His Home Was A Castle - Biltmore House

Biltmore, the opulent 250-room French Renaissance chateau, nestled in North Carolina’s Blue Ridge Mountains, was the vision of George Washington Vanderbilt, carried out by renowned architect Richard Morris Hunt. Construction began in 1889 and the opulent estate, with grounds designed by Frederick Law Olmsted, was opened on Christmas Eve in 1895 to family and friends.

Read More
Kevin Durst Kevin Durst

On Italy’s Amalfi Coast - Amalfi, Atrani, Capri & Anacapri

The Amalfi Coast is a group of towns on the rugged southern Italian coast, each town offering something a little different. I think the area is one of the most beautiful parts of the world. Towns nestled in steep cliffs that flow down to the shimmering blue sea.

Read More

Inspired By Versaille’s Garden Retreat - Marble House, Newport, RI

William K. Vanderbilt chose architect Richard Morris Hunt to design the 39th birthday present he wanted to give to his wife, Alva. It would be call Marble House and was to be built on Newport’s fashionable Bellevue Avenue. Richard Morris Hunt was the first American educated at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts in Paris.

Read More
Cute Downtowns Kevin Durst Cute Downtowns Kevin Durst

Part Of The Borscht Belt - Catskill NY

The village of Catskill, a historic river town located along the banks of the mighty Hudson, was incorporated in 1806. New Yorkers would head to the Borscht Belt to sunbathe, swim, dance, and dine during the summer months and the area soon became known as the Jewish vacationland.

Read More