A DoubleTree by Hilton hotel in Downtown Cleveland is scheduled to close permanently on January 30, 2026. The closure will result in the layoff of approximately 66 employees, according to a notice sent to Ohio state and local authorities.
The notice cited "business reasons which are out of the company's control" and stated the company had "no ability to undertake remedial measures that would mitigate or avoid the closure." The hotel is located at 1111 Lakeside Ave E.
Built in 1973, the 17-story, 378-room property previously operated as a Holiday Inn. It was acquired by Cami Hotel Investments in 2007 for $10.7 million and underwent a $15 million renovation the following year, according to a Hotel Online press release.
Despite its location near Lake Erie and attractions like Huntington Bank Field, home of the Cleveland Browns, the hotel has faced financial struggles. Operational underperformance led to mounting unpaid bills and declining revenues.
In October 2019, the prior owner, Cami Hotel Investments II LLC, filed for foreclosure after defaulting on approximately $35 million in debt, court records show. Crescent Hotels and Resorts was appointed as the receiver three months later.
Service reports obtained by Costar indicate that by May 2025, the hotel posted an occupancy rate of 27.58%, with an average daily rate of $131.18 and revenue per available room of $36.18. This underperformance resulted in a 58.5% decline in the hotel's loan valuation, from $40 million to $16.6 million by February 2024, totaling $25.4 million in losses.
The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated the property's financial demise. By mid-February 2020, the hotel industry had already lost more than $46 billion in room revenue, with projections of $76.4 billion in losses and 670,000 layoffs by the end of that year, according to data gathered by RSM.
The Cleveland closure is not an isolated incident. In recent months, at least three other DoubleTree by Hilton hotels have announced permanent shutdowns. A location in Memphis, Tennessee, closed on November 30, 2025, impacting 88 workers, according to Fox 13. A hotel in Plymouth, Philadelphia, closed on November 25, 2025, as reported by the Philadelphia Business Journal. Another in Monroeville, Pennsylvania, closed on June 1, 2024, affecting 80 employees, CBS News reported.
DoubleTree by Hilton operates primarily as a franchised brand. Hilton operates 711 total DoubleTree properties, with 167 company-managed and 544 franchised or licensed, according to its third quarter fiscal 2025 earnings report. Individual closures typically reflect property-level financial struggles.
Hilton CEO Christopher J. Nassetta addressed challenges during the company's latest earnings call. He attributed a 2.3% decline in U.S. RevPAR to "unfavorable holidays and events, softer international inbound to the U.S., declines in U.S. government-related travel, and portfolio renovations."
Total company revenue increased 8.8% year over year in the third quarter to $3.12 billion. However, Hilton revised its full-year 2025 RevPAR outlook downward to a growth range of 0% to 1%. During the quarter, the occupancy rate at Hilton's U.S. hotels decreased by 1% to 74.5%, while DoubleTree's occupancy rate declined by 0.4% to 71.6%.
Nassetta expressed confidence about long-term performance. "We remain optimistic, that in the U.S., lower interest rates, a more favorable regulatory environment, certainty on tax policy, and a significant investment cycle will accelerate economic growth and travel demand," he said in the Q3 2025 report overview.
Industry experts commented on the broader landscape. "Even as RevPAR growth bifurcation persists, supply growth is finally expected to normalize across chain scales after several years of constraint for the midscale and economy chain scales," said Principal, Real Estate & Hospitality Abhi Jain at PwC U.S. in a statement.
Expert Market Senior Grow Online & Business Software Expert Tatiana Lebreton emphasized balancing cost-cutting with guest satisfaction. "Implementing cuts can help ease the economic burden, but it's important to make sure these cuts don't affect the guests' experience," Lebreton said. "After all, guests are the primary source of revenue."
PwC industry analysts provided a forward-looking view. "If 2025 was a year of recalibration, 2026 offers a slow, deliberate step forward," they said. "The industry isn't reverting to past cycles, nor entering decline. It's adapting to a landscape where growth should be earned."
The U.S. hotel market was valued at $263.21 billion in 2024 and is projected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 7.1% through 2030, according to Grand View Research's latest report. The industry has endured significant setbacks, including a 43-day U.S. government shutdown that triggered thousands of flight delays and cancellations worldwide, resulting in $6.1 billion in losses across travel-related sectors, according to the U.S. Travel Association.