Additional photos by Monica Quinones
Don’t call it a renovation.
Caribe Royale VP of Hotel Operations and Managing Director Amaury Piedra says what the Orlando-based luxury hotel has done the last couple of years is much more of a reimagining than anything, with tech at the forefront.
The transformation includes a massive multi-million-dollar revamp of its 1,300-plus suites, lobby and atrium space.
But at the heart of this change is Stadium Club, the interactive and immersive sports and entertainment hub that Piedra considers a difference maker.
“What people crave now is experience and not the same cookie-cutter experiences from prior generations,” Piedra said. “They want unique experiences. That’s our mission: to provide the experiences people want.”
As a generation that grew up in part on gaming becomes the economic drivers of families, a trend in the luxury hotel space has emerged.
Luxury hotels like Caribe Royale Orlando lean into tech
Resorts are leaning into the fusion of high-tech amenities with luxury hospitality through immersive experiences and technologies.
On a recent weekend, championship boxing lured thousands to Caribe’s detached, 50,000-square-foot Palms Ballroom.
Meanwhile, the Stadium Club allowed others to watch the fights and other sports programming, while also jumping into interactive sports games.
The 9,000-square-foot sports bar and its 110 high-definition televisions were part of a recent $120 million-plus renovation for Caribe Royale.
The idea for the Stadium Club wasn’t born in a boardroom, but from a simple observation.
Piedra realized that while the hotel had great dining options, it lacked a high-energy nighttime venue.
After a couple of years of brainstorming, the team identified the core elements that would resonate with a modern audience.
“Everybody was sitting around saying, ‘What do we like?,’ Piedra said. “‘We like sports. We like music. And we like neon.’ This is what you get.”
That results in an aesthetic that looks like it could have been dropped right into the middle of Las Vegas or Miami, with its vibrant neon accents serving as a defining character moment for the venue.
Pandemic as an opportunity for Caribe Royale Orlando
The project was an early pandemic effort to redefine the hotel in a market that screams for differentiation.
“In Orlando, it’s a little bit different,” Piedra said. “We wanted to appeal to people here and we’re doing it through some of these high-tech offerings. With the influencers and the live events, it sets us apart and gets our name out there.”
Enter Jake Paul.
The professional boxer and social media behemoth appears poised to become a regular attendee at the venue.
That means the Caribe Royale can capture the attention of millions of social media followers through each of the events.
“We are not affiliated with any of the major brands,” Piedra said, noting the partnership with Paul would accomplish that. “We had to get more brand awareness. Saying he’s at Caribe, suddenly you just hit 28 million people, right? You can’t buy an ad that guarantees you 28 million people.”
As the boxing combo with social media takes care of the general reach of the venue, the on-the-ground work brings people back.
Stadium Club’s contribution to delicate balance
For Assistant General Manager Jordan Purkiss, the Stadium Club’s success is rooted in a very delicate balance between food, service and technology.
“Tech is a third ball to juggle in there,” he said. “When one of these goes down, that takes away an opportunity for somebody to come and enjoy it and truly experience what we do.”
The commitment is to a full-sensory luxury experience designed by a team that includes the dynamic duo of Chefs Jeff McInnis and Janine Booth.
Both are James Beard Foundation semi-finalists and McInnis is a former contestant on the hit reality show Top Chef.
Their reputation for creating top notch food in a sports bar setting also helps set the hotel apart.
It elevates “bar cuisine” to an art form.
Chef Andrew Vollmer presented the signature bacon as a highlight, describing it as an applewood-smoked delicacy glazed with an orange marmalade and smoked bourbon reduction.
This detailed, on-the-spot explanation and the live candying demonstration offered a glimpse into a culinary dedication that feels more akin to a MasterChef kitchen than a casual sports bar.
The hotel’s ability to surprise and delight customers, however, is not a coincidence.
It is part of a calculated strategy to elevate every aspect of the guest experience, ensuring that a simple stay becomes a lasting sensory memory.
The boxing only adds to its stated ambition to become the “Caesars Palace of the Southeast.”
“What sets you apart and what people remember more than anything else is the food and beverage experience,” Piedra said. “That’s a sensory experience, and those sensory experiences are the ones they remember.”