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We specialize in
Frank Lloyd Wright
World-class presentations & curated adventures, featuring architect Frank Lloyd Wright. Led by Wright expert, Timothy Totten.
this is our "itinerary" and is subject to change
Fallingwater & More!
Our tour kicks off at the Hyatt Regency Airport Hotel conveniently connected to the Pittsburgh International Airport. This central location makes it easy for guests arriving by plane that day and for others who have already spent a few days in the area to find us.
We will gather for a wonderful dinner (all described meals are included with tour price) and talk by a Frank Lloyd Wright expert. Then we'll spread out on a full-size motor coach (room for 50+ but our tour is limited to just 24) for a 2-hour drive south to Uniontown, Pennsylvania. There, we'll find accommodations at a well-appointed hotel and rest up for our first full day.
Day two begins bright and early with a complimentary breakfast at the hotel and then a 40-minute trip through the winding hills of Southwestern Pennsylvania to Fallingwater, the summer residence that Frank Lloyd Wright designed for the Kaufmann family. Situated in the middle of more than 5,000 acres of preserved wilderness, Fallingwater has been meticulously preserved and protected since it was donated to the Western Pennsylvania Conservancy in the 1960's. After checking in at the visitors center and receiving our tour assignments, guests will be free to walk the grounds, visit temporary installations in the gallery, and shop in the well-appointed gift shop before reporting at the specified location for their guided tour. While other visitors can walk the grounds, only reserved groups are taken down to the house and led in through the hidden front door to experience the majestic interior spaces of Fallingwater. The special tour, which covers nearly 1.5 hours, allows limited interior photography on the first floor of the main residence and unlimited exterior photos. While the official tour is subject to change based upon the staff at Fallingwater, our guests typically accompany their guide to all floors of the main house and to the entire guest house at the top of the property.
Guests are strongly encouraged to extend their time at Fallingwater by walking the marked paths along to the historic lookout point below the falls, where the famous photo of Fallingwater can be taken and guests can get their own souvenir photo posing with the famous house. (Selfies or photos by someone else in the group, as there is no official photographer at that location.)
After a few hours soaking in the magnificent home, we'll board our coach again and seek lunch at an Ohiopyle restaurant in the area before heading to the wonderful Kentuck Knob home, also designed by Frank Lloyd Wright. Less famous than its neighbor just fifteen minutes away, Kentuck Knob brings Wright's ideas of Usonian living to life and boasts some amazing natural and artistic features of its own. The home, now owned by a former member of the British House of Lords, has been preserved as the original owners intended and features a world-class art collection of installed interior art and an extensive sculpture collection scattered throughout the forested property. Our in-depth tour at Kentuck Knob includes not only a scoop of famous Hagan Ice Cream - the occupation of the original owners - but full access to all parts of the home, including a seldom-seen Frank Lloyd Wright basement. The property is full of sculptures, including pieces of the Berlin Wall.
Day two concludes with a dinner at a delightful Uniontown restaurant and then a return to the hotel to prep for day three.
Our final tour day begins again with an included breakfast at our accommodating hotel and then checkout to board the coach. Our driver will then expertly whisk us away to Acme, a trip of less than an hour, to visit an exciting center for architectural preservation called Polymath Park. Designed originally as a retreat for Pittsburgh-area families, Polymath Park found new owners more than a decade ago who have sought to use the 130+ acres to save and restore architecturally-significant buildings. The site now boasts two Frank Lloyd Wright homes that were saved from destruction and moved to the park, as well as two homes by Peter Berendtsen, a Wright apprentice, and soon a home by Wright's eldest son, Lloyd Wright.
Our group will arrive at the visitor's center, conveniently located on the bottom floor of the delightful Treetops Restaurant, which is also operated by Polymath Park owners Tom and Heather. Our group will then tour both Wright homes and at least one apprentice site before returning to the restaurant for a refreshing lunch prepared with local ingredients prepared by Treetops' expert chefs.
After lunch, we'll board our coach again for our return trip to the Pittsburgh Airport. Guests can choose to book a flight home Sunday evening or extend their trip, utilizing our list of suggestions for local cultural and architectural attractions in the area.
timothy totten spoke at westhope on may 25, 2022
Timothy Totten spoke at Westhope in Tulsa, Oklahoma, a private home, on May 25th, 2022
See the video from Fox 23 News in Tulsa, Oklahoma, May 9, 2022: Tim presented at the Tulsa Historical Society on May 26th.
Click here for more press about the talks Tim gave in Tulsa, including a private fundraising event at Westhope on May 25, 2022.
www.TulsaHistory.org www.TulsaArchitecture.org www.Fox23.com www.Tulsa.tours/westhope
TESTIMONIALs
Our Guests Enjoy Our Adventures!
"I was one of the lucky group to attend this weekend's trip to Fallingwater and Polymath Park. Architecture Travel Companion does a great job of organizing every detail--fine food, fascinating lecture, friendly people! Tim and Robin ensure that every aspect is smoothly run! They deliver what they promise!" ~ Dottie Hetzel
When a prospective travel guest reached out and wanted to hear from previous guests, we sent an email out to several folks and this is what she heard from one couple: "Hi Jean, I wanted to send you a note about my Husband Edwin's and my experience doing one of the Wright architectural tours. Ours was up to Fallingwater and western PA. At ages 61 and 69 respectively, this was our very first ever "tour", after a lifetime of previously travelling always on our own time, own schedule and to things we assumed only we'd enjoy. This trip met all our very picky criteria for a first ever touring experience: Extremely knowledgeable hosts (we expected a very deep dive into topics, not a broad brush), we wanted a smaller crowd of similarly enthused fellow travelers (cruises have never been appealing to us), plenty of time at each location, and food options for us vegans. This hit all the buttons and we will definitely do one of these tours again...words I never thought I'd hear myself say! If you are on the fence I cant recommend this experience enough, it was a real bucket list experience for us." ~ Cindy and Edwin W.
