How Sleepy Bucks County Became a Celebrity Hot Spot How Sleepy Bucks County Became a Celebrity Hot Spot
The New York Times
First came the Hadids. Then Bradley Cooper. Now, with luxury inns going up, the area around New Hope, Pa., has become a rival to the Hamptons.
It’s hard to pinpoint when things began to change around here but you might start with the arrival of Yolanda Hadid in 2017.
Ms. Hadid, a onetime regular on “The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills,” bought a farm just outside New Hope, Pa., to be closer to her daughters, the models Gigi and Bella Hadid, who were then living in New York City.
The 32-acre property, with its stone farmhouse, horse barn and formal garden, became a family retreat, and the Hadids’ social media feeds filled with pastoral images: Gigi in a two-piece bathing suit, posing with a bowl of newly picked vegetables beside a patch of basil; Yolanda in black boots, bluejeans and a puffer vest, showing off a heap of fresh-cut lavender.
“We ride horses, we have a vegetable garden,” Yolanda told The Toronto Star in 2018, describing her life in the countryside with her famous daughters, who between them have 140 million followers on Instagram.
The presence of the Hadids attracted other famous people to Bucks County, a woodsy area known for its rolling hills and 12 covered bridges. In 2018, Zayn Malik, the British pop singer who was in a relationship with Gigi, bought a farm there. “It is quiet,” he said in an interview with British Vogue. “There are no human beings.” People magazine shared the news that Gigi gave birth to the couple’s daughter at home in Bucks County in 2020.
Tranquil Bucks County was back in the media spotlight the next year, when TMZ and Billboard reported on an altercation involving Mr. Malik, Gigi and Yolanda that took place at one of their country homes. Facing four charges of harassment, Mr. Malik pleaded no contest and was sentenced to 360 days of probation; he and Gigi broke up after the incident.
