PODCAST · society
Hotel History
by Yael & D’Etta
We take you with us through the sordid history and scandals of some of the world’s most famous – and infamous – hotels. https://www.hotelhistory.com
Episodes
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Dublin's Grande Dame: The Shelbourne 🇮🇪
Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note. For more than 200 years, the Shelbourne Hotel in Dublin, Ireland, has watched Irish history unfold, often within its doors. We interview JP Kavanagh, the hotel's general manager since 2018, to find out how the hotel celebrates its history...
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The Billionaire Who Took Budget Suites to Space
Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note. How did a boy who grew up hearing UFO stories and watching nuclear testing during the Cold War make his childhood dream of exploring space come true? He founded a wildly successful short-term hotel chain and funneled his profits directly...
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Hotels That Framed a Legend: Where Marilyn Monroe Stayed
Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note. June 1, 2026, marked Marilyn Monroe’s 100th birthday. Her life made her a star, but her untimely death made her a legend. And almost 64 years later she is still an enigma. From the first time she walked through the Ambassador Hotel's…
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Hotels that Come with Horses: 100 Years of the Dude Ranch
Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note. From Hollywood Westerns to working cattle ranches, the dude ranch has been part of the American travel story for more than a century. In this episode, we sit down with Bryce Albright, executive director of the Dude Ranchers' Association…
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From the Loading Dock to the Top Floor: The Art of Hospitality with Susan Barry
Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note. We love a candid and meaningful conversation with someone in hospitality, so lucky us (and you) that Susan Barry of Top Floor Podcast is both of those—and warm and funny to boot! We tackle working your way up in hospitality, trends that...
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The Town That Chose to Believe: Roswell’s Reinvention after the Incident 🛸
Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note. Something strange happened in Roswell, NM, many years ago, and we don't mean the famous flying saucer story. In this episode we discover how a small Southwest town known for ranching and rockets transformed its tourism industry by making...
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Checking In at the Edge of the Cosmos
Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note. "We know we are approaching the grandest of mysteries," said Carl Sagan in his seminal PBS series, Cosmos. Hotels throughout the world have tapped into our desire to contemplate those mysteries under dark skies with open-sky villas and...
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Take Me to Your Innkeeper: Adventures on the Extraterrestrial Highway
Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note. Welcome to Cosmic Summer, where we'll be exploring strange skies all over the world and the hotels that cater to them. First up is the lonely road that crosses south central Nevada and runs parallel to the secret base the U.S. government...
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Route 66: One Hundred Years of Roadside Motels and Funky Americana (recorded at The Eden Hotel)
Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note. Route 66—perhaps the world's most famous patch of asphalt—is turning 100 year this, so we sat down with LA Times travel writer Christopher Reynolds to discuss his 2,400-plus-mile journey from Chicago to Santa Monica. This episode was...
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The Art of Hotel Design
Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note. What exactly goes into designing an iconic hotel? How do hundreds of design decisions—some tiny, some substantial—shape the guest experience? We interview Paige Byrd of Thiel & Team, the design firm behind the restoration of the historic...
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The Sheraton Stockholm
Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note. Fresh off a three-year renovation, the five-star Sheraton Stockholm Hotel is combining its reputation for international elegance with its Scandinavian roots. In a conversation with the hotel's general manager, Elin Roquet, we discuss this...
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The Royal Hawaiian Hotel
Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note. Looking for a pink palace perched on the shores of paradise? Welcome to the Royal Hawaiian Hotel in Waikiki aka the Pink Palace of the Pacific. Once the playground of Hawaiian monarchs, it soon became a premiere destination for the...
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Hidden Hospitality: The History of Black Hoteliers
Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note. As we wearily check into our hotels, BnB's, and roadside lodges after a long day of travel, we seldom stop to think about the difficulties minority travelers faced doing those exact things in the not-too-distant past. Calvin Stovall Jr.…
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Book Club: Last Call at the Savoy with Brisa Carleton
Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note. Our first live episode! We got to interview the queen of literary cocktails (and acclaimed Broadway producer) Brisa Carleton live at the Algonquin Hotel's historic Round Table, where literary greats like Dorothy Parker once lunched and...
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Secrets on the Line: The Life & Times of the Hotel Phone
Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note. Thank you for calling. Your call is important to us. Please hold. Dial 0 for the operator. These familiar expressions began 150 years ago when Alexander Graham Bell made the first telephone call in Boston. It didn't take long for luxury...
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Cloistered for the Night: Hotels in Monasteries
Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note. It's Christmas Eve, and we're taking you to divine lodgings, aka hotels in monasteries. Some of these hotels may not offer room service, wifi, or even bellhops (though some definitely do). Instead, they offer the chance to walk in the...
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The Key to Söder: NOFO Hotel 🇸🇪
Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note. NOFO Hotel in Stockholm, Sweden, is making all the right moves. From interesting room design to curated activities for guests to a hip wine bar, this boutique hotel experience might just make Stockholm your next destination. Follow us:...
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Where Hemingway Sat: Stories from Iconic Hotel Bars
Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note. Ah, the hotel bar—a traveler's best friend. Over the years, they've made a name for themselves outright and are sometimes more famous than the hotel that spawned them. We take you from Hollywood to New Orleans to Europe to tell the…
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The Origins of Room Service
Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note. From having a hearty stew sent to your room in the local inn to scanning QR codes, room service has changed its form but never its allure—tasty fare with minimal effort. One hotel in particular made modern room service a necessity for...
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Book Club: The Paradox Hotel
Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note. Rob Hart's The Paradox Hotel is a genre-bending sci-fi thriller with an arsenal of mystery, action, heart, and, um, dinosaurs? We discuss our love/hate relationship with the main character, how a hotel dedicated to helping the uber…
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Ghost Stories from the Brown Palace Hotel
Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note. Footsteps in the hallway. Cold spots in your room. A child's laughter bouncing off the walls. And phone calls full of static. Learn about the hauntings in one of Denver's oldest luxury hotels, the Brown Palace, and a century-old double...
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Ghost Stories from the 1886 Crescent Hotel
Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note. As the veil between worlds thins, the ghosts come out to play. And the 1886 Crescent Hotel & Spa in Eureka Springs, Arkansas, has so many, it's been named the most haunted hotel in America by a number of ghost hunters. From a hopeless...
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Tribe Hotel – Nairobi, Kenya
Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note. When Shamim Ehsani and his brother envisioned a brand new luxury hotel for Kenya's capital city of Nairobi, they knew exactly what they wanted: A creative outlet for chefs, designers, and other visionaries. A platform for the arts. A…
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The Beverly Hilton
Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note. Hollywood thinks it knows drama? It could take a page from the Beverly Hilton's book. From star-studded events to political scandals to celebrity tragedies, few hotels have packed quite so many sordid happenings into seven decades of...
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TWA Hotel: A Jet Age Time Capsule
Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note. Not too long ago, jets from TWA airline ruled the skies, and its terminal at JFK was a marvel of futuristic design. Its name conjured images of fashionabLe flight attendants, first class service, and eccentric billionaire owner Howard...
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Book Club: Fly Girl
Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note. For our latest bookclub episode, we discuss Ann Hood's memoir of her time as a TWA flight attendant at the end of the "glamorous" Jet Age in Fly Girl. To stay up to date on our current read, join our book club here. 📖 Pick up Fly Girl...
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The Omni Parker House
Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note. If you're going to call yourself the longest continuously operating hotel in America, you'd better have some juicy history to back it up. Luckily, the Omni Parker House delivers. Predating the Civil War by 10 years, the Parker House has...
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Bashar Wali on Practicing Hospitality
Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note. Bashar Wali wants to be your hotel guy, and you really couldn't find someone who knows hospitality as intimately. With 30 years of experience as a hotelier and hundreds of hotel stays notched on his bedpost, he knows a thing or two about...
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The Lodge at Marconi Part 2
Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note. Part two! The Lodge at Marconi is a picturesque escape an hour north of San Francisco on Tomales Bay, But don't let its tranquility fool you—its history still packs a punch. We interview General Manager Leah Fritts Vitali to find out how...
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The Lodge at Marconi Part 1
Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note. The Lodge at Marconi is a picturesque escape an hour north of San Francisco on Tomales Bay, But don't let its tranquility fool you—its history still packs a punch. We interview General Manager Leah Fritts Vitali to find out how this...
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Cannes Hotels with JQ Louise: Hotel Martinez & Palm Beach Cannes
Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note. Part two of our foray into Cannes' most historic (and luxurious) hotels continues our interview with travel writer JQ Louise and digs into the history of the Hotel Martinez and the iconic casino and members club, Palm Beach Cannes. Don't...
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Cannes Hotels with JQ Louise: The Carlton
Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note. We're dreaming of blue waters, sandy beaches, and beautiful people, which means we're off to the French Riviera (figuratively). With the Cannes Film Festival happening this week, we're bringing you two episodes about its most historic…
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The Seelbach Hilton Hotel
Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note. The Seelbach Hotel in Louisville, Kentucky, is known for its Old World grandeur, its relaxed, Southern style, and its proximity to the most exciting two minutes in sports—it's just a couple miles away for Churchill Downs, the site each…
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Book Club: A Gentleman in Moscow
Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note. We explore the very real history of the Hotel Metropol in Moscow through the lens of Amor Towles' bestselling novel, A Gentleman in Moscow. The fictional Count Alexander Ilyich Rostov is a member of the aristocracy at a very inconvenient...
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The Empire Hotel
Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note. We return to NYC for the iconic Empire Hotel. Perhaps best known these days as a recurring setting in the hit TV series Gossip Girl, it has more than 100 years of history on 63rd and Broadway. Its famous neon sign overlooks the popular...
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The Mayflower Hotel Part 3
Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note. The Mayflower Hotel in Washington, D.C., has seen some incredible history. We finish up their centennial series with JFK and Jackie O through Russiagate, and then learn what's next for this stately Grand Dame.. Thanks again to Katherine…
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The Mayflower Hotel Part 2
Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note. We continue celebrating the Mayflower Hotel's centennial with part 2 of her incredible history. This episode takes us on a mid 20th century roller coaster ride, including the New Deal, World War II, and the Truman and Eisenhower...
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The Mayflower Hotel Part 1
Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note. The Mayflower Hotel in Washington, DC, is an icon, and she's turning 100 this month! Known as the Grande Dame of Washington, the Hotel of Presidents, and Washington's Second Best Address, we're digging into the history behind this storied...
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The Romantic Villa Built for the Last King of Italy
Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note. The Grande Real Villa Italia Hotel and Spa in Cascais, Portugal, has been named Europe's most romantic destination of 2025. Sweeping seaside views, a Roman bath-inspired spa, and serene ocean- or garden-side suites will provide the…
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Hotels Above Par: Your Curated Guide to Boutique Hotels
Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note. Travelers looking for hotels that speak to the heart of a destination should immediately check out Hotels Above Par, a curated guide to the coolest boutique hotels and travel experiences. What began as a fun social media project during…
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A Castle in the Sky: The Claremont Hotel
Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note. We sat down with Michelle Heston to talk about a Berkeley, CA, gem—the Claremont Hotel. Any hotel that starts out as a castle built on the American Dream is a guaranteed Hotel History destination! Read more about the hotel here.* Follow…
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Ancient Inns from Greece to Bethlehem
Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note. Picture it: Sicily, 1922 BCE. You're traveling on an errand for your local city-state. Where will you find lodging for the night? Or will you have to camp and fall prey to bandits on the road? We explore ancient hospitality covering…
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Ye Olde Medieval Inn
Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note. Hotels and their predecessors have been around for thousands of years. So what were they like back in the medieval period? Were they full of knights, adventurers, drunkards, bandits, and a wench or two? Turns out, just like today, you had…
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Fictional Hotels: The Grand Budapest Hotel
Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note. We needed a hotel that was somehow cozy but also grand and preferably built in miniature, so we turned to the king of aesthetics and whimsy, Wes Anderson. His Grand Budapest Hotel delivers on multiple levels for hotel lovers (and great...
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Political Hotels
Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note. It's election season in America, but instead of watching cable news around the clock, we're distracting ourselves with an episode about hotels where major events in American history have taken place. We have the scandal that made…
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Book Club: Behind the Door of the Cecil Hotel
Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note. The Suicide. Hotel Death. Where Dreams Go To Die. LA's Most Haunted Hotel. These are a few of the nicknames given to the infamous Cecil Hotel. In our second book club episode, we discuss Amy Price's book Behind the Door: The Dark Truths…
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Sweater Weather
Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note. 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...
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Book Club: Deadly Summer Nights
Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note. It's our first book club episode! We're talking about Deadly Summer Nights by Vicki Delany, a fun cozy mystery that takes place at a Catskills resort in the 1950s. Don't worry, no spoilers. Join us for our next read here and check out our...
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Bournemouth & The Green Park
Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note. As the summer wanes, we would be remiss if we didn't pay homage to another summer resort of bygone days. This time we're headed across the pond to the seaside town of Bournemouth in England, where British Jews created their own Borscht…
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Hotels for Nature Lovers
Hey! I'd love to hear your thoughts, send me a voice note. Usually the whole point of a hotel is that you don't have to sleep outside, but these special "rooms" take you into some of the best spaces Mother Nature has to offer. Take your pick from staying in a treehouse, underwater in a lagoon, in…
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Frequently Asked Questions
How many episodes does Hotel History have?
Hotel History currently has 74 episodes available on PodParley. New episodes are automatically indexed when they're published to the podcast feed.
What is Hotel History about?
We take you with us through the sordid history and scandals of some of the world’s most famous – and infamous – hotels. https://www.hotelhistory.com
How often does Hotel History release new episodes?
Hotel History has 74 episodes. Check the episode list to see recent publication dates and frequency.
Where can I listen to Hotel History?
You can listen to Hotel History on PodParley by clicking any episode. We provide an embedded audio player for direct listening, and you can also subscribe via your preferred podcast app using the RSS feed.
Who hosts Hotel History?
Hotel History is created and hosted by Yael & D’Etta.
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