NEW ORLEANS—New Castle Hotels & Resorts has acquired the Comfort Inn & Suites Downtown here for $9 million. The hotel will undergo a $10-million renovation and rebranding that will debut in time for French Quarter Festival 2016.
Located at 346 Baronne St., in the central business district and just one block off Bourbon St., the 103-key hotel marks New Castle’s first acquisition of the New Year.
“This hotel is a solid performer in a great location, with tremendous upside potential in a market that continues to outpace the national average in terms of RevPAR and occupancy,” said David Buffam, CEO of New Castle Hotels & Resorts. “We see it as a great opportunity for New Castle to enter another top 25 market and expand its footprint beyond its predominantly East Coast presence.”
“New Orleans enjoyed record-setting revenue from tourism in 2013, when more than half of its 9.28 million visitors were repeat guests,” said Gerry Chase, president and COO of New Castle. “Over the years, we have developed an expertise in repositioning hotels, finding that even in a booming, crowded, market there is opportunity to refine a hotel’s market position and operations to deliver an optimum return on investment. I’m confident that this is one of those properties, where the upside potential will allow the good times to roll for years to come.”
Rockbridge, a private equity firm that invests in hotels, provided financing for the transaction. The Comfort Inn & Suites Downtown is located near Harrah’s New Orleans Casino, a short walk from the city’s famed French Quarter. The Morial Convention Center, Port of New Orleans and Louis Armstrong International Airport all are just minutes away.