet.
And then in 1954, the property was sold and soon thereafter became
a restaurant known as the Johnny Cake Inn.
Oh, God, that's cute.
Yeah.
(37:37):
Unfortunately, that closed in 1966.
And I guess the property just kind of languished until the early 70s
when Robert and Joe McKenzie bought it and created the Copper Beach Inn.
Oh, wow.
I like that they went back to its roots.
Yeah.
You know, but yeah, they saw the potential.
(37:57):
They were like, I mean, it probably is just screaming to be an inn.
If you look at the house, it's so cute and has that like wrap around porch and everything.
I want to stay there.
But what I like is that this is another historic property that started in the 1800s.
We got a thing going on, apparently.
It's really cute.
(38:17):
But yeah, that's another one on my bucket list.
I got it. We have to make it our business to visit every single hotel that we've launched.
We won't have enough time in our lives to do anything else,
but I feel like it's worth dedicating our whole entire existence.
I'm available.
(38:41):
OK, so our fifth and final hotel is the Hotel Portsmouth.
So here's the controversy.
Is it Portsmouth or Portsmouth?
I would pronounce it Portsmouth.
But it's probably Portsmouth.
If you're British?
Portsmouth.
If you're American, Portsmouth.
(39:06):
So I'm going to say Portsmouth because it sounds fancier.
It's in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, which is also New England.
We're really keeping a theme here,
but it's also just one of those really beautiful family owned places.
And the location of the original house in Portsmouth is 40 Court Street
(39:30):
and was owned by the family of Lucy Marsh.
I like that name.
Yeah, me too.
I don't know why.
She and her husband, Johnny Sice.
Sice?
Let's say Sice.
The names here, really, we just get confused.
And they're not common enough to be able to Google
(39:50):
and know for sure you've got the pronunciation.
Yeah, Sice.
We're doing the best we can.
I feel like it would be Sice.
It probably originally was.
They purchased the property and demolished it to build their own dream house.
A stick style mansion in 1881.
Again, 1800s.
It's where it's at.
It was passed down to Lucy and John's daughter and her husband, Alfred Gooding.
(40:14):
The...
Oh, God, this word is going to kill me.
Antiquarian?
Am I saying that right?
The antiquarian minister of the South Church.
Is that what he did?
Yeah, I guess so.
So who doubled the size of the original house.
So they expanded the house once they inherited it.
It was expanded again in 1985 and opened as the Sisy-In.
(40:39):
But that's not the name.
Sice-In?
The Sice-In.
Sice.
S-A.
Today, the mansion has been preserved as a classic example of Queen Anne Victorian architecture
and one of Portsmouth's grand old homes.
So although in 1985, it was opened as the...
Size.
Size.
Size.
Size-In.
(41:00):
I can't.
I don't know why my brain won't let me.
It is now Hotel Portsmouth.
It reopened as the Hotel Portsmouth in 2014 after a renovation of the property.
Earlier this year in 2024, they again refreshed the design with eco-conscious materials,
(41:21):
some art and repurposed antiques to serve as a testament to Portsmouth's history,
but also trying to keep the character a little bit more modern.
So it's a really nice blend.
Yeah, old and new.
Kind of like, you know, everyone's trying to be green, I guess.
And it's easier to do because they've been around so long that they can just find something
(41:48):
in the basement, reuse it and say, oh my God, we're eco-friendly.
This one's rooms are very Americana.
This, okay.
So I'm on their Instagram.
The house itself is so freaking cute.
So cute.
It's right next to the water.
You see like they got boats.
(42:08):
You probably could rent a boat or.
You know, I'm not surprised that it was owned by a minister.
It has just a little bit of a church like look to it.
It does have a churchy look.
Yeah.
Each room is so unique, by the way.
They're like very unique rooms.
Yes.
Different wallpaper, different
They really did a good job of mixing patterns without it being like clasher or overwhelming.
(42:35):
They did a really, really good job.
Whoever designed it did a phenomenal job because it gives it a warmth, a coziness, but it's
not cheesy.
It's not old lady.
Yeah.
They, they steered clear of the old lady roses vibe, you know, but it's modern, it's modern.
(42:55):
But it's kind of old and it's, it's a classic.
They really towed the line perfectly.
Yeah.
It's a beautiful, beautiful inn and I really want to go.
I've never been to New Hampshire, but I hear it during the summer.
The like the New Hampshire coast is supposed to be just perfect.
(43:17):
You know, what's really sad growing up in New York, it's like, you think I'd be everywhere
in New England.
I've been to like three States there.
I've been to like Massachusetts, well, Rhode Island, Connecticut, maybe not three States,
but like really I avoided a lot of them, not on purpose, but like I have not seen enough
of New England.
(43:37):
I just kind of stayed in my little bubble.
Yeah.
You know, it's like Jersey was the farthest.
Now it wasn't the farthest, but it's just, I think, yeah, if you live there, do yourself
a favor before you go traveling, like all across the world or the country travel in
the area.
(43:57):
It's really stunning.
Whenever I did get to go a little farther out, like in the Hudson Valley or upstate,
it was a whole different world.
It's like, wait, why are we not vacationing or driving up to these places?
Not that far.
And they, they do have trains and stuff like that.
It's, it's a really nice little place to go and I regret not going more.
(44:19):
I have to go back.
And we're going to have to fix that.
Do a little tour.
Thanks for listening to Hotel History.
You can follow us on most social media platforms, Patreon and Substack by searching for Hotel
History or Hotel History Podcast.
If you like what you hear, please leave us a five-star review on Apple podcasts and Spotify
(44:44):
so we can reach more listeners.
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