As you may or may not know, my most favorite interior designer of the past is the theatrically minded Dorothy Draper who coined the phrase, “Banish the beige!” And one of my most favorite hotels is The Greenbrier in White Sulphur Springs, West Virginia that just so happens to have been designed by the legendary DD. Unlike so many hotels that have undergone the cosmetic knife, stripping them of their historic and decades-old décor for cookie-cutter sleek and contemporary banality, The Greenbrier has maintained its timeless Draper décor from the 1940s, albeit a décor that is constantly refreshed and gussied-up by Draper protégé Carleton Varney. (Check out Carleton’s wonderful home goods on HSN)
The hotel is a wonderland in every sense: It offers every activity and amenity under the sun, from golf to tennis and horseback riding to sublime spa treatments. There are stunning restaurants and drop-dead public spaces (the lobby is truly my version of heaven) and glorious gardens and grounds. This summer will see the opening of the hotel’s Dorothy Draper-inspired Tavern casino, so that should add yet another element of interest to the property. As one friend at the hotel tells me, “It’s James Bond meets Hollywood Regency.”
“Craps!” is what I say. Wow, wow and wow!
Bring on the blackjack and the Blackglama, I will be zipping down to the legendary resort to check out the new doings.
And take note: As of June 10, Delta will offer direct flights from New York’s La Guardia Airport to Lewisburg, West Virginia, and the flights are cheap, cheap, cheap. I checked online today, and the round-trip fare was a stunning $109 each way.