Loews Hotels & Resorts is focusing on internal and external expansions. Over the past two years, the New York-based company acquired three new hotels, broke ground on two hotels, and underwent a total transformation of its flagship hotel, the Loews Regency Hotel in New York. The brand is also redesigning 12 of its hotels.
In June 2012, Loews acquired its first new hotel in several years, the Loews Hollywood Hotel, located at the intersection of Hollywood and Highland. In early 2013, the company added two additional assets to its portfolio: the Loews Madison Hotel in Washington, D.C., and the Loews Boston Hotel in Back Bay.
Loews Hotels & Resorts is also building two new hotels. The Loews Chicago will debut in January 2015 and will feature 400 guest rooms, 400 rental condos, a rooftop bar, meeting space, and a signature restaurant. In March of this year, phase one of Universal's Cabana Bay Beach Resort opened in Orlando. The 1,800-room hotel is the fourth hotel in the partnership between Loews Hotels & Resorts and Universal Orlando and is also the largest hotel under construction outside of China. Cabana Bay features a lazy river, a bowling alley, a food court, and multiple swimming pools.
With the redesign project, Loews Hotels & Resorts updated everything from building façades and guest rooms to bathrooms. The lobby and public spaces added media walls with LCD flat-screen TVs, Wi-Fi access, and electrical outlets for greater connectivity. The design upgrades will also allow for more live entertainment and will encourage hotel guests and locals to interact.
Renovation highlights include top-to-bottom upgrades at the Loews Hollywood Hotel, Loews Boston Hotel, and Loews Philadelphia Hotel. Additional innovations include an overhaul of Portofino Bay's 750 rooms and suites, a new restaurant and new public spaces at the Loews Vanderbilt Hotel, and the first-ever $100 million renovation of the flagship location, the Loews Regency Hotel, which reopened in early 2014.
"At Loews Hotels, we are making a commitment of nearly $1 billion to the industry if you combine our new construction, recent acquisitions, and renovations of our existing assets," said Jonathan Tisch, chairman of Loews Hotels & Resorts.
Over the next several years, Loews Hotels & Resorts will continue its efforts to grow its portfolio of hotels, targeting gateway cities and domestic and international resort destinations.
