Xanadu

From our 2008 trip

The history of the Hearst Corporation is remembered by the San Francisco Chronicle on its 125th anniversary.

William Randolph Hearst founded a media empire, was the thinly disguised subject of what some consider to be the greatest movie ever made, and built a castle in the San Simeon hills.

We first toured the Hearst Castle in 1962 and have visited it every decade since. In terms of sheer opulence, classical architecture, and design integration it's one of the wonders of the modern world.