Since it’s October, I wanted to find you all a nice crumbly mansion set in a mysterious forest for our Romance Wanderlust column, and the Internet did not disappoint. The Forest Side is in Cumbria, England and was voted “The UK’s Most Romantic Hotel” by Good Hotel Guide 2018. It’s super Gothic on the outside, it’s pretty and airy on the inside, and it’s close to the long time home of poet William Wordsworth and … Continue reading Romance Wanderlust: The Forest Side→
Those who know the story of Zelda and Scott Fitzgerald’s marriage know that things ended as unromantically as possible for this troubled couple. However, in their early years of courtship and marriage, they were the poster children for the artistic, physical, and emotional passion of the Jazz Age. If you have a weakness for flapper dresses, champagne, and sentences like, “I remember every single spot of light that ever gouged a shadow beside your bones,” … Continue reading Romance Wanderlust: The Fitzgerald Home→
This month’s Romance Wanderlust comes to you from Footnotes from the World’s Greatest Bookstores by Bob Eckstein . This book features paintings of seventy-five bookstores from all over the world. It’s true that technically you can’t stay at them (bookstores you can sleep in will be a topic for another month) but I can’t think of anything more romantic than spending time at any of these places. Some are out of business now, but thank goodness many … Continue reading Romance Wanderlust: Bookstores→
Newstead Abbey is beautiful and full of history. Its story features royal crimes, scandalous owners, and Lord Byron, the infamous poet. If, like me, you think Lord Byron was a jerkface and not romantic in the least, you can still enjoy the estate for its beauty and history. On the other hand, if you do find Byron to be romantic, then Newstead Abbey is about as romantic as a place could possibly get. This is … Continue reading Romance Wanderlust: Newstead Abbey→
This month’s Romance Wanderlust is doomed to be incoherent, because every time I look at pictures of Positano, Italy, I start drooling and losing all capacity for speech. Like other Romance Wanderlust columns, this is neither a review nor an endorsement, because I haven’t been to Positano. I Googled, I saw pictures, I swooned, and here we are. Positano has been around for a long, long time, which is impressive since it looks like it … Continue reading Romance Wanderlust: Positano→
On our last trip to San Diego, we were wandering around Old Town and purely by accident we ended up at the place in which a pivotal scene in Ramona, by Helen Hunt Jackson, takes place. You can’t actually stay there, but it’s a lovely spot to wander around in and I can personally vouch for the general area (Old Town San Diego) as a romantic place to spend time right around twilight, when it’s … Continue reading Romance Wanderlust: La Casa de Estudillo→
This month’s Romance Wanderlust was contributed in the most confidential manner over tea by Lady Freesia de Bergamot. Her comments do not reflect the views of this establishment. We are not responsible for any historical anachronisms that may appear. We have not visited the location in question and this is neither a review nor an endorsement. My Dear, I simply MUST tell you about this Hotel. It’s a Georgian-Era house that contains both Literary History … Continue reading Romance Wanderlust: Summer Lodge Country House Hotel, Restaurant and Spa→
Back in November, 2017, I wrote a Romance Wanderlust piece about apartments in the New York City Library branches. The response to that column convinced me that yes, we do love our castles and treehouses and our Regency estates, but what really gets the Bitches excited is being around a lot of books. In this month’s Romance Wanderlust, we’ll explore two very different bookish hotels. As always, I’m obligated to say that I haven’t been … Continue reading Romance Wanderlust: Literary Hotels→
This month marks the 200th anniversary of the publication of Frankenstein. I’m a Mary Shelley fan, so you can imagine the delight with which I discovered that Frankenstein Castle is not only a real place but one that anyone can visit. Its history is so much more bizarre than anything in the novel. The castle is located in Germany, overlooking the Rhine Valley. It was built around 1240 and is currently in ruins. The Frankenstein … Continue reading Romance Wanderlust: Castle Frankenstein→
Once again we pack our bags for a Romance Wanderlust trip. This month we are off to Hever Castle in England, which is primarily famous for having been the childhood home of Anne Boleyn. History buffs will recall that Anne’s romantic life did not end well, and yet this is a popular wedding site because it is incredibly beautiful and romantic in a “but then she was decapitated” kind of way. The oldest part of … Continue reading Romance Wanderlust: Hever Castle→
This month’s Romance Wanderlust is all about potential. The apartments in the New York City Public Library’s branches aren’t romantic NOW. But just think what some spackling and mold-killer could do. These are fixer-uppers for the win. As ever, this column reflects a lot of Googling and no hands on research, so it’s neither a review nor an endorsement. The New York Public Library has just under a hundred branches, including research libraries, libraries in … Continue reading Romance Wanderlust: Living at the Library→
