9 Real-Life Hotels That Star in Your Favorite TV Shows
Blame it on “Game of Thrones,” but the past few years have seen a rise in the popularity of “set-jetting” or “location vacations”—in other words, trips planned specifically to see filming locations from television shows and movies. Series like “Emily in Paris,” “Bridgerton” and “The Crown” are keeping the trend alive, and “The White Lotus” takes it a step further by actually being about the act of travel, with each new season taking place at a fictional resort (played by a very real one).
Making things considerably easier is the fact that, these days, set-jetting doesn’t even involve trekking to some far-flung castle or tiny village; in many cases, some of your favorite shows are filmed right in or around iconic hotels. So, to fully immerse yourself in their fictional worlds, all you have to do is book a room, relax and soak it all in. These nine hotels are the real stars of your favorite TV shows. (Photo courtesy of Viceroy Los Cabos.)
Chase Travel is the first stop for your next adventure. At chasetravel.com, eligible Chase cardmembers can earn and redeem Ultimate Rewards points for hotels, flights, car rentals and more. Plus, Chase Sapphire Reserve cardmembers who book a hotel stay through The Edit by Chase Travel will earn 3 points per dollar and receive special cardmember benefits including daily breakfast for two and a $100 property credit, along with early check-in, late checkout and a room upgrade, when available.
Grand-Hôtel du Cap-Ferrat, A Four Seasons Hotel (Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat, France)
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Since opening in 1908, this French Riviera palace has attracted everyone from Winston Churchill to Elizabeth Taylor—and, more recently, Emily Cooper, the fictional star of Netflix rom-com “Emily in Paris.” Now a Four Seasons hotel, it features sweeping Mediterranean views that stretch from Nice to Monaco, and its fine-dining restaurant, Le Cap, is an ode to Provençal flavors, with elegant dishes like stuffed baby squid with caviar, milk-fed lamb and cockle-and-spinach ravioli. The place to see and be seen since 1939 is Club Dauphin, centered around a clifftop pool filled with heated seawater.
San Domenico Palace, Taormina, A Four Seasons Hotel (Taormina, Italy)
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The home base for the sophomore season of HBO’s “The White Lotus,” this palatial hotel is dripping in history: It started as a convent in the 14th century before becoming a grand hotel in the 1890s, immediately attracting royals, authors and Old Hollywood superstars. Still, its guest rooms and public spaces are elegant and modern: Expect details like walnut paneling, antique mirrored glass, brass and marble, with the occasional portrait of a saint or a colorful ceramic head thrown in for good measure. Plus, the hotel’s hilltop perch means outrageous views over the Ionian Sea and Mount Etna.
Viceroy Los Cabos (San José del Cabo, Mexico)
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There’s something decidedly futuristic about this architectural marvel in San José del Cabo at the bottom of Baja California: The property comprises expansive reflecting pools between white-cube buildings and a restaurant that looks like a nest floating atop the water, all connected by curving pathways. So, it’s no surprise the production designers from HBO sci-fi series “Westworld” cast Viceroy as a city of the future. Culture lovers can catch movie screenings in the resort cinema, watch live music sets at the six bars and restaurants or join in regular cooking and art classes.
Four Seasons Resort Maui at Wailea (Wailea, Hawaii)
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Audiences began dreaming of vacationing at the fictional White Lotus hotel chain during the show’s first season, which was set at this oceanfront resort in Maui. Each episode brought some new, dreamy corner of the property into focus, whether the characters were reading by the pool, lounging in their expansive suites, dining alfresco or even exploring the coastline by outrigger canoe—one of the many experiences you can book here. You’ll feel like an entertainment industry titan yourself while dining at Spago, an outpost of chef Wolfgang Puck’s iconic Beverly Hills restaurant serving Hawaiian-influenced dishes like bigeye ahi poke cones.
Fontainebleau Miami Beach (Miami Beach, Florida)
In season three of “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel,” stand-up comedian Midge Maisel decamps to this glamorous south Florida beach resort, which opened in 1954 and was designed by legendary architect Morris Lapidus. But thanks to its modernist curves and frequent references to Lapidus’ trademark bow tie, the hotel has been a pop-culture favorite for decades, also appearing in films like “Goldfinger,” “Scarface” and “The Bodyguard.” Today, the Fontainebleau keeps the glam factor high with exotic car rentals, a hydrotherapy-focused spa and a roster of high-roller bars, clubs and restaurants, including Hakkasan and Prime 54 steak house.
Whiteface Lodge (Lake Placid, New York)
When the producers of HBO’s “Succession” went in search of a rustic hideaway where they could set a fictional media retreat, they landed on this Lake Placid lodge. Turns out, it’s a surprisingly good fit for a show about New York’s ultrarich. Though it opened in 2005, the property is meant to evoke the Adirondack Great Camps favored by Gilded Age millionaires, complete with timber beams, granite fireplaces and abundant taxidermy. Conceived by a former Olympic luger, the lodge also features a spa (with antler chandeliers) and a grand dining room serving hearty dishes like pan-roasted rainbow trout and bison burgers.
Anantara Siam Bangkok Hotel (Bangkok, Thailand)
The darkly comedic thriller “The Flight Attendant” kicks off when the titular character wakes up in a Bangkok hotel room next to the body of a man she met the night before. But don’t hold that scene against the hotel where it was filmed. The Anantara is a stately retreat with hand-painted silk murals and tropical gardens that feels worlds away from the urban bustle outside. We’re fans of the spa, which draws on healing traditions from Thailand, China, Myanmar, Laos and beyond, including bamboo stick massages, indigo herbal compresses and gold-leaf skin patches.
Rhinefield House Hotel (Brockenhurst, England)
Set deep within England’s New Forest National Park, this 50-bedroom retreat dates back in its present form to the 1880s, though parts of the house can be traced to the 1650s. A hodgepodge of architectural styles, it melds Gothic and Tudor influences, and the opulent Alhambra Room (available for private dining) is an exact replica of the palace in Granada, complete with Persian onyx pillars and Venetian glass. On the third season of Netflix’s “The Crown,” the property and its swimming pool stood in for one of the royal residences on Scotland’s Balmoral Castle estate.
The Royal Crescent Hotel & Spa (Bath, England)
Known for its Roman-era baths and elegant Georgian architecture, Bath is one of the prettiest towns in the United Kingdom, and its trapped-in-time quality has made it a perfect backdrop for the Regency-set romance “Bridgerton.” One of Bath’s most recognizable landmarks is The Royal Crescent, a sweeping curve of town houses built between 1767 and 1774; it’s there that you’ll find this gorgeous hotel, which pairs period antiques and four-poster beds with bold wallpapers and colorful contemporary furnishings. Just a few doors down, No. 1 Royal Crescent, now a museum, stands in for the Featherington family estate on the show.
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