In a $165 million acquisition, Los Angeles-based real estate investment company JRK Property Holdings snapped up a Hilton hotel in La Jolla, California — a market experiencing strong leisure travel demand and life sciences growth, the company shared.
Through its $350 million Hospitality Fund, JRK acquired the 394-key Hilton La Jolla Torrey Pines from Braemar Hotels & Resorts, the company announced in a release obtained by Hotel Dive. The deal comes roughly two months after Dallas-based Braemar signed a definitive agreement to sell the property, which it originally acquired in 2013, CoStar reported.
The oceanfront resort sits on 11.4 acres adjacent to Torrey Pines Golf Course, roughly 15 miles north of downtown San Diego, and features three food and beverage venues, an outdoor pool, a fitness center, tennis and pickleball courts and 65,200 square feet of meetings space. The property also offers exclusive tee times at Torrey Pines Golf Course, a recurring host of PGA Tour events, according to JRK.
With proximity to the famed golf course as well as the Pacific Ocean, the hotel benefits from strong leisure demand, Shaan Bhatia, head of hotel investment for JRK, detailed in the release.
The San Diego region saw approximately 30.5 million visitors in 2023, driving hotel occupancy rates up 5% year over year to 73%, according to the San Diego Tourism Authority.
Global real estate investment bank Eastdil Secured, which marketed the property for sale, said Hilton La Jolla Torrey Pines has outperformed the competitive market in occupancy, ADR and RevPAR every year since 2016.
The property is also situated in what Bhatia calls “one of the strongest and most coveted life sciences corridors in the country.” The University of California at San Diego, Scripps Research Institute and the Salk Institute are all located within 2 miles of the property, JRK noted.
The property aligns with JRK’s strategy to acquire value-add, full- and select-service hotels across the country. According to Bhatia, JRK plans to “invest significant capital to revamp guest experience” at the hotel.
JRK adds the Hilton to a growing hospitality portfolio that includes Oceana Santa Monica; a five-property Marriott-flagged portfolio in Austin, Texas; and the Ace Hotel in Palms Springs, California. The investment firm intends to acquire more than $500 million of additional hospitality assets over the next 12 to 18 months, it said in a statement.
