Dive Brief:
- Leisure hospitality company Aspen One is expanding its Limelight Hotels brand to the East Coast with a hotel and residences in Charleston, South Carolina, the company announced Tuesday in a news release obtained by Hotel Dive.
- Limelight Charleston will be located in the city’s historic district, offering 50 hotel rooms, 16 private residences, a rooftop pool, restaurant and the brand’s signature “living room” community gathering space.
- The property expands the Limelight brand beyond West Coast markets, as it grows to “the country’s most interesting and exciting destinations,” according to Jeff Toscano, CEO of Aspen One subsidiary Aspen Hospitality. Limelight has several other openings planned for later this year.
Dive Insight:
Set to open in 2028, Limelight Charleston will represent the hotel brand’s seventh location as it expands to premium, high-barrier-to-entry leisure markets across the U.S., according to parent company Aspen One.
“South Carolina, and Charleston specifically, are rapidly expanding and the Charleston market is a perfect fit for the type of guest that we see at Limelight Hotels — people who are both discerning and appreciate an elevated concept and experience that caters to experiences connected to place and adventure,” Toscano told Hotel Dive. “Charleston is a unique city that marries historic charm with a sense of modern luxury — it is a natural extension of our brand.”
Charleston has recently experienced an uptick in tourism as well as hotel performance gains. In 2024, nearly 8 million tourists visited the greater Charleston area, according to Explore Charleston’s 2024 Economic Impact of Tourism report, obtained by Hotel Dive. The market’s hotel RevPAR and ADR were also up year over year in 2024, per the report.
Upon opening, Limelight Charleston will join other brand properties that currently span Aspen, Snowmass and Denver, Colorado; and Ketchum, Idaho. Limelight has two additional hotels slated to open this year: Limelight Boulder, opening later this summer in Boulder, Colorado; and Limelight Mammoth, debuting this winter in Mammoth, California.
While Toscano declined to share specific markets that Limelight is targeting next, he said the brand has intentionally expanded to cities that are “walkable, unique and have opportunities for both relaxation and adventure.”
In addition to Limelight Hotels, Aspen One operates other hospitality and leisure brands including Aspen Skiing Company, Aspen Hospitality and Aspen Ventures.
Four Seasons is also slated to open a hotel and residences in Charleston in 2028.
