Irvine-based Pacific Hospitality Group bought Ko’a Kea Hotel & Resort on the island of Kauai in Hawaii from CTF Ko’a Kea Hotel LLC on undisclosed terms. It’s Pacific Hospitality’s first acquisition in Hawaii and second outside of California.
In August it bought AC Hotel New Orleans for about $60 million, which Chief Investment Officer Kory Kramer said “has exceeded our pro forma expectations.”
PHG owns and operates 10 hotels, including four in Orange County. Six of the 10, including Ko’a Kea, are high-end resorts it calls the Meritage Collection. Ko’a Kea’s nightly rates are $375 to $525.
Kramer said PHG buys luxury properties in growth markets that are difficult for competitors to enter.
The Ko’a Kea area is “high-barrier like Coastal California—once you’re in and you’re an owner it mitigates some risk because you don’t have to worry about new product coming online.”
Kramer said occupancy at the hotel has been at about 63% and “20 points below its peers.” He said, “including it within our (Meritage) hotel family means we can leverage our database of clients to drive business.”
—Paul Hughes
