CINCINNATI — Feel like it hasn't been your day, your week, your month or even your year already? Maybe you want to take a break and need a little "serenity now?" Now you can with two new stay-cation spots in Cincinnati.
Brenda and Otto Baum are renting out Airbnb units themed after the 90s sitcoms "Friends" and "Seinfeld."
Located in Pleasant Ridge, the one-bedroom units occupy the second story of a four-family apartment. They're designed to mimic both Rachel and Monica's apartment and Jerry Seinfeld's apartment.
The couple said the idea came to them during the pandemic. Stuck at home, they found themselves rewatching old sitcoms.
"You can get an Airbnb, but this would give you like, the Airbnb, you know. It's a thing," said Otto Baum. "The idea came into our heads, 'It would be kind of fun to build something like that.' Instead of just watching on TV, you could actually experience it — be a part of it.'
The couple lives in the neighborhood and said they already owned the building, so after detailed planning, they were able to start construction last October.
Donned the "Sitcom Suites," the themed rentals take the experience one step further. In addition to memorabilia, the Baums filled the units with set replicas and one-of-a-kind pieces for added immersion.
Brenda traveled to six different states in her search for furniture and decorations.
"Things like the print behind the TV, that was easy to find," Brenda Baum said. "[But Monica] has very specific utensil holder on her stove so I wanted to get that right."
The "Friends" unit capitalizes on recognizable features including the purple living room, Monica's mix-matched color kitchen and the iconic floor-to-ceiling balcony window fitted with a digital print of an NYC red brick apartment.
"Where they look out at naked guy on the deck," Otto said.
The "Seinfeld " apartment includes a bike on the wall, a desktop computer in the corner, a cabinet above the kitchen sink lined with cereal boxes and even a hidden cutout of Cosmo Kramer behind Jerry's front door.
"We built partition walls so they don't go all the way up to the ceiling. When you walk in it sort of feels like you're on a stage," Otto said. "We really focused on that even with the lights which are made to look like studio lights."
With king-sized beds, pull-out couches in the living rooms and fully functioning kitchens and bathrooms, each unit accommodates up to four guests. but if you're feeling like hosting a "Festivus for the rest of us" there's a listing to book the entire building.
"Just seeing our vision come into place, it's great," Brenda said.
The Baums are working on two more suites themed after "Schitt's Creek" and "Golden Girls." All four will be ready by early April.
People can start booking now for the "Friends" and "Seinfeld" units.
