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South Upgrades + Openings

Alabama

Ascent Hospitality acquired the 292-room Huntsville Marriott at the Space & Rocket Center. Ascent will invest $10 million to renovate the property’s guest rooms, meeting rooms, public spaces, pool and lobby areas. The hotel offers 13 meeting rooms with nearly 16,000 square feet of meeting and event space to accommodate up to 1,500 people. Other amenities include a fitness center, an indoor pool, an outdoor pool and a complimentary airport shuttle. There are two on-site restaurants: The Great Room, which is open for lunch and dinner; and Season’s, which serves Southern-style breakfast daily.

Florida

Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort is undergoing a renovation to offer additional dining options and add event space and more guest rooms. A new 15-story tower will provide an additional 500 guest rooms as well as a rooftop restaurant. The current guest rooms will also get a refresh, along with the landscape. The resort’s convention center currently offers 220,000 square feet of meeting space, including two ballrooms, an exhibit hall and 45 breakout rooms.

The Marriott Stanton South Beach will undergo a multimillion-dollar renovation. Earlier this year the on-site Baja-inspired Mexican eatery Lolos Surf Cantina was upgraded. The 224-room hotel will add two new dining options, improvements to the existing, on-site Starbucks and the addition of a full-service spa. A Japanese restaurant is scheduled to open in late 2017 and the refurbishment and rebrand of the existing DecoBlue restaurant is expected to debut in 2018 with indoor and outdoor dining overlooking the ocean. The property features 4,600 square feet of meeting space, including four event rooms, a ballroom and a boardroom.

 

Davidson Hotels & Resorts added The Don CeSar to its Pivot Hotels & Resorts brand. The iconic 277-room resort in St. Pete Beach, known as the Pink Palace, opened in 1928 and was a founding member of the National Trust for Historic Hotels of America. The resort underwent upgrades last year, including adding a new beachside restaurant and bar. The property features two pools, a fitness center, a business center, 38,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor meeting, and event space and a spa. There are seven food and beverage options at the resort.

Louisiana

The 1,622-room Hilton New Orleans Riverside completed the renovation of its Grand Ballroom, Grand Salon and first- and second-level meeting spaces. The 26,894-square-foot Grand Ballroom now features a French-inspired design with a new color palette and12 new chandeliers, along with warm neutral accents. The aesthetic continues into the Grand Salon, located across from the Grand Ballroom, which has been refreshed with new coffered ceilings and contemporary lighting fixtures. The second-level Exhibition Center has also been fully renovated and renamed “Churchill,” paying tribute to the Winston Churchill Statue donated to the city in 1977 and located in front of the hotel entrance. This space can be used as one large room or seven separate spaces. Overall, the property offers more than 130,000 square feet event space, features an indoor connection to The Riverwalk Outlet Mall and is adjacent to the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center.

Tennessee

The Tennessean Hotel is set to open in downtown Knoxville in April as part of the Gemstone Collection brand. Benchmark will operate the property, which features 82 guest rooms and 12 residences. The property is on the grounds of the 1982 World’s Fair Park and on the perimeter of the University of Tennessee campus. The Park Pavilion, located adjacent to the hotel, offers 16,000 square feet of indoor function space with additional outdoor venue space and includes breakout rooms and prefunction space. The hotel also offers a boardroom.

Texas

A 224-room dual-branded Aloft and Element hotel development debuted in Dallas’ Love Field district. The Aloft and Element Dallas Love Field anchor a new mixed-use development a mile from the airport and the Dallas Medical District. The building features a common entry but separate public areas and elevators. Shared facilities include 6,500 square feet of meeting space, an outdoor pool and a fitness center. The Aloft hotel offers 133 guest rooms, Re:fuel by Aloft and live, local music at the brand’s W XYZ bar. Element Dallas Love Field features 91 studios with modular furniture and fully equipped kitchens, and offers the brand’s complimentary Bikes to Borrow program.

Virginia

Escalante Golf acquired the Kingsmill Resort. Located in Williamsburg, the resort is on 2,900 protected acres along the James River. It boasts three championship golf courses and one-, two- and three-bedroom condominium accommodations. Amenities include 15 tennis courts, four on-site restaurants, a three-pool and lazy river pool complex, a fitness center, a newly redesigned spa and a full-service marina. The property also has a 16,000-square-foot IACC-certified conference center, including 16 meeting rooms and the private Pettus House for special events and retreats.

West Virginia

Lakeview Golf Resort & Spa is undergoing a golf course renovation. The property features two championship courses with views of Cheat Lake. Every bunker on the Lakeview Golf Course will be updated, including new shaping, drainage and sand, and along with the Mountainview Golf Course will offer new golf carts. The 187-room resort also features a full-service spa, fitness center, two on-site restaurants and over 30,000 square feet of meeting space.

Caribbean

Grand Hyatt Baha Mar is scheduled to debut in late April with 1,800 guest rooms. The property will open in phases and will feature three on-site restaurants, including a 200-seat main restaurant, a pool bar and grill and a jazz-themed lounge. The Baha Mar Convention Center will feature more than 85,000 square feet of indoor and outdoor meeting space, including 34 divisible rooms, three ballrooms, a 2,000-seat entertainment venue and 16 breakout rooms. The resort will also offer Baha Mar Casino, a Jack Nicklaus-designed golf course, a full-service spa, tennis courts and retail outlets.