Have you ever wanted to step inside a movie scene? If you love the art of film or are just curious about the backdrops used for famous storylines, planning your next trip just got easier. From buildings used for life-threatening stunts to luxury villas bound to bring romance, try booking one of these hotels to relive your favourite on-screen moments.
The Savoy Hotel, London
Notting Hill
The titular neighbourhood in London still sees “queues of giddy tourists snapping selfies outside the famous blue door on Westbourne Road” of William Thacker’s flat, said Adam Turner in Condé Nast Traveler. Although the door is a big draw, the Savoy Hotel is also a must-visit for fans. A scene shot in the “opulent” Lancaster Ballroom of this “prestigious” location served as a “memorable moment” in the film when the “book-ish, floppy-haired” William (Hugh Grant) interrupts a press conference in his efforts to win back “demure American actress” Anna (Julia Roberts). The “odd scene” from Netflix’s “The Crown” was also shot here; with its “Edwardian features, crystal chandeliers, velvet-embossed carpets and Art Deco furnishings”, it's certainly fit for royalty.
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Park Hyatt Tokyo
Lost in Translation
Very few films depict the “isolation of finding yourself alone in a big city desperate for connection” as “brilliantly” as “Lost in Translation”, said Condé Nast Traveler. The story follows failing actor Bob (Bill Murray) and Charlotte (Scarlett Johansson), the “lonely young wife” of a photographer, who meet in a bar and engage in “late-night chats in hotel rooms and spontaneous adventures around Tokyo”. After its release, fans of the film flocked to the Park Hyatt Tokyo in an attempt to “experience the same kind of romance and melancholy at the dimly lit” bar on the 52nd floor. The hotel welcomed guests again this January after a 19-month refurbishment so anyone wanting to visit must beat the deluge of fans who have been waiting for the reopening.
Armani Hotel Dubai
Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol
The Armani Hotel was the backdrop for “one of cinema’s most vertigo-inducing stunts” when Tom Cruise famously scaled its exterior for scenes in “Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol”, said Lela London in GQ. The property, housed within the famous Burj Khalifa building, rightfully, “still trades on that spectacle”. The interiors are as impressive as the striking exterior, with “muted palettes and bespoke furniture designed by Giorgio himself”. The “sweeping views over Dubai” are also an undeniable draw.
The Plaza Hotel, New York
Home Alone 2: Lost in New York
You might remember “Kevin McCallister ordering room service sundaes here” in “Home Alone 2: Lost in New York”, but there is “much more to the Plaza than meets the screen”, said GQ. Not only is its location “one of the most glamorous addresses in Manhattan” but it also boasts “sensational white-gloved service”. All the glitz doesn’t come cheap, though, and a room can cost “upwards of two grand a night in peak season”.
Villa Elena, Noto, Sicily
The White Lotus
Technically not a film but deserving of an honorary mention is this “breathtaking property” which was used as a secondary location in series two of “The White Lotus”, said Lameah Nayeem in Harper’s Bazaar Australia. A “passion project of renowned interior designer Jacques Garcia”, the villa is a “marvel” of design. The space is filled with “meticulous gold scrollwork, rich chinoiserie wallpapers and neoclassical frescoes”. With elements drawn from the “grandest of grand as sources of inspiration”, namely baroque palaces in Rome such as “Pallavicini-Rospigliosi, Doria Pamphilj and Colonna”, a stay here is bound to make you feel like royalty.
