Summit Hotel Properties has partnered with Onera Escapes starting with the acquisition of a 90 percent joint venture interest in Onera Fredericksburg, a landscape hotel (glamorous camping, or glamping) asset in Texas's wine country, as well as a 90 percent interest in an adjacent land parcel for future expansion.
According to Summit, the partnership marks the first ever standalone glamping investment from a public REIT in the segment, which Grand View Research estimates has a 14 percent forecasted revenue compound annual growth rate from 2022-2030, and represents a major step in the maturation of the alternative accommodation market to the institutional level.
The transaction represents Summit’s first investment with Onera Escapes, a developer and operator of hotels, glamping/landscape hotels and short-term rental hospitality properties, to develop and acquire high-end glamping/landscape hotel assets in strategic locations nationally.
“Our labor-light, highly efficient operating model, supported by our sophisticated technology-driven operating platform, is built to maximize both real estate owner and guest satisfaction,” said Jon Cole, CEO of Onera Escapes and its management arm, Azri Group. “Through our partnership with Summit we are institutionalizing alternative hospitality, like glamping, as an institutional asset class, and we look forward to working together to make this exciting segment of the real estate market available to a broader range of investors, developers and property owners.”
Onera Fredericksburg opened in November 2021 with all temperature-controlled units featuring a private bathroom and kitchen. Many units have a private patio and hot tub, and all units have access to common area amenities, including a pool, a sun deck, fire pits and a sauna. It is within walking distance of Fredericksburg’s historic main street and 90 minutes west of Austin.