Singapore's sovereign wealth fund GIC has sold the La Quinta Resort & Club and PGA West, a Waldorf Astoria Resort, near Palm Springs, Calif. to Blackstone Group for an undisclosed amount.
The hotel sale is part of a previous deal for Blackstone to buy three resorts from GIC. JP Morgan Chase along with Deutsche Bank granted Blackstone a loan totaling more than $1.1 billion to fund the acquisitions in early May 2018.
Hilton will continue managing the La Quinta. However, the hotel will begin operating under the Waldorf Astoria brand. The property has 617 guestrooms and suites along with 98 villas.
GIC bought the LA Quinta in 2013 as part of a deal to acquire a 3-hotel portfolio for $1.5 billion. The portfolio included the Grand Wailea Resort Hotels & Spa, a Waldorf Astoria Resort in Maui, the Arizona Biltmore in Phoenix and the Claremont Hotel Club & Spa in California.
Blackstone acquired the Grand Wailea hotel in a $1.1-billion deal in January 2017. This marked the second largest deal for a hotel in the U.S, according to the Honolulu Star Advertiser. The Hilton-managed Waldorf Astoria resort has 780 guestrooms on the southwest shore of Maui.
Blackstone also acquired Phoenix's Arizona Biltmore Resort & Spa in 2013 from GIC in a $403.5-million deal, according to AZ Central. The 740-room property changed hands in the city's largest resort sale since 2015. The property, which was designed by Albert Chase McArthur, continues to operate as a Hilton hotel.