Dive Brief:
- Travel + Leisure Co. has acquired vacation ownership business rights from Sports Hospitality Ventures to bring Sports Illustrated Resorts to college towns in the U.S., the company announced Wednesday.
- Each of the sports-themed lifestyle resorts will include a full-service hotel, vacation club and residential condominiums. The first is slated to open in Tuscaloosa, Alabama in late 2025.
- CEO of Sports Hospitality Ventures Christopher Schroeder said the resorts will cater to guests who “are seeking differentiated experiences that allow them to be more active and participatory,” building on an ongoing trend toward experiential travel.
Dive Insight:
Sports Illustrated Resorts will be “near universities with devoted fan bases” and integrate Sports Illustrated content into their design, according to Travel + Leisure Co. Each resort will feature attractions centered around live sports, as well as outlets for dining and wellness.
Schroeder said the resort brand plans to “immers[e] our guests in sports culture and provid[e] the best entertainment, cuisine, fitness, health and wellness to our guests.”
As the first college town destination for the brand, Tuscaloosa’s Sports Illustrated Resort will offer a health and wellness center dubbed “SI Fit,” as well as various dining and entertainment amenities. The resort will be located across the Black Warrior River from the University of Alabama.
Geoff Richards, COO of vacation ownership at Travel + Leisure Co., said the company’s vision is “to provide members a unique opportunity to totally immerse themselves in gameday life with a piece of their favorite college town, plus flexibility to travel away with their team and beyond.”
Beyond college town locations, the brand will continue to open experiential travel resorts in leisure destinations. Sports Illustrated Resorts opened a beach club in Cap Cana, in the Dominican Republic, in 2022.
The company said it has plans to announce additional college town destinations in the near future.
Hotel industry leaders say travelers are increasingly seeking experience-oriented travel destinations. This is true for vacation ownership clubs, too — in August, Hyatt Hotels Corp. announced a reimagining of its Hyatt Vacation Club brand to focus more on experiences.
