Hotel History

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

75 Episodes

Hollywood's Original Illusion: The Alexandria Hotel with Craig Owens
10/24/2026
46:43
Got something to say to this podcast? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode!Historian Craig Owens has plenty of stories about Southern California hotels, but few loom larger in Los Angeles history than the Alexandria Hotel. Built during the city’s turn-of-the-century boom, it became the center of Hollywood hopefuls and moguls, from Rudolph Valentino and Mary Pickford to Charlie Chaplin and Sam Goldwyn.Follow us: TikTok | Instagram | Pinterest | YouTube📰 Sign up for our free newsletter, The CHECK-IN.📖 Join our free book club here.📚 Shop our bookshelves here.* Support indie bookstores!☕️ You can support Hotel History here or on Patreon.👩🏽‍🤝‍👩🏻 Want to collaborate?🎶 Music: "Fig Leaf Rag” by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under CC: By Attribution 4.0.✋🏼 Disclaimer: This podcast is for entertainment purposes only. The content is provided as-is with no guarantees of accuracy, completeness, or timeliness. The opinions of the hosts and guests are their own. While we discuss public figures and publicly available information, this podcast does not claim that all statements presented are verified facts, and commentary may include personal opinion, parody, or speculation protected under fair use and free speech principles. Listeners should independently verify any claims or stories discussed.*Some product links are affiliate links, which means we earn a small commission at no additional cost to you.
Dublin's Grande Dame: The Shelbourne 🇮🇪
10/9/2026
54:32
Got something to say to this podcast? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode!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 and embraces guests and locals alike in a one-of-a-kind atmosphere. Follow us: TikTok | Instagram | Pinterest | YouTube📰 Sign up for our free newsletter, The CHECK-IN.📖 Join our free book club here.📚 Shop our bookshelves here.* Support indie bookstores!☕️ You can support Hotel History here or on Patreon.👩🏽‍🤝‍👩🏻 Want to collaborate?🎶 Music: "Tavern" by Simon Folwar✋🏼 Disclaimer: This podcast is for entertainment purposes only. The content is provided as-is with no guarantees of accuracy, completeness, or timeliness. The opinions of the hosts and guests are their own. While we discuss public figures and publicly available information, this podcast does not claim that all statements presented are verified facts, and commentary may include personal opinion, parody, or speculation protected under fair use and free speech principles. Listeners should independently verify any claims or stories discussed.*Some product links are affiliate links, which means we earn a small commission at no additional cost to you.
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The Billionaire Who Took Budget Suites to Space
9/16/2026
36:25
Got something to say to this podcast? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode!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 into an aerospace company that would eventually partner with NASA. But that's not all he used his fortune to do.Summer is coming to a close, but we still have a few Cosmic Summer stories left to tell!Follow us: TikTok | Instagram | Pinterest | YouTube📰 Sign up for our free newsletter, The CHECK-IN.📖 Join our free book club here.📚 Shop our bookshelves here.* Support indie bookstores!☕️ You can support Hotel History here or on Patreon.👩🏽‍🤝‍👩🏻 Want to collaborate?🎶 Music: "Quiet Logic" by Dada"On the Radar" by Pecan Pie"Endless Puzzle" by AVBE🔗 Links:https://www.forbes.com/forbes/2011/0627/features-robert-bigelow-aerospace-real-estate-cosmic-landlord.htmlhttps://spacenews.com/bigelow-aerospace-lays-off-entire-workforce/https://thehill.com/opinion/technology/543106-will-a-space-hotel-actually-be-open-for-business-in-2027/✋🏼 Disclaimer: This podcast is for entertainment purposes only. The content is provided as-is with no guarantees of accuracy, completeness, or timeliness. The opinions of the hosts and guests are their own. While we discuss public figures and publicly available information, this podcast does not claim that all statements presented are verified facts, and commentary may include personal opinion, parody, or speculation protected under fair use and free speech principles. Listeners should independently verify any claims or stories discussed.*Some product links are affiliate links, which means we earn a small commission at no additional cost to you.
Hotels That Framed a Legend: Where Marilyn Monroe Stayed
8/24/2026
53:53
Got something to say to this podcast? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode!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 doors to sign a modeling contract in 1945, hotels became her classroom, her stage, and often her home. We’re looking back at the way her presence—sensual, glamorous, endearing, at times even shy—forever marked the hotel lobbies she walked through.Read our Substack article here.Follow us: TikTok | Instagram | Pinterest | YouTube📰 Sign up for our free newsletter, The CHECK-IN.📖 Join our free book club here.📚 Shop our bookshelves here.* Support indie bookstores!☕️ You can support Hotel History (and our caffeine addiction) here or on Patreon.👩🏽‍🤝‍👩🏻 Want to collaborate?🎶 Music: "In Your Arms" by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under CC BY 4.0.✋🏼 Disclaimer: This podcast is for entertainment purposes only. The content is provided as-is with no guarantees of accuracy, completeness, or timeliness. The opinions of the hosts and guests are their own.*affiliate link
Hotels that Come with Horses: 100 Years of the Dude Ranch
8/10/2026
57:55
Got something to say to this podcast? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode!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, to explore the origins of the dude ranch, how these iconic destinations evolved into a uniquely American hospitality experience, and the role the association plays in preserving their legacy today. Along the way we discuss the influence of National Park champion Teddy Roosevelt, Hollywood portrayals like City Slickers and Yellowstone, the myths and realities of ranch life, and why dude ranches continue to capture travelers' imaginations.🐴 Saddle up and discover the history behind one of America's most enduring vacation traditions. Learn more about dude ranches and plan your vacation here. Follow us: TikTok | Instagram | Pinterest | YouTube📰 Sign up for our free newsletter, The CHECK-IN.📖 Join our free book club here.📚 Shop our bookshelves here.* Support indie bookstores!☕️ You can support Hotel History (and our caffeine addiction) here or on Patreon.👩🏽‍🤝‍👩🏻 Want to collaborate?🎶 Music: "Back Roads in the Afternoon" by Justin Allan Arnold is licensed under CC BY 4.0.✋🏼 Disclaimer: This podcast is for entertainment purposes only. The content is provided as-is with no guarantees of accuracy, completeness, or timeliness. The opinions of the hosts and guests are their own.*affiliate link
From the Loading Dock to the Top Floor: The Art of Hospitality with Susan Barry
7/31/2026
50:06
Got something to say to this podcast? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode!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 just might make history, and some of her favorite hotels and hotel stories.Listen to her weekly conversations with hospitality insiders here.Follow us: TikTok | Instagram | Pinterest | YouTube📰 Sign up for our free newsletter, The CHECK-IN.📖 Join our free book club here.📚 Shop our bookshelves here.* Support indie bookstores!☕️ You can support Hotel History (and our caffeine addiction) here or on Patreon.👩🏽‍🤝‍👩🏻 Want to collaborate?🎶 Music:"I Like Peanuts" by audionautix.Disclaimer: This podcast is for entertainment purposes only. The content is provided as-is with no guarantees of accuracy, completeness, or timeliness. The opinions of the hosts and guests are their own.*affiliate link
The Town That Chose to Believe: Roswell’s Reinvention after the Incident 🛸
7/23/2026
1:17:09
Got something to say to this podcast? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode!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 the most of a Cold War government cover-up,This episode is part of our Cosmic Summer series. Be sure to check out our other UFO- and cosmos-themed episodes!Follow us: TikTok | Instagram | Pinterest | YouTube📰 Sign up for our free newsletter, The CHECK-IN.📖 Join our free book club here.📚 Shop our bookshelves here.* Support indie bookstores!☕️ You can support Hotel History (and our caffeine addiction) here or on Patreon.👩🏽‍🤝‍👩🏻 Want to collaborate?🎶 Music:"Hard Justice" by Darren Curtis.*affiliate link
Checking In at the Edge of the Cosmos
6/30/2026
32:48
Got something to say to this podcast? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode!"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 domes, telescopes, and on-site observatories, where you can gaze into the night sky with wonder (and a convex lens). Coincidentally, nearby some of those same hotels are corridors known for UFO/UAP sightings.We're continuing Cosmic Summer with three unique stargazing hotels and a scoop of UFO lore on the side. Follow us: TikTok | Instagram | Pinterest | YouTube📰 Sign up for our free newsletter, The CHECK-IN.📖 Join our free book club here.📚 Shop our bookshelves here.* Support indie bookstores!☕️ You can support Hotel History (and our caffeine addiction) here or on Patreon.👩🏽‍🤝‍👩🏻 Want to collaborate?🎶 Music:"Space" by Liborio Conti.*affiliate link
Take Me to Your Innkeeper: Adventures on the Extraterrestrial Highway
6/20/2026
1:03:39
Got something to say to this podcast? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode!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 swore didn't exist for decades—Area 51. On our way there, we stopped in Tonopah, NV, a former mining town with gorgeous historic hotels and an even more beautiful ghost haunting one of them.Then we drove down the Extraterrestrial Highway and stopped at alien hunter HQ, also known as the Little A'Le'Inn—the closest roadside motel to Area 51 and the UFOs (or UAPs?) in the dark skies above.On our way home we absolutely had to hit a leg of Route 66—this year is its Centennial, after all—and find as much neon signage as possible.Check out our socials for photos and videos of our journey and check back in for more cosmic content. And remember, the truth is out there!Follow us: TikTok | Instagram | Pinterest | YouTube📰 Sign up for our free newsletter, The CHECK-IN.📖 Join our free book club here.📚 Shop our bookshelves here.* Support indie bookstores!☕️ You can support Hotel History (and our caffeine addiction) here or on Patreon.👩🏽‍🤝‍👩🏻 Want to collaborate?🎶 Music:"Tumbleweed” by Christian Larssen from Uppbeat."Hyperfun" by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under CC: By Attribution 4.0."Phantom from Space" by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under CC: By Attribution 4.0.“Road Trip” by Yeti Music from Uppbeat.*affiliate link
Route 66: One Hundred Years of Roadside Motels and Funky Americana (recorded at The Eden Hotel)
6/5/2026
59:24
Got something to say to this podcast? Send a voicemail, and you might hear yourself on the next episode!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 recorded at the Eden Hotel, which overlooks the Pacific and sits across the street from the unofficial end of Route 66 at the Santa Monica Pier. To read more about Route 66 (or anywhere else Christopher has traveled), go here.Check out our bookshelf about Route 66 here.Follow us: TikTok | Instagram | Pinterest | YouTube📰 Sign up for our free newsletter, The CHECK-IN.📖 Join our free book club here.📚 Shop our bookshelves here.* Support indie bookstores!☕️ You can support Hotel History (and our caffeine addiction) here or on Patreon.👩🏽‍🤝‍👩🏻 Want to collaborate?🎶 Music: Blues Got a Groove On by Vocalista from Uppbeat.License code: GOZSBXVLINAISMQI*affiliate link

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Hotel History

Yael & D’Etta

75 Episodes

Hollywood's Original Illusion: The Alexandria Hotel with Craig Owens

Dublin's Grande Dame: The Shelbourne 🇮🇪

The Billionaire Who Took Budget Suites to Space

Hotels That Framed a Legend: Where Marilyn Monroe Stayed

Hotels that Come with Horses: 100 Years of the Dude Ranch

From the Loading Dock to the Top Floor: The Art of Hospitality with Susan Barry

The Town That Chose to Believe: Roswell’s Reinvention after the Incident 🛸

Checking In at the Edge of the Cosmos

Take Me to Your Innkeeper: Adventures on the Extraterrestrial Highway

Route 66: One Hundred Years of Roadside Motels and Funky Americana (recorded at The Eden Hotel)