IRVINE, Calif.—After closing for two years, Hotel Irvine expects a reopening after the Irvine Company sold it to Hyatt Aug. 3 for $135 million.
The 541-room Hotel Irvine, along with the Fashion Island Hotel, was closed in the spring of 2020 during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. Many hotels and tourism businesses were throttled by when travel came to a standstill.
“We plan to leverage our world-class commercial engine in one of the best markets in southern California to unlock additional value in the hotel,” a Hyatt spokesperson told The Epoch Times in an email.
Hyatt came to an agreement on long-term management of Hotel Irvine under the Hyatt Regency brand, while Irvine Company maintains the ownership of the land.
The hotel will undergo a major renovation, but the hospitality giant has not released further details about its plan.
“We look forward to ushering in the hotel’s next chapter, with plans to operate this hotel under the Hyatt Regency brand after an extensive hotel-wide renovation,” the spokesperson said.
The hotel’s convenient location—sitting in the center of dense high-end office areas near John Wayne Airport—can boost Hyatt’s upcoming business plan.
“A Hyatt affiliate has acquired Hotel Irvine as part of Hyatt’s strategy to fuel our continued growth in key markets where our guests are traveling and help us care for guests in more ways and more places,” according to the company’s statement.
Irvine Company took over managing Hotel Irvine from Hyatt in 2013, which was the last time the hotel was renovated. Prior to that, it was managed by Hilton through 1990.
