[audio:http://www.wdde.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/07/TheGreen_07252014_4-EnlightenMe_BeachHotels.mp3|titles= Delaware Public Media's contributor Pam George interviews Dogfish Inn innkeeper Andrew Greeley.]
The opening of the 16-room Dogfish Inn in Lewes on July 1 made a predictable splash. Within two days, “Inc.” magazine posted a story on its website. The Baltimore Sun, ABC News and numerous blogs devoted to craft brews have also posted articles.
Linda Parkowski, director of tourism for the state of Delaware, isn’t surprised. “The new Dogfish Inn is exactly what you’d expect from Dogfish: quirky, fun and the highest quality,” she said. “It’s in a great location, and it offers the perfect atmosphere for beer-loving tourists.”
Yet the inn is not the only new accommodation along the coast. The Hyatt Place Dewey Beach opened in September 2013, and the Fairfield Inn & Suites should open in late October. If all goes as planned, Bethany Beach Suites will greet guests in spring 2015.
To some, the influx of new properties represents an invigorated coastal economy.
But others worry that as long as hotels have vacancies during the week, the sector might already be saturated. More hotels will only cause rate wars, particularly in the off-season, and while beach businesses recently celebrated a busy July 4, the hotel industry can be a risky business.
“The building of new hotels doesn’t automatically increase demand,” said Chris Strouss, general manager of the Hyatt Place. “The pie just get cuts into more pieces.”
Filling a specific niche
Few would argue that Dogfish Inn and Hyatt Place have certain advantages over many of the existing hotels and motels that line Route 1, from Lewes through Dewey.
The inn targets the thousands for whom the Dogfish Head brewery and brewpub –not the beach – are the main attraction. “We saw that we were getting over 1,000 people touring our brewery each week, and half of those came from out of state,” said Sam Calagione, founder of Dogfish Head. Many planned to stay overnight in the area.
“If we can keep them hanging out with our brand and in downtown Lewes at our inn, they will get to know Dogfish better,” said Calagione, who did no official feasibility study on the project. As usual, he followed his instincts.
The Lewes resident also said the inn would help visitors get better acquainted with the restaurants that sell Dogfish Head. (So as not to infringe on the local restaurant and bar business, the inn does not sell beer.)
Dogfish Head purchased the Vesuvio motel, situated on the canal and a short bike ride from Lewes Beach and Cape Henlopen State Park, for $1.6 million and put more than a million dollars into an extensive renovation. Nothing was left on two-story motel and a second building – now the lobby and a suite – except for the exterior walls.
The finished result has an eclectic motel-like look on the outside and a thoroughly Dogfish-branded experience on the inside.
Dogfish Head bars of shampoo and soap, made with beer and essential oils, are perched on the retro wall-mounted sinks. Custom-made green blankets by Woolrich are folded on the down-filled comforters. Dogfish Head glasses and jars of Hop Pickles by Brooklyn Brine, which uses Dogfish Head 60 Minute IPA, sit atop the mini fridge. Branded beach chairs and beach bags hang on pegs in each room. (The beach bag sports a bottle-opener attached to a handle.)
All the merchandise is available for sale in the lobby, which serves chicory-laced coffee, an homage to the brewery’s Chicory Stout, and features a Vesuvio Library curated by City Lights Books in San Francisco, a hipster hangout since 1953, when the Beat Generation made it famous.
The 108-room Hyatt Place, meanwhile, brings an upscale experience to Dewey Beach, normally known for its nightlife. However, the hotel touts its proximity to the beach and bay (a block and half block respectively) not its distance from the Starboard.
Parkowski said the Hyatt is the “kind of hotel you’d find in a big city.” There’s an indoor pool, fitness center, business center and a lavish, complimentary breakfast buffet. Rooms have ergonomic desks and separate sleeping and seating areas. Other than the tourism guides, there’s not much of a coastal feel. It’s contemporary and sophisticated.
The Hyatt is located on the Lighthouse Cove campus, which has three onsite restaurants, an ice cream shop and more than 1,000 square feet of meeting space inside the hotel and another 9,000-plus-square-feet in the Baycenter conference facility.
Although smaller, the Fairfield Inn & Suites also is outfitted to appeal to both business and leisure travelers. A Marriott brand, it will have 94 rooms, 15 suites, a boardroom meeting space, a lower lobby lounge for drinks and an indoor pool.
When complete, the three-story, beachfront Bethany Beach Ocean Suites should also fall under the Marriott umbrella. Located on the grounds of the old Bethany Arms, the 112 all-suite property has several pluses, namely kitchenettes, private balconies, waterfront rooms, a 3,400-square-foot ballroom – which will cater to weddings – and a conference center for small meetings.
A Slice of the Pie
Bethany Beach Ocean Suites will meet a demand in the southern beach towns. Because most accommodations are vacation homes, usually rented for a week, there aren’t many options for those who wish to stay two or three nights, said Kristie Maravalli, executive director of the Bethany-Fenwick Area Chamber of Commerce.
Noticing the demand, ResortQuest by Wyndham Vacation Rentals has offered two-to-four-night stays for some time, said Tim Fisher, marketing manager (Wyndham purchased ResortQuest, which manages Sea Colony rentals, in late 2010.)
However, only about 10 percent offer stays shorter than a week all year. That’s because owners have costs associated with the rental that remain the same whether someone stays three days or seven. Some owners do allow shorter stays for last-minute deals during un-booked week. ResortQuest will begin offering online bookings for short stays after Aug. 16.
Not only will the Bethany Beach Ocean Suites offer more rooms for shorter stays – and modern amenities – but the conference center and banquet room will also help the local economy. “I think it will extend business into the [off-season] months,” said Rachel Driscoll, director of sales and marketing.
She also hopes the hotel will tempt weekend travelers in the off-season, which is slower in Bethany and Fenwick than it is in Lewes and Rehoboth.
The Hyatt has been nearly at capacity on weekends, even in January, said Chris Strouss, general manager. “That was exciting for us. We’re doing well now Thursday through Sunday. But as is the case with most hotels, we’re seeing a soft market during the week.”
It’s a familiar refrain. “Everybody comes on weekends, that’s when hotels are completely filled,” said Betsy Reamer, executive director of the Lewes Chamber of Commerce. “How sustainable is it to have more hotels?”
Certainly, the attractions – festivals, outlet shopping, historic sites and restaurants – are turning beach towns into year-round destinations, Parkowski said. But the resorts aren’t there yet. Once the activity is brisk all year, the beaches will need more hotels, she said.
Strouss might agree. Six or more properties would “either push some older hotels to close, which is unfortunate, or they’ll fight for rates. I’ve seen it happen in other markets.”
For now, little Dogfish Head Inn is staying busy. During its first 10 days, the inn had guests hailing from California to Florida and from upstate New York. Europeans have booked rooms this summer. The mix includes retirees and young couples.
“While they come to tour the brewery and hit the pub, it is clear they are coming for more,” said innkeeper Andrew Greeley. “The beauty of coastal Delaware has been a big draw.”