The five-star Waldorf Astoria Hotel will begin operations in Costa Rica in November 2024, as confirmed by the project’s developers.
The hotel will be part of a tourist complex located in the canton of Carrillo, in the province of Guanacaste, which is estimated to have an investment of $200 million.
The Waldorf Astoria Hotel, located in the province of Guanacaste, will begin operations in November 2024, with the availability of 188 rooms.
The renowned hotel brand, owned by the Hilton chain, will open its doors in Central America for the first time. The complex consists of a building with 188 rooms, a tower with 19 apartments furnished from 150 m2 and 17 houses. It is located on the Punta Cacique peninsula, in the Sardinal district.
Waldorf Astoria hotels are a reference in luxury accommodation and the first establishment opened in New York, United States, in the late 19th century. Costa Rica thus becomes the first country in Central America where the brand is installed, which also has a presence in Panama and Los Cabos, Mexico.
Among the 188 rooms are king, queen, queen, suites and presidential accommodation, each with its own features of space, furniture and services.
Apartments and houses, which include four or five-quarter models on two floors and five rooms on three floors, are of purchase option, and owners can offer them for rent under the concept known as branded residences, according to Carlos Ramírez, project manager of Garnier & Garnier, a company in charge of the development of the complex.
Under this concept, the brand provides marketing support and maintenance services, and those who rent these properties will have access to the hotel services. If the landlord decides to rent through another platform, he will have to pay a daily fee for tenants to access these services, Ramirez explained.
Waldorf Astoria is considered one of the luxury brands of the Hilton hotel chain, which also has others such as Conrad and LXR. Hilton Hotels, Hampton, Embassy Suites, Double Tree, Canopy and Curio Collection are other brands of the conglomerate.
Ramirez noted that the estimated $200 million investment includes the hotel and the first stage of apartments and houses. The tourism development on the Punta Cacique Peninsula is owned by the firm Revolution, led by Steve Case, co-founder of America Online (AOL), a company that pioneered the Internet worldwide.
Last July, the Costa Rican Institute of Tourism (ICT) had registered 17 hotel investment projects, seven of them planned to open in 2024, including the Waldorf Astoria Hotel in Guanacaste.
Garnier & Garnier, of Costa Rican capital, is part of the group of investors of the hotel complex, along with U.S. and Mexican entrepreneurs. The design of the project is based on environmental sustainability and resource development.
During the construction phase, up to 1,000 jobs will be generated at the peak of activity. Once in operation, 300 direct and 500 indirect jobs will be available. Ramírez stressed that training has been carried out in the Guanacaste area since 2022 in collaboration with several institutions, with the aim of hiring local collaborators.
Last October, the developer signed an employability plan in the province that includes free training in hotel sector skills for 200 people living in poverty, by the Tecnia Institute. Classes are scheduled to begin on January 15, the training includes international English certification level B1.
The hotel’s website confirms the start of operations next November, but reports that it does not yet accept reservations. Ramirez estimated that the opening dates will be available six months before the start of operations.
The price per night in a room could be around $800. Ramirez recommended verifying the value once the reservations are available. According to ICT, as of November, 62 five-star hotels were registered, most of them located in the province of Guanacaste.
This article has been translated from the original which first appeared in La Prensa Grafica