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Rendering of thermal pool, part of an 11,000-squarefoot spa and fitness center. Photo: IMI Worldwide Properties |
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GOING BIG IN TEXAS This prognostication led Harmon to put his money where his mind is. In March, Harmon, with his partners Robert Radovan and Tim Sparapani, announced the signing of Waldorf Astoria Texas Hill Country and Waldorf Astoria Residences Texas Hill Country, through a brand and management agreement with Hilton. The hotel, to be built on 106 acres of what Harmon calls land with“ great orientation,” is Waldorf Astoria’ s debut property in Texas and will consist of 60 guestrooms and suites, 37 branded multibedroom resort villas that are eligible to participate in a hotel rental program, and 50 branded private residences. The resort will also include five food-and-beverage concepts( stay tuned for a celebrity chef announcement), an 11,000-square-foot spa and fitness center, two resort-style pools and more. Groundbreaking is slated for later this summer with a 2027 scheduled opening.
Harmon and his partners
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could have elected to build the hotel and manage it under his own Private Label Collection, a portfolio of hotels and restaurants he established with his partner, Jonathan McManus, in 2022, and includes the highly rated Hotel Wailea, Relais & Châteaux in Maui. In Waldorf Astoria, Harmon was attracted to the brand right off the bat, particularly drawn to it on the heels of the much-anticipated reopening of Waldorf Astoria New York.“ I thought, let’ s find a brand that can really help us out and has great management,” Harmon said, acknowledging that other luxury brands and operators were considered. He said that within two days of bringing the project to Hilton and Waldorf Astoria, they committed.
Beyond the urban terroir, Waldorf Astoria has deepened its reach into resort locations. It opened Waldorf Astoria Costa Rica Punta Cacique recently and, in another example, in 2019 took over The Resort at Pedregal in Los Cabos, Mexico, rebranding it as Waldorf Astoria
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Los Cabos Pedregal. There are currently 34 Waldorf Astoria properties globally with another 30 in the pipeline.
“ They saw our vision and how to shape a really great resort experience in Texas,” Harmon said.“ They stood out head and shoulders among everyone for their commitment, their knowledge and willingness to move quickly and to say,‘ We believe in this project.’”
Furthermore, as Harmon noted, there are just a handful of high-end properties in the area. Texas Hill Country has an assemblage of independent, boutiquey hotels that run the gamut, but there is just a smattering of true luxury resorts. There is a J. W. Marriott, two Hyatt Regency properties, Omni Barton Creek, La Cantera and a Miraval, Hyatt’ s wellnesscentric brand; the space is still white. Other luxury brands, from Aman to Rosewood, are sniffing around.
And it’ s not just because people want to sample the wine. People are moving to the area in droves: Texas Hill Country is one of the fastest growing
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regions in a state that continues to draw population and companies who see it as a place where it’ s easier to do business and has further inducements like no personal income tax.“ You look at the number of companies that have moved there, the number of wealthy people that have moved there— it’ s a dynamic market,” Harmon said, adding that developing a project like this comes in at a significantly lower cost and with less aggravation than doing it in, for example, a state like California, with its onerous restrictions and regulations.
But California does have Napa and Sonoma, which are unique locales. Texas Wine Country is angling for its own sliver of stature.“ What I see is the ability to do something of real quality that becomes a destination, but what we love about this area is the spirit of welcome. We’ ve gotten a really warm welcome, a big Texas warm welcome,” Harmon said.
Waldorf Astoria Texas Hill Country adds cachet and draw to an area that, like a ripened grape, is ready to burst.
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38 hotelsmag. com May / June 2025 |