Here’s a somewhat damning story in The National Enquirer about a semi-secret ski and spa getaway John Travolta took with three male buddies right before Christmas. We’ve heard that Travolta likes picking up men in spas, and Carrie Fisher recently claimed that his sexuality was an open secret in Hollywood. Now the Enquirer reports that he left right before Christmas to meet up with three male friends at Stowe resort in Vermont, where they were seen enjoying an intimate dinner and indulging in spa treatments together. Travolta has a one month-old baby at home, and his wife Kelly Preston is said to have pleaded with him not to take off right before Christmas.

Less than a month after the arrival of the couple’s miracle baby Benjamin, [Travolta] left wife Kelly Preston and took off with three buddies, reveal insiders…

“Kelly hoped Benjamin’s birth would get the marriage back on track,” confided the friend. “But John again left her and the children to be with his buddies. And that’s becoming harder for Kelly to accept…

“Kelly told him she was tired of him always leaving, and he angrily told her ‘that’s just the way it is’ and left in a huff.'”…

The 56-year-old “Pulp Fiction” star and his male pals were guests at the luxurious Stowe Mountain Lodge, an upscale ski resort.

Kelly was not part of the trip.

On Dec. 19, Travolta dined at the resort’s Solstice restaurant with two men.

“They were very discreet and sat at a corner table behind a screen,” an eyewitness told The Enquirer. “You could tell they didn’t want to be seen.”

The following day, the “Grease” star was spotted skiing, and later that night, with a black ball cap pulled low on his face, he enjoyed drinks at the bar with two guy friends…

The relaxed actor and his male buddies spent most of Dec. 21 “getting the works” at the restort’s luxury spa, according to sources.

“John and his friends got massages, skin treatments, had lunch delivered to them in the private sanctuary – and relaxed together in the steam room and Jacuzzi,” the eyewitness said.

“When they were done with their spa day, John and his pals met for an early dinner, again behind a privacy screen at the Solstice restaurant.

“Resort staff members were told in advance that John wanted to keep his visit quiet, and they were given strict orders not to speak to anyone about it.”

The well-rested star left the resort early on the morning of Dec. 22.

[From The National Enquirer, print edition, January 10, 2010]

Here’s what I think – the Enquirer probably has it on good authority that Travolta was at Stowe for three days with three other men, that they were at the spa and were seen out dining together. That’s pretty strong circumstantial evidence, but let’s say for argument’s sake that it could have been some kind of luxury buddy trip or business getaway. Maybe they were Scientology bigwigs discussing some world takeover plan as a tax deductible excuse to get away from their wives. Still, the whole thing, especially the number of guys involved, is suspect. Three other guys suggests another couple and a spare for John.

I get the urge to call Travolta gay, I really do, but all we have so far is one photo of him kissing a guy goodbye (he kissed Kirk Douglas like that too) and a bunch of hearsay. Maybe he’s really into random hookups with men, but if that’s the case I would be more surprised by the fact that there’s no solid evidence to date despite the sheer number of encounters he’s supposedly had. The truth is probably somewhere in between, like the dude is bi and somewhat discreet about it. He’s getting called out on it now though.

Star reports this week that Travolta was approached by Dancing with The Stars honchos about appearing on the show, but turned them down. They quote an insider who claims “Daddy duties are his main priority right now.” This trip to Vermont would suggest otherwise.

Update: Reader chasingadalia pointed me to this article in Stowe Today that claims that Travolta was at Stowe with Kelly, and that none other than Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie were there at the same time. What’s more is that the Travoltas and Jolie-Pitts were hanging out together, according to an eyewitness. That was Monday and Tuesday, December 20 and 21, and Brangelina went to Namibia for Christmas shortly afterwards. I find it hard to believe that they had a quiet stopover in Vermont ahead of time, but it’s possible.

Anyway Kelly was supposedly there too but probably wasn’t going out as much as she needed to take care of the baby.