Hotel giant Loews acquires Ventana Canyon resort

The Tucson landmark has been managed by Loews Hotels since its opening in December 1984.

Tucson’s Estes family, which built the property, will retain a minority ownership position in the resort, New York-based Loews said.

Terms of the deal were not announced.

Operations at the resort won’t change as a result of the deal, but next year the resort will undergo a significant update, Loews said.

“For right now, we’re looking at a multimillion-dollar renovation,” to begin in late spring or early summer for completion by the end of 2015, Loews spokeswoman Sarah Moran said.

The “soft goods renovation” project won’t include any major construction and will be scheduled to avoid guest disruptions, she said.

“It’s really important in the hospitality industry to stay fresh and relative,” Moran said.

In prepared remarks, Loews Hotels & Resorts Chairman Jonathan Tisch recalled that Loews Ventana Canyon was the first hotel he developed from start to finish after returning to the company in the early 1980s.

“Conceptualized and built almost 30 years ago, the Estes Company and Loews Hotels created an iconic resort that is still very much a part of the Tucson landscape and a classic property within our brand,” he said. “We look forward to containing the partnerships with the Estes family and the city of Tucson as we launch the next exciting phase of the resort.”

Loews Hotels & Resorts, which owns most of the 23 hotels it operates nationwide, has been on an acquisition spree lately. This past summer the company announced the acquisitions of the Loews Minneapolis Hotel (formerly Graves 601 Hotel) and the Loews Chicago O’Hare Hotel (formerly InterContinental Chicago O’Hare Hotel).