Latest news with #TheBellevue
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Exclusive: Amanda Seyfried on the New 'Mamma Mia'—and Why She's Going to Target for Her 40th Birthday
When it comes to family travel, Amanda Seyfried is not about sugarcoating reality. 'I literally try not to travel with my kids because it's stressful,' the actress told Travel + Leisure about her daughter Nina, 8, and son Thomas, 4. Case in point: While flying back home to New York after visiting her sister in Los Angeles, her son threw up for the first time in his life—in the middle of a flight. 'We were still two hours from landing and he had just eaten lasagna, so just imagine,' she said. He also vomited again on the car ride home, and to make matters worse, Seyfried caught the stomach bug herself once she was home. Seyfried said there's "literally no secret' to surviving a long flight with kids, and admits it's often all about keeping her youngest one occupied on a device. She opted for the Amazon Kindle Fire, which "you can throw around and [it] won't break.' Her first-hand experiences are exactly what inspired the Mamma Mia star to create the Make it Cute Playhouse Experience at Philadelphia's The Bellevue hotel. Designed for families with young ones, the suite stay includes a welcome kit, Levain cookies, valet parking, and most importantly, an assembled plastic-free playhouse from Make It Cute, the company Seyfried founded with her childhood friends in 2021. The best part? Families can take the playhouse home with them when they check out. 'Any good hotel makes you feel like there's a familiarity and coziness,' Seyfried said. 'Having these really cute playhouses is incredibly distracting for the kids, so the parents can unpack and have some semblance of peace—not to say that you don't have peace when you have kids, but it's harder to find.' She says the play houses don't just give kids something to do, but that it also gives little ones their own space since, "hotel rooms just aren't geared for kids to have fun.' Seyfried grew up in Allentown, Pennsylvania, a small city about 60 miles northwest of Philadelphia, and was excited to collaborate on a project with such an iconic property in her home state. Located in Philly's tony City Center neighborhood, The Bellevue was founded in 1904, and was once considered one of the most glamorous and luxurious hotels in the country. 'I love collaborating with something that's so Philly, born and bred," she said of The Bellvue. "It's such a beloved landmark." She hopes the hotel package will help ease the burdens of traveling with children—something she's been doing ever since becoming a mother. In fact, she filmed "Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again" on location right after her daughter was born. 'She doesn't remember any of it, but she turned six months when we were on the island of Vis in Croatia,' Seyfried said. 'It was just crazy to have a baby in a tiny village on an island—we had to bring all of our diapers beforehand!'Aisle or window? in your hometown of Allentown, Pennsylvania?You can't visit Allentown without going to Mary Ann Donut Kitchen and Yocco's hot dogs. You just can' spot where you live in Upstate New York?Overlook Mountain in Woodstock, because you can hike to the top, and then go up the water tower, where you can see all of the Catskills—sometimes even further. You're just on top of the world up there. It's magic. There's also an abandoned hotel that's [made of only] stone halfway through the place you've filmed?It's a hard one, but I think I have to say Skopelos, Greece, for "Mamma Mia." Verona for "Letters to Juliet" was also a really beautiful place to live, and I found it to be so welcoming and warm, and the food was epic. It's a very livable city, and every perfect little town in Italy has a do you hope the third 'Mamma Mia' will film?It's going to go back to Greece. I know that, not for a fact, but it will. We need to bring it home. But it would be so fun if "Mamma Mia 3" filmed on a new island in Greece or Croatia where I haven't been has been a big part of Seyfried's daughter's life from an early age. They've mostly centered around Seyfried's work, plus occasional family trips. 'It's just so easy to travel with her now,' Seyfried admits. 'She's 8, but she's like a little adult.' Their first true family vacation was to Budapest, and they even brought their dog, who had to travel with 80 pounds of special JustFoodForDogs meals. They also considered taking their bearded dragon along, but ultimately decided against it. 'My second kid is a pandemic baby, and it was wild bringing him overseas last year,' she said. 'It was a pain to get there, but everything falls away once you land and you're like, 'We live in a crazy, beautiful world with a lot of amazing people.'' Once the family was there and settled in, Seyfried realized that the Hungarian capital was pretty kid-friendly, and she loved taking her children to its beautiful parks. Seeing her kids interact with other children was especially moving to her. "You realize that kids have the capacity to relate and can communicate with anybody," Seyfried said. "It was just the most beautiful thing in the world ... Kids need to see things, meet people, and swim in oceans and engage in things that aren't home.' When she was a child herself, Seyfried developed a deep love for travel, especially for trains. One time, after driving to Florida from Allentown, the Seyfried family took the Auto Train back. 'I just remember thinking, this is heaven on Earth, because we're just going so fast from south to north, with our big minivan on the train somewhere,' she said. She still loves trains and takes the Amtrak weekly from her upstate home to New York City. She enjoys watching the views along the Hudson River. 'If you get the right seat, getting into the city that way is just so romantic,' Seyfried said. She's also a fan of the 'beautiful' new Moynihan Train Hall, where she likes to pick up mini-cupcakes from Magnolia Bakery for her kids. But despite being a certified world traveler, when it comes to her 40th birthday, she's planning on keeping it local. 'I'm gonna travel 25 minutes to my local Target,' she said. 'My friends are coming in from the city, all girls—no offense, boys—and we're going to get brunch and get a little tipsy. I'm gonna have cash on hand for everybody, and they have to spend it all. That's my plan. Everybody who's invited knows about it!' Even though she's staying in town for her birthday, Seyfried knows the transformative power that travel can have—and she wants her kids to experience it as much as they can. 'I'm entering a period of my life where I am responsible for making sure my family travels, but I just feel like there's never a right time because of work,' she said. 'But I know once we land in the Serengeti, Tokyo, Oslo, or Buenos Aires, it'll be just epic. With kids, it doesn't ever feel like the right time. Just book the tickets and travel.' Read the original article on Travel & Leisure
Skift
3 days ago
- Business
- Skift
Five Key Hotels and Venues Opening in the Northeast
The Northeast has always been one of the most sought-after hotel markets in the U.S., with planners reporting little room for negotiation. These five new/newly renovated properties are also certain to be in high demand. The long-awaited reopening of the Waldorf Astoria has again been delayed to the fall, with planners eager to get a peek at the Art Deco Park Avenue landmark, the flagship of Hilton's Waldorf Astoria Hotels & Resorts brand. Already highly sought-after is Convene's new location in Hudson Yards, which is set to reopen in September, with views of the city's iconic skyline from the 24th floor. Both Boston and Philadelphia, the Northeast's most popular markets after New York, are seeing renovations of historic properties as well. Here's what's new in the Northeast, and take a look at our just-released report on 135 hotels for meetings and incentive travel here. Explore 135 exceptional new properties hand-picked for meeting and incentive planners The Bellevue The Bellevue Philadelphia, PA The Bellevue, a historic hotel in downtown Philadelphia, reopened in February 2025 after a full renovation. It offers 184 redesigned guest rooms, including 39 suites. The hotel has 30,000 square feet of meeting and event space across three floors, including the Grand Belle Ballroom and several historic rooms with original architectural details. It also features a rooftop restaurant, a large wellness center, and access to coworking and social spaces at The Sporting Club. Convene 30 Hudson Yards New York, NY Opening in September 2025, Convene 30 Hudson Yards offers panoramic skyline views from the 24th floor. The venue provides 72,000 square feet of event space, with the largest room capable of holding 780, theater-style. A total of seven separate event spaces can be used simultaneously, complemented by six smaller meeting rooms. The dedicated lobby on the ground floor of the retail center provides guests with an easy entry experience, and access to shopping and dining. Margaritaville Resort Cape Cod Hyannis, MA Margaritaville Resort Cape Cod is a coastal resort in Cape Cod, Massachusetts. The resort opened late last year and offers 276 guest rooms and more than 12,000 square feet of meeting and event space, including four meeting rooms that can be divided into a total of seven indoor meeting spaces. On-site amenities include a 30,000-square-foot waterpark, three food and beverage outlets, an outdoor courtyard and pool, and a spa that is opening in late 2025. Omni Parker House Boston, MA Omni Parker House, located in downtown Boston, is undergoing a full renovation, set for completion in summer 2025. The hotel offers 23,000 square feet of meeting space across 18 rooms, including the 3,513-square-foot Rooftop Ballroom with skyline views. Its design blends historic charm with modern updates across 551 guest rooms. Situated on the Freedom Trail, the hotel provides a classic setting for meetings in the city's historic core. Waldorf Astoria New York New York, NY The Waldorf Astoria New York will soon reopen following an extensive restoration that preserves its historic Art Deco features. The hotel will offer 375 spacious rooms and suites and 43,000 square feet of event space. The largest room is the opera-inspired Grand Ballroom, with three additional large rooms and eight smaller boardrooms also available. Guests can enjoy a 30,000-square-foot spa, fitness center, and three new restaurants and bars.
