Gold Key | PHR Completes Four-Year $85 Million Renovation of Virginia Beach Icon, The Cavalier Hotel

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USA, Virginia Beach, Virginia. March 21, 2018

Virginia Beach icon, The Cavalier Hotel, officially opened its doors March 7, 2018 after a massive four year renovation with a price tag of nearly $85MM. Originally completed in 1927, every detail of The Cavalier Hotel has been meticulously restored revealing the glorious architectural elements and design from its glamorous past while incorporating modern-day luxury amenities.

Developed by Gold Key | PHR, the newly reimagined 85-room, 21-acre property is the latest luxury class member of Marriott's distinguished Autograph Collection bringing five-star service to the mid-Atlantic. The Cavalier features four distinct entertainment and dining experiences: Becca, The Raleigh Room, The Hunt Room, and Tarnished Truth Distillery, the first and only distillery fully integrated into a US hotel. Also on property is the full-service SeaHill Spa, the private Cavalier Beach Club, state-of-the-art meeting rooms, a lavish ballroom, fitness facilities, indoor pool, and a museum which will give guests a look into the hotel's celebrated past.

“The Cavalier Hotel represents an exciting rebirth of the Virginia Beach oceanfront offering unparalleled luxury and amenities not seen since the heyday of the historic hotel,” says Gold Key | PHR CEO Bruce Thompson. “We are excited for guests to enjoy this very special location - where old world charm meets present-day comforts and southern hospitality - be it for an oceanfront respite, a night out for dinner and drinks, or a celebration.”

Set high atop a hill overlooking the Atlantic, The Cavalier's striking entrance remains much as it did back in 1927. Guests are transported back in time as they arrive to the original four column portico and brick porte-cochère. The magnificent lobby captures the influence of the roaring 20's and the jazz age. Soaring ceilings, sparkling fixtures, and ornate architectural moldings instill a sense of place and history.

Each of the 62 guest rooms and 23 suites were designed to create a sophisticated residential experience. Plush fabrics, designer accents, and new rich finishes blend seamlessly with classic architecture. Rooms are outfitted with claw foot tubs, marble baths, and first-class amenities like monogrammed embroidered slippers, robe and towel, and Molten Brown toiletries.

The Cavalier is also a dining and entertainment destination. The Raleigh Room melds modern style and Southern gentility into a new interpretation of the Grand Salon. Featuring a central fireplace, plush seating, drink carts, games tables, and billiards, The Raleigh Room graciously greets guests providing an inviting and genial environment - be it proper drinks before dinner, high tea in the afternoon, or breakfast.

Becca, a modern restaurant with intimate garden seating, serves inspired farm-to-table fare. A soon to be Virginia Beach dining destination, Becca is the culinary essence of The Cavalier. Featuring bright and inspired cuisine using the freshest local ingredients, Becca, under the direction of the hotel's skilled executive chef Dan Elinan, demonstrates a true commitment to sustainable cooking. Elegant, contemporary interiors that are warm and unpretentious set amongst a stunning garden, make Becca the perfect destination for lunch, dinner, and weekend brunch.

The Cavalier houses a fully integrated distillery and tasting room. Tarnished Truth Distilling Company, founded by Virginia Beach natives Andrew Yancey and Josh Canada, will delight guests with distillery tours, special tastings, cocktail classes, and more. Specializing in small batch, aged bourbons and vodka, Tarnished Truth's signature Old Cavalier Bourbon, Tarnished Truth Bourbon, Tarnished Truth High Rye Bourbon, and AVA vodka, made on property, are available for tasting and purchase.

Adjacent to the distillery is the prohibition-era tavern, The Hunt Room.  A historical Virginia Beach social lounge, The Hunt Room provides an intimate cloistered setting harkening back to the storied days of prohibition and features live, acoustic entertainment nightly. Serving rustic fare, The Hunt Room is perfect for lunch, dinner, or late-night dining. Visitors can enjoy flight pairings, cocktails, and Chef's 3 Tier Tasting Menu in front of The Hunt Room's legendary over-sized hearth, which was painstakingly rebuilt brick by brick.

The famed indoor salt water pool and magnificent glass rotunda once known as 'The Plunge' are also enlivened. Surrounding balconies, architectural iron detailing, and the tiled monogram 'The Cavalier' on the pool floor, have all been refurbished providing a fun place to people watch or swim any time of the year.

The spectacular Crystal Ballroom, once host to big band performers and huge galas, has been returned to its original size and glory featuring tall ceilings and large historic windows facing the front of the hotel. The Crystal Ballroom can accommodate up to 200 guests for any type of wedding or event. In addition, state-of-the-art meetings and events spaces have been added to the property and are ready to accommodate group meetings large or small.

Added to the hotel is the brand-new SeaHill Spa offering luxurious full-service amenities and a relaxing, wellness experience -- all with the Virginia beachline in full view. Beautifully designed with extreme attention to detail, the full-service hair and nail salon boasts extraordinary bridal packages, exclusive products, nine dreamlike treatment rooms, hydrotherapy suites, and a co-ed reflection room. The spa will also offer one-of-a-kind treatments including its signature Bourbon Facial utilizing product from neighboring Tarnished Truth.

The Cavalier Beach Club, accessible only to hotel guests and the Residences, will reopen in the summer of 2018. Once the forerunner of all beach clubs, The Cavalier Beach Club ushered in the Big Band Era and continuied to excite and amuse guests for decades following. The re-imagined club will continue that tradition providing a beach front sanctuary with panoramic ocean views, dining, entertainment, and poolside lounging.

The Cavalier Hotel is located at 4200 Atlantic Ave, Virginia Beach, Virginia 23451. Reservations and event inquiries can be made at cavalierhotel.com or call 757-425-8555.

About The Cavalier Hotel

Originally opened in 1927, The Neo-Classical Cavalier Hotel was designed by Norfolk, Virginia-based architect Clarence Neff and became an instant landmark that is now listed on the National Register of Historic Places. During its heyday, The Cavalier changed the landscape and social scene of Virginia Beach's oceanfront playing host to ten U.S. Presidents, dozens of celebrities like Elizabeth Taylor, Judy Garland, and Frank Sinatra, and was a major venue for performers in the Big Band era like Benny Goodman and Glenn Miller. In 2014 Gold Key | PHR began the extensive renovation and restoration of the property overseen by Norfolk-based architecture firm Hanbury Evans Wright Vlattas. Today the hotel is enjoying a renaissance making it a destination for locals and world travelers.

About Gold Key | PHR

Gold Key | PHR was founded in 1986 by current CEO Bruce L. Thompson in Virginia Beach, Virginia as a modest hospitality management company. Today with $500-million in asset value and $170-million in annual revenue, Gold Key | PHR boasts over 1,300 keys under the Ramada, Hilton and Marriott flags, multiple award-winning restaurants and is the state's largest hospitality employer.  Adding to Gold Key | PHR's list of noteworthy hospitality brands are two recent high-profile projects, The Cavalier, a member of the Marriott Autograph Collection Hotel and the Hilton Norfolk The Main Hotel and Conference Center which features the largest hotel ballroom in the state.  Gold Key | PHR is also active in the development of commercial and luxury residential projects in the mid-Atlantic region and has been integral in philanthropic development in the region through its charity arm, The Virginia Gentlemen Foundation.