After a brief stay at Disneyland a few years back I became fascinated by Smellitizers, the patented technology Disney employs at their parks to deliver consistent puffs of nostalgia, starting with the sweet aroma of baked goods on Main Street. In these past seven months of pregnancy, I’ve often wished for Smellitizers of my own - a puff of vanilla and bergamot in the living room whisking me back to the lobby of the Pan Pacific Hotel, the flickering scent of a Chateau Marmont candle in the bedroom.** Basically, I want my home to smell like a fancy hotel and not the very last thing I managed to toss in the Instant Pot on a Tuesday night.
I am not alone. There are message boards full of scent hunters in heated debates, almost as vicious as the BabyCenter boards I frequent in times of quiet desperation. While the W Hotel sells its signature fragrance, the Pan Pacific’s is proprietary (I called to inquire). Westin room spray is also a coveted fragrance.
I can assure you that it does not smell like the back of my refrigerator.
I’ll leave you with the following breathtaking description from the depths of Disney message boards devoted to scent hunting. The cool, musky smell of water present on rides like the Pirates of the Caribbean stands out as a fan favorite and apparently is unintentionally captured by a French cologne called Messe de Minuit, described by one user as “…not a fragrance of darkness but one of flickering candles and smoky shadows and of light filtered through an ancient gothic cathedral window on a cold winter night.”
Count me in. I promise not to throw up.