A luxury hotel company with hotels in classic hotspots like Laguna Beach and Beverly Hills is taking a chance on an unexpected new destination
- A luxury hotel company that runs hotels in California and soon Manhattan is taking a chance on an unexpected new destination.
- Montage International is building a luxury resort in Montana.
- The hotel will include 150 rooms, 39 residences, a bowling alley, two swimming pools, ski lockers, and ski-in and ski-out access to Big Sky Resort, the second largest ski resort in the US by acreage.
- The $400 million luxury hotel is set to open in 2021.
A luxury hotel company that operates hotels in California - and soon New York City - is betting on a location that usually brings to mind ruggedness rather than luxury: Montana.
Montage International, with private equity firm CrossHarbor Capital Partners LLC, started construction of a luxury hotel on a $400 million property in Big Sky, Montana, in September 2018, Bloomberg reported. It currently operates hotels across a range of more traditionally regarded luxury locations, such as Beverly Hills and Laguna Beach.
The hotel, which will have 150 rooms and 39 residences, is expected to open in 2021 and will include a three-meal restaurant, lobby bar and lounge, market, and pub. That's in addition to its recreation room, complete with bowling alley, indoor lap pool, family swimming pool, fitness center, spa, ski lockers and skier services, and 12,870 square feet of meeting and event space, according to Montage's website.
The resort will offer ski-in, ski-out access to the 5,800 skiable acres of Big Sky Resort, the second largest ski resort in the US by acreage. It's also a summer destination, with hiking and mountain biking trails and world-renowned fly-fishing rivers.
Although Montana is home to the prestigious Yellowstone Club, a private resort where billionaires and celebrities such as Bill Gates and Justin Timberlake go to ski, it's not a state typically associated with luxury hotels. But some signs indicate that it might be an up-and-coming luxury destination.
In 2015, Triple Creek Ranch in Montana was named the best hotel in the world. Financier Morton Fleischer saw enough potential in Montana that he built a 7,000-acre luxury ranch there 15 years ago, which he's now selling for $50 million in a package deal that includes a smaller ranch in Arizona.