Amazing Hotels: Life Beyond the Lobby
Season 3
2020 • 6 Episodes
Food critic Giles Coren and chef Monica Galetti are back to check into even more of the world's most sumptuous hotels and discover just how they function. With access to every inch of these stunning establishments, they’ll work alongside hotel staff and rub shoulders with guests to see how these unique places offer unforgettable experiences and unfathomable luxury to their ultra-rich clientele.
Episodes
1. MGM Cotai, Macau
July 14, 2020
Monica and Giles travel to the self-governing Chinese city of Macau, which is the gambling capital of the world, welcoming millions of Chinese visitors every year. Joining the 6,000 staff of its newest super-hotel, the MGM Cotai, Monica gets special access to The Mansion, a secret VIP world of huge suites where even money can’t buy a stay. Giles flies through the air in one of the world’s most technologically advanced theatres and helps create the floral displays for Chinese New Year.
2. The Torridon, Scotland
July 21, 2020
Monica Galetti and Giles Coren visit the Scottish Highlands to work at The Torridon, Britain's most northerly five star hotel. Its need to balance a luxury stay with being self-sufficient has Monica collecting sea-weed for the kitchen and helping to herd Highland Cattle. Meanwhile, Giles learns to change toilet seats and joins the staff in their afternoon off for a swim in the beautiful but freezing cold loch.
3. Schloss Elmau, Germany
July 28, 2020
In this episode, Monica Galetti and Giles Coren visit Schloss Elmau, a hotel deep in the snowy Bavarian Alps that claims to be a cultural hideaway and restore their guests mind, body and soul. Monica joins in the daily meditation session for the restaurant staff, and Giles recites poetry and travels to a mountain hut to serve dinner, while dressed in lederhosen. They join the hotel guests for an evening of world-renowned musicians playing for free.
4. Jade Mountain, St Lucia
February 11, 2021
Monica Galetti and Giles Coren visit Jade Mountain, a hand-built hotel in St Lucia where each room has no outer wall and so is open to the ocean view - as well as having its own private infinity pool. Giles finds that room service here is tougher than it seems, and Monica dives for lionfish, which they both serve to guests visiting especially to have their wedding on the beach.
5. Swinton Estate, Yorkshire
February 18, 2021
Monica Galetti and Giles Coren visit the Yorkshire Dales to work at Swinton Estate, the ancestral home of Lord and Lady Masham. By taking a look the heart of the grand house and its countryside charm, as well as the wider estate, which has opened up to for guests to enjoy, Monica and Giles learn about the challenges of making history pay in the modern world.
6. Shangri-La, London
March 11, 2021
Monica Galetti and Giles Coren stay in the city they live in to work at the Shangri-La Hotel, in Britain's highest hotel. Their expectations of a standard business guest experience are blown away by discovering a hotel that makes guests' personal moments special. From bath butlers to marriage proposals, the hotel is a resort for celebrations in the clouds.