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U.Va. hotel, conference center expected fall 2025
To fulfill a need for a new comprehensive conference space in Charlottesville, the University of Virginia is set to welcome the Virginia Guesthouse hotel and conference center in fall 2025. The new facility will feature 214 guest rooms, including nine suites. The approximately 224,000-square-foot Virginia Guesthouse will offer close to 29,000 square feet of conference […]
Va. tourism generated $33.3B for 2023
Virginia’s tourism industry generated $33.3 billion in visitor spending in 2023, an increase of nearly 10% over 2022, Gov. Glenn Youngkin announced Monday. “The commonwealth’s record-breaking visitor spending numbers are a testament to our abundance of attractions and unique destinations,” Gov. Youngkin stated in a news release. Virginia’s tourism industry supported over [...]
Caesars Virginia — a work in progress
Lots can change over three years and eight months. Back in September 2020, Danville, its industrial development authority and Nevada-based Caesars Entertainment signed a development agreement naming Caesars the city’s preferred gaming operator and outlining the parties’ obligations. Back then, Caesars budgeted $400 million to build its Caesars Virginia resort casino on the Schoolfield [...]
Retro Hospitality adds three hotels to portfolio
Richmond-based boutique hotel advisory and management firm Retro Hospitality has added three Virginia hotels to its portfolio, the firm announced Wednesday. The company now operates The Bee and The Holbrook Hotel in Danville and The Lofts at Downtown Salem in Salem. Other hotels in its portfolio include the Blackburn Inn and Conference Center in Staunton, […]
Hard Rock Bristol delays permanent casino opening
The Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Bristol’s development team has pushed back the opening of the permanent casino, previously expected in July, and will instead open its approximately $515 million permanent casino resort in late fall. The team — a joint venture between Hard Rock, Par Ventures President Clyde Stacy and The United Co. Chairman […]
Atlantic Park expected to open in spring 2025
The $350 million Atlantic Park project backed by music icon Pharrell Williams in his hometown of Virginia Beach is progressing, with the 2.6-acre surf lagoon, entertainment venue and other pieces of the project expected to be delivered in spring 2025, Kathy Warren, Virginia Beach’s planning director, told the city council Tuesday. Atlantic Park, a joint […]
Cashing in
In 2019, a state study forecast that if the General Assembly allowed five casinos to operate in five economically disadvantaged Virginia cities — Bristol, Danville, Norfolk, Portsmouth and Richmond — that one-third of the revenue generated would stem from out-of-state visitors. In other words, if you build it, casino backers sang out to the commonwealth’s […]
Northern Va. Big Deal: Safari in Spotsy
A high school marching band, a giant seafood boil and an enthusiastic crowd of about 200 people helped celebrate the Oct. 20, 2023, groundbreaking for the $900 million, 1.38 million-square-foot Kalahari Resort in Spotsylvania County. The fifth African-themed resort from the privately owned, Wisconsin-based Kalahari Resorts & Conventions, the sprawling tourism and events destination is planned[...]
Tourism: Game on
According to the state government, visitor spending across Virginia surpassed $30 billion in 2022, exceeding 2019 expenditures by 4.4%. Nevertheless, business travel still hasn’t returned to pre-pandemic levels, particularly in Northern Virginia. But leisure travel is back and booming. Hotel revenues were up 13% statewide in 2023, compared with 2019, with more rooms sold at […]
Va. casinos report almost $53M in January revenue
January gaming revenues from Virginia’s three casinos totaled $52.86 million, according to Virginia Lottery data released Thursday. Virginia’s first casino, the Bristol Casino: Future Home of Hard Rock temporary facility, opened July 2022. The Virginia Lottery Board approved HR Bristol’s casino license in April 2022. Last month, the Bristol casino generated about $9.9 million fro[...]
Virginia Beach Holiday Inn sells for $16.25M
A 307-room Holiday Inn in Virginia Beach sold for $16.25 million in mid-December 2023, according to city property records. The six-story Holiday Inn Virginia Beach – Norfolk, located at 5655 Greenwich Road, was built in 1981, property records show. It opened in 1982, according to a news release from commercial real estate firm CBRE, and […]
Caesars Virginia ‘tops off’ Danville casino
Caesars Virginia is a step closer to opening its permanent casino in Danville after a topping-off ceremony Thursday. Though the temporary casino opened in May 2023, work on the permanent Caesars Virginia casino and 12-story hotel has been ongoing. The floor of the casino has been poured, metal framing is in place and the hotel […]
