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Glancer Magazine
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Chicago West

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CELEBRATING THE GRAND REOPENING OF THIS REMODELED ICONIC LANDMARK Glancer Magazine was on the scene as one of the first in the Chicagoland area to see the remodeled iconic Park Hyatt Chicago  property, a landmark in Chicago since 1980.  This one-of-a-kind retreat, that embodied understated luxury and has served as a home away from home for years, just recently reopened after a $60M transformation. The Grand Reopening Event, "Where the World Sees Chicago and Chicago Sees the World ", was a multi-floor, experiential unveiling of the stunning transformation of the ultra-luxury property. The evening featured an indulgent culinary journey crafted by NoMI, a special live art activation by Chicago artist, Damiane Nickles , and an exclusive, interactive live performance of "Orbits", specially curated for Park Hyatt Chicago by the famed Joffrey Ballet  and performed by the Company’s new contemporary ballet program, Joffrey Academy of Dance. Local Chicago floral artist, Taxaflora  adorned the hotel lobby and created a beautiful floral wall for guests to take photos.  Attendees included Glancer Magazine’s  own Kristen Kucharski  and Naperville North graduate and Executive Producer Jason C. Morgan.  The pair was greeted with NoMI signature handcrafted cocktails, featuring The Franklin. Guests were then led to a sprawling seafood spread & raw bar featuring king crab legs, oysters, and freshly made sushi rolls; pan roasted chilean sea bass & wagyu ribeye live plated for guests through NoMI's open show kitchen.  Halfway through the evening, those in attendance were surprised with a guerilla-style performance by the Joffrey Ballet, which led to an exclusive preview of an enchanting "Orbits" dance piece.  Guests were then treated to guided tours of the newly reimagined Presidential Suite on the 18th floor, encouraged to experience the spirit of the redesigned guest rooms & suites, whose opulent details, naturally soothing color palette, and spa-like bath amenities, draw elements of a residential oasis rooted in luxury. Within the suite, a live painting activation, inspired by the Park Hyatt Chicago's harmony with Lake Michigan and its surrounding parks, was performed by Chicago artist, Damiane Nickles.  As a takeaway from the event, guests were presented with lavish gift bags that included a '1-of-75' piece of art from Damiane Nickles, a bottle of Park Hyatt’s signature scent by Le Labo, Bergamote 22 , and house made chocolates & caramels from NoMI’s Pastry Sous Chef Solange Austin . TRAVEL + LEISURE BUSINESS CHICAGO

TRAVEL + LEISURE | Park Hyatt Chicago WOWs with $60M Renovations

Celebrating the Grand Reopening of this Remodeled Iconic Landmark

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LIGHTHHOUSE IMMERSIVE STUDIOS AND WAKLT DISNEY ANIMATION ARE BRINGING A NEW IMMERSIVE EXPERIENCE TO 9 LIGHTHOUSE ARTSPACES ACROSS NORTH AMERICA TORONTO– Walt Disney Animation Studios recently announced that it will collaborate with Lighthouse Immersive Studios,  the producers of the blockbuster Immersive Van Gogh , to develop Disney Animation: Immersive Experience ,  which is going to Lighthouse ArtSpace venues across North America in late 2022/early 2023. Tickets to this one-of-a-kind immersive experience start at $39.99 and went on sale at the following local times in each market at disneyimmersive.com  on Wednesday: 
 
 Disney Animation: Immersive Experience – Courtesy of Lighthouse Immersive Studios Toronto  | 10 a.m. ET Denver  | 10:30 a.m. MT Cleveland  | 11 a.m. ET Detroit | 11:30 a.m. ET Boston  | 12 p.m. ET Nashville  | 12:30 p.m. CT Columbus  | 1 p.m. ET Minneapolis | 1 p.m. CT San Antonio  | 1:30 p.m. CT Creating iconic animated stories for all ages for nearly a century, Walt Disney Animation Studios will join forces with North America's top creator of experiential projection exhibitions to present the music and artistry within Disney Animation's canon of films—from hits of today like Encanto, Zootopia  and Frozen , to all of the classics including The Lion King, Peter Pan  and Pinocchio.  Audiences will feel like they've entered the incredible worlds of beloved Disney characters and become one with them. 
 The opening dates for each city are as follows: Toronto  | Dec. 21, 2022 Cleveland  | Jan. 19, 2023 Nashville  | Feb. 9, 2023 Detroit | Feb. 9, 2023 Denver  | Feb. 16, 2023 Boston  | Feb. 23, 2023 San Antonio  | Feb. 28, 2023 Minneapolis | March 23, 2022 Columbus  | April 6, 2023 Additional cities are currently being scheduled and Tokyo will be the first city outside of North America to receive Disney Animation: Immersive Experience . 
 "The collaboration with Lighthouse Immersive is a first for Disney Animation," said Clark Spencer, president, Walt Disney Animation Studios and two-time Academy Award®-winner ( Encanto, Zootopia). "It's a dream to bring the best of animated storytelling together with the top experts in the immersive art experience. We can't wait for audiences around the world, of all ages, to experience the great moments from our legacy of feature films in this incredible way." 
 "Like so many of us, I have a life-long love of Disney films," said Lighthouse Immersive founder Corey Ross . "I've grown up with them since childhood and so has my family. The work lends itself brilliantly to the immersive experience and I am confident this program will give our guests the opportunity to be engulfed in the world of Disney, making them feel like they're standing next to their favorite characters and seeing the world through their eyes." 
 The creative team for the Disney Animation: Immersive Experience  is led by Oscar®-winning producer  J. Miles Dale  (Best Picture 2018 - The Shape of Water ) who said, "Trailblazing in a new medium is always exciting, and this is truly going to be the most challenging and rewarding project of my career. Being entrusted with Disney's rich archive of animation is a great honor, but also a tremendous responsibility. With such a wealth of material and a treasure trove of memorable characters, it will be a thrill to bring the work of all the great Disney animators and performers to life in a 360-degree immersive environment." Mexico City-based Cocolab  is working with Dale and the Creative Legacy team at Walt Disney Animation Studios to develop the program for Lighthouse Immersive Studios. Special Projects Producer Dorothy McKim  (Oscar-nominated, Get A Horse! ) is spearheading the project for Disney Animation. 
 The audience experience will be further enhanced by Lighthouse Immersive's Global Creative Director David Korins , (Tony Award®-nominee whose credits include more than 20 Broadway shows including Hamilton , and an Emmy Award® winner for Grease Live ). Korins will develop never-before-seen interactive lobby elements that guests can enjoy before or after entering the gallery. 
 Ross captures the excitement both Disney and Lighthouse Immersive feel for the project as he describes how it begins: "Just imagine journeying through Zootopia with Judy Hopps, diving to the ocean floor with Ariel, flying on a magic carpet with Aladdin, and stepping into Casita with Mirabel and the family Madrigal. This is where the Disney Animation: Immersive Experience will take you." 
 Collaborating with Lighthouse Immersive is the Creative Legacy team of Walt Disney Animation Studios, helping bring their library of films to audiences in a manner never before experienced. 
 ABOUT WALT DISNEY ANIMATION STUDIOS: 
 Combining masterful artistry and storytelling with groundbreaking technology, Walt Disney Animation Studios is a filmmaker-driven animation studio responsible for creating some of the most beloved films ever made. WDAS continues to build on its rich legacy of innovation and creativity, from the first fully-animated feature film, 1937's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, to 2019's Frozen 2, the biggest animated film of all time, to our 60th animated feature, the Academy Award®-winning Encanto . Among the studio's timeless creations are Pinocchio, Sleeping Beauty, The Jungle Book, The Little Mermaid, The Lion King, Frozen, Big Hero 6  and Zootopia. 
 ABOUT LIGHTHOUSE IMMERSIVE: 
 Lighthouse Immersive creates, produces and distributes innovative digital immersive art experiences through its experiential multiplex digital art galleries, aiming to cultivate community and creativity through large-scale events and exhibitions of all art forms. Lighthouse Immersive has produced the world premieres of Immersive Van Gogh, Immersive Frida Kahlo, Immersive King Tut and Immersive Klimt: Revolution  in more than 21 North American cities, including Toronto, New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago, Dallas, Las Vegas, Boston and Denver, and is currently expanding into additional markets. To date, they have sold over 5 million tickets to Immersive Van Gogh across North America, with Artnet calling it "one of the largest coordinated art phenomena of all time." TRAVEL + LEISURE ARTS + ENTERTAINMENT FAMILY TIME

TRAVEL + LEISURE | Highly Anticipated Disney Animation: Immersive Experience Now Available

Lighthouse Immersive Studios and Walt Disney Animation Studios Bring New Immersive Experience to 9 Lighthouse ArtSpace Venues Across the U.S

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2022 MAY BE THE YEAR THAT TRAVEL REALLY COMES BACK Overseas Adventure Travel (O.A.T.) , the leader in personalized small group and solo-friendly travel for Americans ages 50+, announced its top 4 travel themes for the year ahead. 
 "Our travelers are very optimistic about 2022," said Brian FitzGerald, Chief Marketing Officer of O.A.T. "From seasoned travelers to solos traveling on their own for the first time, people are making plans to start seeing the world again, especially those places that they've vowed to see in their lifetimes." "Our travelers are very optimistic about 2022," said Brian FitzGerald, Chief Marketing Officer of O.A.T. 
 O.A.T. resumed travel in July 2021 and brought 11,000 travelers to more than 30 countries. In 2022, nearly 69,000 travelers have reserved travel with O.A.T., which typically offers travel to 85 countries. 
 O.A.T. Top 4 Travel Themes for 2022: 
 Solo surge – Never dreamt of traveling solo? 2022 could be your year to test the waters. Many people who put their dreams on hold because a friend or spouse couldn't join are no longer waiting. They are stepping out of their comfort zones and booking solo. Blame it on the pandemic and being cooped up for too long. 
 
 O.A.T. has seen a 17% uptick in the number of solo travelers since 2019.  The company just added 2,000 more single spaces in 2022—92% of which have free single supplements. 
 
 Solo travelers -- the majority of whom are women with O.A.T. -- often find small group tours appealing because they meet and spend time with others easily when they want. 
 Small ship s – Sailing with fewer people is attractive to travelers in 2022 . At O.A.T., bookings for small ships in 2022 are up 10% compared to 2019. More than 14,000 travelers are scheduled to travel with O.A.T. through 2022.  
 
 Travelers are attracted to travel by small ship for the opportunity to visit more remote and smaller ports with smaller vessels. There is also the chance to mingle in small groups with locals in a less touristy way. That doesn't happen when hundreds of passengers disembark from a large ship. 
 Sustainable travel – " How can we travel more responsibly?" It's a many-faceted question that is gaining traction with travelers of all ages. Travelers' interest in environmental travel dovetails with initiatives such as the Glasgow Declaration on Climate Action in Tourism, which is spurring on the travel industry to track and improve travel's impact on the environment. 
 
 For some travelers, sustainable travel involves ecological conservation. For others, it is seeking out destinations where their travel dollars will have a positive impact on the local community – for example, benefitting its economic development. 
 
 Travelers are highly interested in O.A.T.'s Arctic Expedition: Untamed Norway & Svalbard  and Ultimate Galápagos Exploration & Ecuador's Amazon Wilds , for example. 
 Longer trips –  Some travelers want to make the most of the airfare . Others feel the urge to make up for lost time due to the pandemic. They want to feel truly immersed in a different culture and have more opportunities to engage with the locals.  The result? Longer trips planned for 2022. 
 
 At O.A.T., 55% of solo travelers reserved for future travel have opted to arrive early before a trip or stay later after the tour concludes. Extending a trip by arriving early can help a traveler to acclimate before a tour begins. Staying later after the group departs allows time for a traveler to do some independent exploring and savor the experience a bit longer. More than 87,000 travelers – nearly half of them solo travelers – currently have reservations with O.A.T. across 85 itineraries. With 2023 departures of many adventures already open, nearly 9,000 are looking ahead to traveling then. 
 
 O.A.T. provides travelers over 50 with impactful, intercultural experiences that help change people's lives. O.A.T. fosters an intimate and accessible experience, with groups limited to 16 travelers (average of 13) by land and 25 (average of 22) by sea. 
 For a free catalog or more information about O.A.T., please visit www.oattravel.com  or call 1-800-955-1925. TRAVEL + LEISURE DUPAGE KANE KENDALL

TRAVEL + LEISURE | Overseas Adventure Travel Shares Top 4 Travel Trends for 2022

2022 May Be the Year that Travel Comes Back

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POPULAR WISCONSIN DELLS ATTRACTION ON LAKE DELTON CLOSES AFTER 7 DECADES Sad news today for Wisconsin Dells tourists and area residents as one of Wisconsin’s top tourist attractions closes after 70 years of entertaining. Earlier, The Tommy Bartlett show announced that it will now be closed for good due to losing he 2020 season because of the pandemic. 
 Tommy Bartlett started the show in 1952 as a touring water ski exposition and has been featured at Lake Delton since 1953. The show has seen hard times before, such as when the lake was drained in 2008 due to heavy rains in the area. But COVID-19 is one storm that the company was not able to withstand, sadly. The Tommy Bartlett Show has always collected all of its revenue between the Memorial Day and Labor Day Weekends and without operating this year, Tom Biehl, the organization's president, simply described the decision as "horrendous". It will be sad to see this one go. 
 
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TRAVEL + LEISURE | Tommy Bartlett Show Closes for Good Due to COVID-19 Pandemic

POPULAR WISCONSIN DELLS ATTRACTION ON LAKE DELTON CLOSES AFTER 7 DECADES Sad news today for Wisconsin Dells tourists and area residents...

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SO MANY THINGS TO LOVE ABOUT THIS HISTORICAL BEAUTY 
 
 Millennium Knickerbocker Chicago 
 
 While many know Green Mill Cocktail Lounge was a spot favorited by mobster Al Capone in the 1920’s, Chicagoans may be surprised to learn the history of another destination frequented by notable personalities from the past century.  Located in Streeterville just off of Michigan Avenue, the historic property now home to Millennium Knickerbocker Chicago has served lively purposes since its construction in 1927. Al Capone’s brother once ran a casino on the Penthouse Floor, and in the ’70s, the property had a stint as the Playboy Towers. The building housed the editorial and business offices of Playboy. The hotel has also hosted such luminaries as John F. Kennedy, Richard Nixon and the Rolling Stones.  Today, locals and visitors can sip on a dirty martini at Knickerbocker Chicago’s 1920’s-inspired martini bar and envision the lives of those who once walked the halls. The overall design of the hotel embodies “Old Chicago” with unique accents including ornate chandeliers and vintage furniture in the lobby. The hotel’s Crystal Ballroom, covered by a gold-gilded domed ceiling, exemplifies the design from the glamorous Roaring Twenties.  For guests staying at the hotel, the property is conveniently located near the shops on Michigan Avenue, 360 Chicago Observation Deck at John Hancock and the Museum of Contemporary Art. During the summer months, guests can easily walk to Oak Street Beach or Millennium Park to experience the various outdoor concerts and festivals.  #GlancerMagazine #Chicago #TravelLeisure #ArtsEntertainment #VintageInspired #TheKnickerbockerHotel #February152018 #February12018

TRAVEL + LEISURE | A Chicago Time Staycation

SO MANY THINGS TO LOVE ABOUT THIS HISTORICAL BEAUTY Millennium Knickerbocker Chicago While many know Green Mill Cocktail Lounge was a...

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