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Neither Radford University nor the University of Virginia had to look far for collaborators on projects that have altered their campus footprints.

The universities called on their own foundations to push forward the construction of two new on-campus hotels — The Highlander Hotel Radford and The Forum Hotel at U.Va. — and an upcoming hotel and conference center in Charlottesville. Both opened in April.

The Highlander has 124 rooms, a rooftop restaurant and more than 6,000 square feet of meeting space, as well as halls adorned with artwork by Andy Warhol, Pablo Picasso and other accomplished artists from the Radford University Foundation’s collection.

The Forum, a Kimpton property at U.Va.’s Darden School of Business, provides 20,000 square feet of room for conferences and meetings, 198 guest rooms, a steak house and a craft-beer bar. A third property — the Virginia Guesthouse and Conference Center — is scheduled to open at U.Va. in 2025 with 214 rooms and 25,000 square feet of meeting space, according to U.Va. Foundation spokesperson Katie Murphy. The 220,000-square-foot building will be along the Emmet/Ivy Corridor, near the forthcoming Karsh Institute of Democracy and the School of Data Science.

Leaders at both schools say the new hotels provide a welcoming entry point to their campuses.

“For some people, [The Forum] will absolutely be what they experience first,” said Ashley Williams, CEO of Darden Executive Education and Lifelong Learning. “It’s a reflection of U.Va. and a reflection of Darden, and we were very thoughtful about what this needs to provide in a way that’s consistent with the educational mission and the mission across our Grounds.”

Although U.Va.’s foundation owns and operates the Boar’s Head Resort, The Forum is a new type of venture since it’s on the university’s Grounds and is focused on accommodating visitors to Darden and its neighbor, the U.Va. School of Law. It’s also Kimpton’s first on-campus hotel and offers classroom space and housing for students pursuing MBAs.

The new hotel’s property also includes a 6-acre arboretum that ties back to the interests of university founder Thomas Jefferson, as does the hotel’s Jeffersonian architectural style.

As for Radford’s Highlander hotel, named for the university’s mascot, it offers visitors much-needed lodging for athletic events — even football games at Virginia Tech.

John Cox, CEO of the Radford University Foundation, which manages university-owned real estate, says the Highlander has already received an uptick in weekend bookings for Tech’s home games, and the Forum is only a half-mile walk to U.Va.’s John Paul Jones Arena, home of the Cavaliers’ basketball teams.

“Athletics will be a big driver of interest,” Cox says. “The hotel is generating a fair amount of excitement on campus and in the community.”

Elsewhere across the state, plenty of hotels are being built or revamped. Here are some of the highlights:

Central Virginia

In October, the Omni Charlottesville Hotel debuted its $15 million renovation of 199 guest rooms and six suites,  plus dining areas — including a new restaurant and bar, The Conservatory — and 14,000 square feet of meeting space, which includes three new flexible meeting rooms and a private dining venue.

Its opening is a few months off, but the historic Hotel Petersburg is set to reopen in April 2024 after a $14 million renovation. Vacant since a fire in the 1960s, the hotel will feature 68 guest rooms and a rooftop bar.

Hampton Roads

Moxy Virginia Beach Oceanfront, Marriott’s hotel brand geared toward millennials, opened in June and includes a small meeting and event space that can accommodate about 30 people, as well as the Belvedere South Coffee Shop and Diner, a revival of the classic Virginia Beach restaurant demolished in 2020.

In February, Embassy Suites Virginia Beach Oceanfront Resort opened as the third and final part of the $350 million Cavalier Resort Virginia Beach, owned by Gold Key | PHR. A Hilton property, the hotel has 157 suites, restaurants, pools, and a fitness center. In total, the Cavalier Resort has 547 guest rooms and more than 40,000 square feet of meeting and event spaces.

Northern Virginia

A renovation of the nearly 100-year-old George Mason Hotel in Alexandria’s Old Town neighborhood is scheduled to be completed in early 2024. Operated by Aparium Hotel Group, the newly dubbed Hotel Heron will include 134 rooms, a restaurant, a rooftop bar and a cafe.

In April, the Residence Inn by Marriott Manassas Battlefield Park completed a refresh of its 107 guest suites, meeting rooms and exterior. Near historic Manassas, the Warrenton Training Center and the Manassas Regional Airport, the hotel is owned by Apple Hospitality REIT in Richmond.

Shenandoah Valley

The Omni Homestead Resort in Bath County unveiled its $150 million expansion and renovation in October. The update includes a new 4,000-square-foot event pavilion and a revamp of the resort’s 72,000 square feet of meeting space. Theater 1923, Homestead’s century-old space for keynote speakers, has converted its seating from theater seats to sofas, lounge chairs and side tables, and added new audiovisual technology. Also, the Warm Springs Pools, which were closed in 2017, reopened in December 2022 after a $4.6 million restoration.

Roanoke Valley

Local furniture retailer Txtur transformed a 115-year-old historic firehouse in Roanoke into a boutique hotel, Fire Station One, which opened in January. In addition to serving as a showroom for Txtur’s furniture, the hotel provides a private meetings and events space, the Bunk Room, along with seven guest rooms. The red brick building sat vacant for 15 years before its refurbishment.