Missing the ‘golden age’ of air travel?
Fear not, because now you can relive it.
A quirky ‘Pan Am Experience’ in Los Angeles allows visitors to relive the magic of flying on board a luxurious Pan Am 747, with the retro theater experience featuring stewardesses wearing original 1970s airline uniforms serving shrimp cocktails in an exact replica of a Pan Am cabin.
The Pan Am Experience based in Los Angeles sees aviation fans board a replica Pan Am 747 set from the 1970s so they can step back to the ‘golden age’ of travel. Pictured are some of the stewardesses at the attraction
In the upper deck lounge, pictured, guests relax on swivel chairs at a dining table
As well as the shrimp cocktail, dinner includes Chateaubriand or roasted chicken, dessert and a cheese and fruit platter in addition to an open bar
The experience is housed inside Air Hollywood, the world’s largest aviation-themed film studio, and its creators have left no stone unturned in their efforts in ensuring the experience is exactly what it was like flying with Pan Am more than 40 years ago.
Guests who are lucky enough to secure a ticket for the amazing experience are first greeted at a replica check-in desk at the film studio, where they are issued with their own 1970s-style boarding pass and luggage tags.
They are then taken into the ‘Clipper Club Lounge’ where they can browse original Pan Am memorabilia including uniforms, airline seats and artwork.
Soon after, the stewardesses usher the guests into the replica 1970s Pan Am 747 cabin.
The guests are then escorted to their seats, which are either in the swanky upper deck lounge, the main deck first class cabin or in the clipper cabin dining room.
The upper deck lounge at the Pan Am Experience with the tables set for dinner. It has been created by Talaat Captan, the founder of the Air Hollywood studio, and Anthony Toth, an aviation fan who has been collecting vintage airline memorabilia since he was a child
The Pan Am Experience creators have left no stone unturned in ensuring the experience is exactly what it was like flying with Pan Am more than 40 years ago
The cabin crew then serve drinks and perform a mock safety demonstration before serving a luxurious five-course dinner – although those in the upper deck get six courses with the addition of caviar.
As well as the shrimp cocktail, dinner includes Chateaubriand or roasted chicken, dessert and a cheese and fruit platter in addition to an open bar.
Once dinner is over, guests are treated to fashion shows and a trivia contest and can even tour the other aircraft sets in the studio, which have appeared in the likes of Bridesmaids, The Wolf of Wall Street and Airplane!
Goodies guests can take home include prop cigarettes, the menus and postcards, as well as their boarding pass and luggage tags.
One of the Pan Am Experience creators, Talaat Captan, told MailOnline Travel: ‘I hope we can remind people of the days when flying was fun!’
In the main deck first class cabin, guest relax on first class sleeperette seats and are served drinks and dinner by the crew
Mouth-watering: A stewardess serves guests their main courses at the Pan Am Experience
Guests can read through old magazines from the 1970s and are also treated to entertainment, including fashion shows and a trivia contest
Inside the clipper cabin where guests can relax on business class seats before being served their five-course dinner
The Pan Am experience is housed inside Air Hollywood, the world’s largest aviation-themed film studio
However, entry to the dinner experience doesn’t come cheap. A pair of tickets to sit in the upper deck lounge are $875 (£660).
Tickets for the main deck are $675 (£510) per pair while two tickets for the Clipper cabin dining room are $475 (£360).
But despite the prices, every dinner show that has been staged since the experience started five years ago has been sold out.
The experience has been created by Talaat Captan, the founder of the Air Hollywood studio, and Anthony Toth, an aviation fan who has been collecting vintage airline memorabilia since he was a child.
Mr Captan told MailOnline Travel: ‘We used to say “Bon Voyage” when someone was travelling, but today everything is be careful, be safe, be at the airport early for the security check, it just doesn’t have the same sense of fun and adventure.
‘I hope we can remind people of the days when flying was fun!
‘For our guests that are older it brings back great memories – maybe, of their first time in the air.
‘For the younger crowd it’s to show them what it was like travelling in those glorious days of fine dining and good Champagne served by a crew that cared.
‘Can you imagine not wanting to get off an airplane today? That happens here.’
THE PAN AM EXPERIENCE: WHAT’S INCLUDED
Before stepping foot inside the replica cabin, guests are able to ‘check in’ at a replica check-in desk and browse Pan Am memorabilia
Guests at the Pan Am Experience are split across three different cabins – the upper deck lounge ($875/£660), the main deck first class ($675/£510) and the clipper cabin dining room ($475/£360).
In the upper deck, guests relax on swivel chairs at a dining table, while in the main deck they can sit back on first class sleeperette seats. In the clipper cabin, business seats at dining tables are available.
During the meal service, all passengers are served bread, an appetizer that includes shrimp cocktail, Chateaubriand or roasted chicken, dessert and fruit, and cheese and biscuits.
However, guests who sit in the upper deck are treated to an extra sixth course of caviar.
All guests can drink from an open bar, which includes champagne, port wine, tea and coffee.
Entertainment on board includes a mock safety demonstration, music, fashion shows and a trivia contest.
After the experience ends, guests can take home their prop cigarettes, menu, boarding pass, luggage tags and postcards.
Source: The Pan Am Experience.