The Doubletree Guest Suites Baltimore/Washington International Airport will begin the new year under a different flag, becoming the Embassy Suites BWI Airport.
That name change, effective Saturday, occurs during a $3.6 million renovation of the 251-room, all-suite hotel at 1300 Concourse Drive in Linthicum Heights.
The lobby, indoor pool and meeting and banquet rooms will be upgraded beginning next month. The restaurant also will be expanded.
Renovations already have begun in the suites. The face lifting in the suites will include new tile in the bathrooms, new tables, lamps and doors. The hotel will remain open throughout the project.
"It's a change in flag and philosophy and the way we're going to do our business," said Scott Dial, assistant general manager at Doubletree. "It's going to bring a higher-end service to our guests."
Under the new flag, guests will receive a complimentary breakfast and an invitation to a two-hour reception nightly offering drinks and hors d'oeuvres.
Those are trademark Embassy Suites services known to people who frequent the hotel.
"Being an all-suite hotel already, the addition of those services fills a need in the Baltimore market that no one else is meeting," said Michael D. Elliott, director of sales and marketing for the airport Doubletree.
The 12-year-old Doubletree property, owned by Dallas-based Felcor Corp., has annual revenue of about $13 million, Dial said.
Embassy Suites is part of Hilton Hotels Corp., based in Beverly Hills, Calif. There are more than 100 Embassy Suites in the United States and Canada.
Until recently, Doubletree was part of Promus Hotel Corp., which has been acquired by Hilton.
