California
Rush Creek Lodge, the first new resort in the Yosemite region in over 25 years, opened. The lodge is located near the national park’s west entrance and offers 143 guest rooms, a grand main lodge, a restaurant and tavern, a salt water swimming pool, a general store and meeting space for groups of up to 250. The meeting facilities include a vaulted-ceiling 2,800-square-foot event hall with an outdoor plaza, poolside BBQ area, multiple dining venues, a hillside amphitheater and a 12,000-square-foot pool deck that can accommodate up to 500 guests. The Main Lodge features a lounge area with a fireplace and a game room. There are outdoor seating areas and fireplaces as well as other areas and spaces for entertainment and relaxation throughout the property.
Hawaii
Hilton Worldwide opened the Hilton Garden Inn Waikiki Beach, its second Hilton Garden Inn brand in Hawaii. The property underwent a $115 million redevelopment and rebranding and now features a living-room-style lobby with communal seating and classic Hawaiian design with high wooden ceilings and gallery-lit Hawaiian kapa prints on reclaimed wood. The hotel features 623 guest rooms, a rooftop pool and Holoholo Cafe & Market, offering grab-and-go food that includes local Hawaiian favorites. There is 500 square feet of meeting space.
Nevada
The Whitney Peak Hotel completed a renovation project that has more than doubled the hotel’s meeting capacity. The expansion, located on the hotel’s entire third floor, added about 12,000 square feet of meeting and event space. There are 10 airwalls, allowing the space to be divided into eight separate rooms, ranging from 350 square feet to a nearly 5,000-square-foot ballroom. The Reno hotel features an in-house artist who has created rock ’n’ roll-themed paintings that hang in the new space. The hotel offers 310 guest rooms and 20,000 square feet of meeting space.
Oregon
Hilton Worldwide unveiled plans for its first Canopy-brand hotel in Portland, the Canopy by Hilton Portland Pearl District. The 153-room hotel will offer 2,800 square feet of meeting space with the ability to be used for teambuilding and games as well as for traditional meetings. The hotel will feature a Transfer Lounge allowing guests to relax, change clothes or store luggage in lieu of an extended check-out. The on-site restaurant will reflect the neighborhood by highlighting local products such as wild salmon, razor clams, hazelnuts and blueberries, and the beverage menu will feature cocktails from Portland’s Distillery Row, wines from the nearby Willamette Valley and beer from the area’s many craft breweries. The property is slated to open in fall 2017.
Washington
The 459-room Seattle Airport Marriott announced Spire Hospitality as its new management company. Spire will oversee a renovation that will add meeting and event space to its existing 15,000 square feet. The current meeting space includes 14 rooms and a 4,500-square-foot ballroom that can accommodate up to 650 attendees. Public spaces, guest rooms, the lobby and restaurant will also be upgraded, and the indoor atrium pool will be reconfigured. The hotel is located less than a mile from Seattle-Tacoma International Airport and a block from light rail, offering easy access to downtown and the Greater Seattle area.
Mexico
The new 226-room DoubleTree by Hilton Veracruz debuted across from the beach and overlooking the harbor of the Mexican city. Offering direct access to the historic city center and retail, business and entertainment, the new hotel features 19,000 square feet of meeting space that can accommodate up to 800 guests. Guest rooms are equipped with workstations, ergonomic chairs, multiple outlets for all kinds of technology devices and direct light. Enxebre, the on-property restaurant, offers traditional Veracruz cuisine and the hotel’s Bar 47 offers ocean views.