About Shawnie Kelley

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So far Shawnie Kelley has created 147 blog entries.

Chicken Consommé for the Soul: Grand Hotel

By |2024-02-06T10:07:45-05:00July 15th, 2019|Articles|

If ever there is that one bite that becomes burned into your culinary memory, the Grand Hotel's chicken consommé was one of mine. Having spent a few glorious sunny summer days on Mackinac Island, my sister and I took our meals in the variety of Grand-owned restaurants around the property and in town. We chose to [...]

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The Bedford Bath Ritual at Springs Eternal Spa

By |2023-06-28T16:31:49-04:00June 7th, 2019|Articles|

 Springs Eternal Spa at Bedford Springs Resort The Omni Bedford Springs Resort is an historic destination spa in the mountains of central Pennsylvania. The abundance of natural mineral springs combined with fresh mountain air has made for a healthful retreat for more than two centuries. In 1796, Dr. John Anderson purchased more than 2,000 acres from [...]

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Ritual & Refinement: Afternoon Tea at the Langham Hotel, Boston

By |2023-01-26T08:53:58-05:00June 1st, 2019|Articles, Blog|

I have been on a bit of an Afternoon Tea odyssey lately. There is something genteel and charming about the formality of it all. Tea cups with roses. Tiny sandwiches. Tiers of minature sweets. While living and working in England for a few years, friends and I sat sipping darjeeling with pinky's out at the [...]

Omni Bedford Springs Resort: The Grand Dame of Cumberland Valley

By |2023-10-24T12:38:50-04:00March 27th, 2019|Articles|

Bedford Springs Resort and Spa The dreamy mountains of Cumberland Valley are conveniently positioned between Pennsylvania's capital of Harrisburg and Pittsburgh. Cumberland County is home to nearly fifty miles of the Appalachian Trail, hundreds of springs, ponds and lakes, a few storied universities, and pre-Revolutionary and Civil War history. Boating, hiking, fly-fishing, and touring covered bridges [...]

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Up the Lazy River: JW Marriott Texas Hill Country

By |2024-02-06T10:11:10-05:00October 23rd, 2018|Articles, Blog|

I haven't spent much time in Texas (like, zero). So, it was exciting when an opportunity arose to visit San Antonio, of which I've heard all sorts of wonderful things. My typical M.O. is to sniff out a historic inn or smaller, locally owned boutique hotels, but the J.W. Marriott Texas Hill Country caught my [...]

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Malabar Farm: Agricultural Legacy & Living Classroom

By |2018-07-29T22:41:30-04:00July 25th, 2018|Articles|

Malabar Farm “As soils are depleted, human health, vitality and intelligence go with them.”  ~Louis Bromfield To say Louis Bromfield was a strong advocate of scientific agriculture is an understatement. Bromfield not only championed the American farmer in a time of great depression, but spearheaded a radical conservation effort in the name of soil, rain [...]

Destination Grand: The Grand Hotel, Mackinac Island

By |2023-01-26T09:32:54-05:00July 1st, 2018|Articles, Blog|

The Grand Hotel experience begins even before stepping foot onto northern Michigan's Mackinac Island. First glimpse of the stately white columns and billowing flags of the hotel unfurling along the hillside hints at the timeless luxury that awaits across across the bay. The fifteen-minute ferry ride (we used Shepler's Ferry out of Mackinaw City) is just a teaser as the boat [...]

Taking the Waters: A Spa Day at the Greenbrier

By |2023-10-24T15:18:54-04:00June 15th, 2018|Articles|

Taking the Waters. A Spa Day at the Greenbrier, West Virginia When in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia, it only makes sense to do what the Native Americans and travelers, including George Washington, have done for centuries ... take the waters. Sink your body into the local mineral waters for whatever ails you. Tucked into the folds [...]

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“The Grande Dame of the Sea”: Wentworth By The Sea | New Hampshire

By |2024-02-06T10:12:51-05:00June 1st, 2018|Articles, Blog|

In an effort to research some of America's great hotels for my book America's Grande Dames, I discovered this majestic beacon perched on a hill overlooking the island of New Castle, just near Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Wentworth-by-the Sea has an aristocratic ring to it. It was in fact built by a local ale tycoon in 1874 and [...]

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Racing Through Time: The Pittsburgh Vintage Grand Prix

By |2024-02-06T10:16:01-05:00July 15th, 2017|Articles, Blog|

Did you know... the Pittsburgh Vintage Grand Prix, started in 1982, is the largest and longest continually-running vintage sports car race in the United States? Ten days of events ranging from parades, galas, country cruising tours, and specialized car shows culminate into a competitive road race on the challenging, serpentine roads through Schenley Park. Sunday spectators are treated to 150 [...]

Seattle Architectural Foundation Walking Tour

By |2024-02-06T10:13:46-05:00May 15th, 2017|Articles, Blog|

During my last trip to Seattle, the Executive Director of the Seattle Architectural Foundation hooked me up with a private walking tour around downtown. I had the pleasure of spending two hours with Eva Weaver, one of SAF's deeply knowledgeable tour guides. The customized tour focused on Art Deco skyscrapers in the Northwest style, built in the late 1920s [...]

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A Modern Grande Dame: Boston Harbor Hotel

By |2023-01-26T16:46:45-05:00January 5th, 2017|Articles, Blog|

This waterfront building has always held a particular allure for me.  The enormous flag billowing in the archway. The perfect location between harbor and city. Back door airport water taxi service. For decades, I admired this hotel from afar. It was now time to see what all the hubbub is about, especially after reading about the massive [...]

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