What’s your favorite movie genre? Perhaps you enjoy the thrill of horror, or maybe you prefer indulging in a good cry over a tragic romance. Regardless of your preference, one thing’s for certain—films yield power over our emotions.
Creating a memorable experience is the biggest challenge when planning an event. Since people hold movies so near and dear to their hearts, incorporating a filming location might just do the trick. The following hotels made their star debuts in favorite films. Here’s a close look, by genre, at big-screen properties.
Science Fiction: Atlanta Marriott Marquis
Movie: The Hunger Games: Catching Fire
Meeting space: 160,000 sq. ft.
Guest rooms: 1,663
The tribute quarters and training center from the second installment of the four-part series required a grand filming site. Atlanta Marriott Marquis’ atrium fit the bill. At one point, the atrium was the largest in the world. Plus, its glass elevators and magnificent architecture gives it an extra dose of magnificence. The tribute quarters can be found on the 10th floor.
Horror: Timberline Lodge, Mount Hood, Oregon
Movie: The Shining
Meeting space: The largest space (Mount Hood Room) has 1,290 sq. ft.
Guest rooms: 76
The ever-terrifying tale is largely associated with the Stanley Hotel, as Stephen King has cited it as inspiration for the fictional Overlook Hotel. But filming for the movie took place at another hotel. The Timberline Lodge on Mount Hood was used for establishing and exterior shots—so beware of spooky flashbacks!
Drama: Park Hyatt Tokyo
Movie: Lost in Translation
Meeting space: 10,000 sq. ft.
Guest rooms: 177
The five-star hotel is located in central Tokyo. The area was beautifully showcased in the Oscar-winning film Lost in Translation. Sights characteristic of the city, such as bright neon lights and Mount Fuji in the distance, were abundant throughout the flick. There’s one special place, in particular, that visitors can explore—New York Bar on the 52nd floor of Park Hyatt Tokyo. In the film, this is where Bob (Bill Murray) and Charlotte (Scarlett Johansson) first met.
Comedy: Caesars Palace, Las Vegas
Movie: The Hangover
Meeting space: 300,000 sq. ft.
Guest rooms: 2,419
Few things are as quintessential Vegas as Caesars Palace, or The Hangover. So, naturally, the pairing was showcased in the 2009 comedic hit. In the film, a group of friends (Bradley Cooper, Ed Helms and Zach Galifianakis) have a wild night in Las Vegas for a bachelor party. The hotel is featured in various shots of the lobby, pools, roof, reception and suite. In case, like the characters, you also need to jog your memory, the group memorably wakes up to a live tiger in Caesars Palace. Don’t worry, though—no one at the hotel was harmed during the making of the film.
Action: Wyndham Grand Chicago
Movie: The Dark Knight
Meeting space: 16,000 sq. ft.
Guest rooms: 334
Formerly known as Hotel 71, Wyndham Grand Chicago Riverfront is home to Bruce Wayne’s (Christian Bale’s) glamorous apartment in The Dark Knight. More specifically, the hotel’s penthouse ballroom on the 39th floor stood in as his chic lair. The floor-to-ceiling windows steal the show when the Joker (Heath Ledger) crashes Harvey Dent’s (Aaron Eckhart’s) function.
Romance: Beverly Wilshire, a Four Seasons Hotel
Movie: Pretty Woman
Meeting space: 25,000 sq. ft.
Guest rooms: 395
Beverly Wilshire is so heavily associated with the iconic film that some people even refer to it as the “Pretty Woman Hotel.” The exterior is the only part of the hotel that makes an appearance, but the filmmaker modeled interior sets on the guest rooms. You can also relive the 1990 hit during your stay, as the hotel keeps a copy of Pretty Woman in its library.
