Florida
Hilton Orlando will unveil 8,909 square feet of new meeting space in January with a ballroom expansion and a total of eight new meeting rooms adjacent to the existing 14,900-square-foot Florida Ballroom. The new Key Largo and Key West meeting rooms will include prefunction space, a check-in registration desk and a registration office. The smaller meeting rooms, between 4,000 and 5,000 square feet, are all are near the 50,000-square-foot outdoor promenade, which can accommodate up to 3,000. The 1,470-room property offers 490,000 square feet of meeting and event space and is connected to the Orange County Convention Center via a covered walkway.
Georgia
The 144-room Partridge Inn completed its year-long renovation and reopened as part of the Curio–A Collection by Hilton brand. The property-wide remodel included the top floor, 2,100-square-foot penthouse and rooftop lounge with views of downtown Augusta, which is available to rent out for private events. On weekends when it’s not booked, the space opens as a pop-up bar. The hotel has 100,000 square feet of meeting space with updated technology that includes the 2,400-square-foot Morris Partridge Ballroom.
Texas
The 1,606-room Hilton Anatole has broken ground on a new resort-style pool complex scheduled to open in May 2016. The project will convert a portion of the Dallas property’s seven-acre sculpture park and tennis courts into the new facility, which will include multiple heated pools, recreation areas, walking paths, green spaces, an outdoor restaurant and bar, and a 23-seat swim-up bar. In addition, the complex will have two event lawns able to accommodate up to 200 people; groups can also use the poolside space for receptions in the summer months. The hotel has 500,000 square feet of meeting space, including 11 ballrooms and 79 meeting rooms.
Virginia
Hilton Worldwide announced that The Virginian Lynchburg hotel will join Curio–A Collection by Hilton. With the brand and name change, the historic hotel, built in 1913 is undergoing renovations and will be complete in early 2017. The hotel will offer 115 rooms, an updated ballroom and conference center, a rooftop lounge, a cafe, a restaurant and a bar.
Mexico
The Hyatt Ziva Cancun opened after an $85 million expansion and renovation. The all-inclusive hotel has 547 guest rooms and offers nine restaurants, six bars and lounges, and multiple pools. The lobby, which features furnishings made in Mexico from local woods and fabrics, offers views of the ocean and the Isle of Mujeres. The property has 16,000 square feet of meeting space, including a 745-capacity ballroom that can be divided into five breakout rooms and seven additional meeting rooms.