The "Historic Hudson Valley Room at Tarrytown House" was formally opened recently by Bernadette Castro, New York State Commissioner of Parks. She emphasized the that the wealth of history combined with the beauty of the area makes it an ideal tourism destination and welcomed the participation of the private sector.

Standing in for Mark Rockefeller, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Historic Hudson Valley, Waddell Stillman, President of the organization, observed, "We are thrilled to be working with Dolce Tarrytown House. It is both a cultural and business partnership that we plan to nurture and build in the future.

To coincide with the opening of the learning center, two new travel packages were introduced. One is the "Passport to Sleepy Hollow Country," offered from April through December, that includes a two-night stay at Dolce Tarrytown House, breakfast daily and admission to any three of the nearby historic sites: Kykuit, the Rockefeller estate, the Union Church of Pocantico Hills, Philipsburg Manor, Washington Irving's Sunnyside, Lyndhurst and Van Cortlandt Manor.

The new "Performing Arts Center," offered December through May, package includes deluxe accommodations, buffet breakfast, orchestra seats at the Performing Arts Center, Purchase College. Guests may choose from an array of performances beginning with a Canadian Brass Holiday Concert on December 21, and, among others, the New York Philharmonic with Conductor Kurt Mazur, the Newport Jazz Festival, the Royal Philharmonic, Jon Faddis Jazz and Little Richard.

Rates for the Performing Arts Center package (double occupancy) December through March are $219 for one night, $359 for two nights. During April and May the rates are $259 for one night, $439 for two.

The two mansions have a curiously intertwined history. Thomas M. King, a vice president of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad, was the fourth owner of the structure that bears his name. William R. Harris, founder of the American Tobacco Company and the sixth owner of the Biddle House site, spent seven years rebuilding the mansion using granite from the surrounding hills.

After some complicated history, the Biddle mansion was sold to Mary Duke Biddle, the only daughter of Benjamin Duke, partner in the Duke Tobacco Company and the founder of Duke University. In 1956 a fire almost destroyed the house and Ms. Biddle is said to have spent a million dollars over the next four years to rebuild and renovate. To assure her privacy, she purchased the King house.

For a brief period after Ms. Biddle's death the two mansions were acquired by the African nation of Mali's ambassadors to the United Nations. Maintenance expenses proved to costly and the twin estates were sold to Robert Schwartz who planned to convert the mansions into a conference center.

In 1994 Dolce Tarrytown House became the owners and after restoration and improvement projects, spent fifteen million dollars on an expansion. It currently hosts many conferences, weddings and other formal occasions. There are 212 guest rooms, a majestic dining room in the Biddle House and more casual dining in the Sleepy Hollow Pub. Surprisingly, a portrait of Major John Andre, has the place of honor above the fireplace in the Biddle House entrance hallway.