Hotel News

Posh Waldorf Astoria resort coming to Texas Hill Country in 2027

The Waldorf Astoria Hill Country will be constructed in Fredericksburg.

Rendering courtesy of IMI Worldwide Properties

A famous hotel chain is opening its first Texas location in the Hill Country — but don't expect a budget stay. The Waldorf Astoria Texas Hill Country is expected to open in 2027.

A release does not share an address, but says the 106-acre property will be located less than a mile from downtown Fredericksburg.

The luxe property will include 60 hotel rooms, 37 multi-bedroom resort villas that may be rented out, and 50 private residences. In addition to lodgings, the resort will contain five food and beverage concepts — an all-day restaurant, a specialty restaurant, a bar and lounge, a pool bar, and a grab-and-go juice bar — a spa, a fitness center, and two pools.

Behind the scenes of this arrangement are Hilton — the Waldorf Astoria's parent company — and Wine Country Hospitality Partners LLC, a partnership between Mark Harmon, Robert Radovan, and Tim Sparapani. The design was handled by Studio CABAN, FAB Studio, TIPLER Group, Studio Outside, and Paul Duesing Partners.

The announcement emphasizes the Hill Country's value for travelers who are interested in visiting wineries and promised "authentically Texan design elements." The residences, ranging from three to five bedrooms, are meant for "celebrating the natural influences of the land" and are already available for reservations.

“Conrad Hilton’s legacy in the hotel business began in Texas more than 105 years ago, and working alongside incredible owners, we’re proud to deliver on Conrad’s vision as we introduce our distinguished luxury hotel and residential portfolio in the destination,” said vice president of luxury & mixed-use development at Hilton Amy King. That's referring to the first hotel the Hilton founder bought in Cisco, followed by the first hotel that bore the Hilton name in Dallas, in 1925.

The original Waldorf Astoria opened in New York in 1893 and became famous for its opulence. It was demolished in 1929 for the construction of the Empire State Building. However, there are now more than 30 Waldorf Astoria properties around the world carrying the same historic reputation for elevated service and accommodations.

Developer Mark Harmon emphasizes that the new resort will belong to Texas and be designed accordingly.

“With Waldorf Astoria Texas Hill Country, we’re drawing upon the unique architecture and history of Fredericksburg to create a new experience that opens this budding wine destination to travelers and future residents," Harmon says, "drawing a spotlight to the area as a whole and all that makes it unique.”

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HISTORY CORRECTED

Houston documentary maker helps correct biased Texas historical marker

Photo by Virginia Diaz-Laughlin

Medrano stands in front of the Karankawa marker while filming 'Truly Texas Mexican.'

It's not often that a film has an impact past the box office, but one documentary has helped tell the truth about the Texas Gulf Coast's long-disparaged Karankawa people.

For years, the Indigenous Peoples of the Coastal Bend and the Karankawa Tribe of Texas have fought for a corrected Texas Historical Commission marker in Corpus Christi. Houstonian Adán Medrano’s 2021 film, Truly Texas Mexican, helped finalize a push that will lead to a long-due correction on July 25.

The old marker was plainly offensive. Not only did it say the Karankawa people had "gained a reputation for savagery," but it repeated the long-discredited claim that they practiced cannibalism — a contention born out of the colonial need to justify violence against the tribe.

Medrano, a San Antonio native who currently lives in Houston, became part of the fight when he stood in front of the marker and made a direct appeal to correct the sign.

"I call upon the historians who live in Texas to come up and stand up and say, 'Take this down. This is a lie,'" he said during a scene in Truly Texas Mexican.

Two of them heard the call. Texas A&M University–Corpus Christi history professor Dr. Peter Moore and historian Dr. Tim Seiter of the University of Texas at Tyler joined the years-long Indigenous effort following the film's release. Led by the Indigenous Peoples of the Coastal Bend and the Karankawa Tribe of Texas, the academics helped research and draft a replacement that honors them as one of Texas' first peoples.

The marker not only replaces racist mythmaking with scholarship and tribal knowledge, it presents the fact that Karankawa descendants aren't a historical footnote but a living community still present in South Texas today.

Medrano's advocacy here continues his work with the T exas Indigenous Food Project, a nonprofit dedicated to celebrating the Indigenous foodways of Texas and the Americas. But in many ways it is a continuation of a career devoted to amplifying voices rarely heard in popular culture. In 1976, he founded San Antonio's CineFestival, now the nation's longest-running Latine film festival.

At 10 am on July 25, representatives of the Indigenous Peoples of the Coastal Bend and the Karankawa Tribe of Texas will unveil the corrected marker, joined by Medrano. Visitors can find it at 6001 Ennis Joslin Rd.

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