It seems that the Hyatt has a new plan to open a luxury hotel in Palm Springs.
Andaz Palm Springs Abandoned
In 2015, it was announced that an Andaz would be coming to Palm Springs. At the time, the plan was to open the 150-room hotel in 2016. For those unfamiliar with Andaz, this is Hyatt’s brand of luxury lifestyle hotels (ish), with properties in popular destinations around the world. .
The reality is that this property was already under development long before it was announced that it would be marked as Hyatt, since the four-acre property has been in development in some form for almost a decade.
To date, the project has not yet been completed. The project appears to be cursed in almost every way – there have been numerous reports of breach of contract, failure to pay contractors, etc. In mid-2020, it was announced that the hotel had filed for bankruptcy, with the controlling entity selling its stake in the property.
Up to this point there has been no real update and, based on what I had heard, the project was more or less dead, at least as a Hyatt.
Thompson Palm Springs now in development
It is my understanding that a new company has now taken over this project, and there are plans to open Thompson Palm Springs. When accessing the Hyatt Development web page, you will see the Thompson Palm Springs listed and, when you click on the “view site” button, you will be taken to the Andaz Palm Springs site.
Only time will tell if the project moves a little faster this time. The fact that the construction is almost complete means that, in theory, it should be possible to complete this project in about a year, as long as the paperwork and licenses do not cause long delays.
For now, there are more questions than answers, although it is good to know that this project has not been fully canceled and that it will remain in the Hyatt ecosystem.
There are still only representations of Andaz for now – Andaz and Thompson are largely comparable Hyatt brands in terms of property size, level of luxury and the crowd they are looking for. The main difference will be the finishes, although this shouldn’t be much of a problem to change, since no work has been done on the interior yet.
Rendering of the lobby of Andaz Palm Springs (soon to be Thompson)
Rendering of the lobby of Andaz Palm Springs (soon to be Thompson)
Rendering of Andaz Palm Springs pool (soon to be Thompson)
Pool pyre of Andaz Palm Springs (soon to be Thompson)
Andaz Palm Springs Guest Room (soon to be Thompson)
Andaz Palm Springs Guest Room (soon to be Thompson)
Another incredible California addition to the Hyatt
Some general observations about this property, specifically, and about the overall footprint of the Hyatt in California.
First of all, Palm Springs is not my favorite place in the world, but I am still excited about this property:
- I wouldn’t travel around the country to visit Palm Springs, although what I love so much about California is the geographic diversity, so that would be great as part of a bigger trip to California; this will also be amazing for those in SoCal looking for a weekend getaway
- Palm Springs desperately lacks luxury hotels; I still miss the Parker Palm Springs belonging to the Starwood Preferred Guest; the hotel still exists, but is no longer affiliated with a major hotel points program
- Although I am generally excited about this development, I would like this to be a more secluded resort with a little more land, rather than a four-acre development right in the heart of the city
Parker Palm Springs Room
In addition, I can’t help pointing out how the Hyatt luxury portfolio in California is starting to develop in a beautiful way:
- Starting this month, there will be three Alila properties in California, between Alila Ventana Big Sur, Alila Marea Beach Encinitas and Alila Napa Valley
- For Hyatt loyalists, you have options of luxury hotels to enjoy the beaches in SoCal, nature in Big Sur and the wine region in Napa Valley, in addition to this addition in Palm Springs soon
- The Hyatt still has a lot of room for improvement when it comes to luxury hotel options in California’s cities, as the Hyatt’s footprint is still very scarce in Los Angeles and San Francisco; is improving slowly (like the addition of Thompson Hollywood), but there is still a lot of potential
Alila Marea Encinitas beach
Result
It looks like the much-delayed Andaz Palm Springs will now become the Thompson Palm Springs. I love the Thompson brand and am excited to see that this hotel will make its way into the Hyatt portfolio.
We hope that this project is really completed this time, because it has been postponed indefinitely.
Are you excited about Thompson Palm Springs?
(Tip of the hat to Tom)