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After US$150M reno, Caribe Hilton toasts re-opening

The Caribe Hilton has something to celebrate this year besides its 70th birthday: Two hurricanes, 15 months and US$150 million in renovations later, it is open to guests again.

The Puerto Rican resort, the first Hilton property outside the contiguous U.S., was battered but mostly unharmed after Hurricane Irma struck the Caribbean in August 2017; a few days later, guests were lounging around the pool drinking piña coladas (invented at the hotel bar in the 1960s). It, along with many other properties on the island, wasn’t so lucky after Maria devastated the island shortly after that. It stayed open long enough to ensure that the last stranded guests got home safely, and then closed, along with many other island properties.  

Exterior of the Caribe Hilton
Exterior of the Caribe Hilton

Last week’s opening day, with live music, confetti and piña coladas, was “one of the happiest days of my life, seeing all the team back together,” said Pablo Torres, general manager through the whole experience. “And now, the interaction with the guests, and the passion and energy, is really heartwarming to see.”

In all, owner Park Hotels & Resorts renovated public and private spaces including the 652 guest rooms, along with tennis courts, spa, meeting spaces and F&B locations. Landscaping for the 17-acre resort has been updated. At this point, everything except a couple of restaurants have been reopened, Torres said.

Caribar Lounge
Caribar Lounge

The renovation was an opportunity to reinvent – such as a restaurant with an open-kitchen concept – and make updates – to IT infrastructure and the physical plant, and to bringing parts of the building such as sliding glass doors up to new codes.

Many former staff members have been rehired and retrained; there are more than 350 on property, with more coming on as business improves. “It was truly amazing and heartwarming to see all the team members coming back and celebrating that we are back together at the hotel,” he said. 

Torres called the whole process “a long journey, going through the hurricane and then going through the heartbreaking process of closing the hotel.”

After nearly two difficult years, the island itself is “back in business,” said Torres, who is also chairman of the Puerto Rico Hotel and Tourism Association. “I think Hurricane Maria has led, in a way, to a rebirth of the economy” – and he points out that the New York Times named the island number one on its “Places to Go” list for 2019. 

Maria was Torres’ ninth hurricane. Has it changed him?

“I think this process brings out the best of the human experience,” Torres said. “I have learned to be patient, to be more resilient, and have become maybe a better leader and a better person in terms of how to bring people together through a very difficult and demanding time.”

A garden double room
A garden double room
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