Dive Brief:
- Upscale extended stay hotel brand WaterWalk will join Wyndham Hotels & Resorts’ portfolio as the company’s 25th brand, Wyndham announced Tuesday.
- The deal adds 11 hotels and 1,500 rooms to Wyndham’s network under the newly created brand WaterWalk Extended Stay by Wyndham.
- Guest demand for longer-term stays — and owner demand for more cost-efficient hotel models — continues to fuel growth in the extended stay space across segments. WaterWalk Extended Stay by Wyndham will be the company’s first extended stay brand in the upscale segment.
Dive Insight:
WaterWalk, which is “positioned squarely in the upscale segment,” according to Wyndham, will “perfectly compliment [sic] Wyndham's existing economy and midscale extended stay brands,” the company said.
"In the last year, guest demand for the extended stay segment reached record highs,” said Chip Ohlsson, Wyndham’s chief development officer, in a statement. The addition of WaterWalk, he added, will further Wyndham’s mission “to offer the industry's most robust portfolio of extended stay brands."
WaterWalk properties separate their units into “Live” and “Stay” rooms. Stay units are fully furnished and offer a traditional extended-stay hotel experience. Live units are unfurnished, allowing guests to bring in their own furniture for a more residential experience. The flexibility of the Live-Stay model allows properties to adapt to changing market needs, Wyndham said.
Founded in 2014 by Jack DeBoer — the extended stay developer who created brands such as Residence Inn and Candlewood Suites — WaterWalk currently operates in 11 markets including Tucson, Arizona; Jacksonville, Florida; and Wichita, Kansas. DeBoer’s granddaughter, Mimi Oliver, is the brand’s current CEO.
Wyndham’s other extended stay brands are Echo Suites, in the economy segment, and Hawthorn Extended Stay, in midscale. Echo Suites launched in 2022 and has more than 265 new construction hotels in its development pipeline. Hawthorn, meanwhile, saw 30% growth in its midscale conversion and new construction development pipelines in 2023, according to Wyndham.
Collectively, Wyndham said, its three extended stay brands will improve owners’ ability to capitalize on the U.S.’s historic infrastructure spending.
In 2021, the Biden administration passed a $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill, and Wyndham isn’t the only hotel company that plans to tap into increased room demand. In a statement in February, LivAway Suites CEO Mike Nielson said the bill is likely to “dramatically increase the demand” for extended stay hotels nationally.
Wyndham believes the infrastructure spending will create “a $3.3 billion opportunity in additional room revenue.”
