Margaritaville brings hope that it will spur economic growth in Hyannis

Soon, a giant blue flip-flop will greet guests as they enter the Cape Codder Resort as it transitions into New England’s first Margaritaville. 

Located off Route 132 in Hyannis, the centrally located hotel is already undergoing significant changes. Renovations include updating the hotel rooms, guest amenities, restaurants, and ballroom and conference space. The changeover to the new brand will happen at the end of August. 

Once the hotel is fully open, local business people hope it will attract much-needed tourists to the region’s stores and restaurants. 

“I think it’s a great draw for Hyannis,” said Elizabeth Wurfbain, the executive director of Hyannis Main Street Business Improvement District. “Even though there are restaurants there, people will want to go shopping on Main Street. They’ll want to go to restaurants after they’re done with what the hotel has to offer. We always get customers downtown when there’s hotel action.”

Wurfbain added that the hotel is a great marketing idea for attracting people of all ages to the Cape. 

“It’s Disney for the ocean,” she said. 

Linchris, based in Plymouth, bought the Cape Codder from the Catania Hospitality Group in 2022. 

Soon after, Linchris, which owns six other hotels on the Cape, decided to franchise the Jimmy Buffett lifestyle brand Margaritaville over keeping it an independent hotel. 

Brian Anderson, the senior vice president of operations, said Linchris looked at many Margaritavilles and was surprised to learn that they were located not only in beach destinations like South Florida but also in Lake Tahoe, California, Tennessee, and even New York City. 

There’s even a Margaritaville-themed restaurant in Faneuil Hall. 

Anderson said it also fits the family-friendly vibe they were looking for, especially with the hotel’s 32,000-square-foot indoor water park. 

“There’s a misconception that there’s a party lifestyle, and that’s not it,” said Anderson. “There are couples that will be coming to escape their busy work life or to relax, to bring families for the waterpark, to people who just want to get away.”

The hotel is open, with half of the rooms already renovated. Anderson said people are already booking. 

“There are many Jimmy Buffet’s Parrotheads Clubs throughout the United States, and [they are] anxious and made reservations for the summer,” Anderson said. 

When people visit and stay in the area, it helps the downtown economy, said Paul Niedzwiecki, the CEO of the Cape Cod Chamber of Commerce. 

The hotel is easily accessible off Route 6, sits next to an Olive Garden and Stop & Shop, and is up the street from the Cape Cod Mall. 

“People come to the Cape for its unique character and environment,” said Niedzwiecki. “But they also come wanting some of the creature comforts of home. I think ever since the Cape Cod Mall was put on 132, that’s been the place that people come to when they’re looking for those sorts of things that might be more readily accessible where they live year-round.”

“I think 132, the ease of access, the central location — I think it makes it perfect for this brand,” he continued. 

Niedzwiecki said the Cape Codder was always full during February and April vacations, and they expect that to remain true with the newly renovated hotel. 

Marty Bruemmel, the president and CEO of the Greater Hyannis Chamber of Commerce, said the Cape Codder needed some work. “And they’re certainly doing it. I mean they’re gutting it,” he said. 

He looks forward to when the hotel opens a new ballroom that can hold over 400 people to host corporate events during the offseason. He said the demand for both more corporate spaces and hotel rooms during the off-summer season is high.

“They’re investing a lot of money,” said Bruemmel. “And they wouldn’t do that if the opportunity wasn’t there to bring more business to their hotels.”

Bruemmel has heard some negativity about the new hotel because it is a chain. But he noted that just down the street, there is also a Holiday Inn and a Fairfield Inn. 

Bruemmel said that even though guests can still get great value at some of the older hotels in the area, people want to spoil their children. 

“They want to have their pool, they want to have video games and arcades and all this stuff,” he said. “It’s a different draw.”

“Other hotels are expanding and renovating too, to adapt with the times,” he added. “But Margaritaville has its unique name. And there are a lot of Parrotheads out there that are going to be coming up here.”

Margaritaville isn’t the only newly renovated hotel in the area.

“For a long time, national flag hotels were not hot to invest in seasonal locations,” said Niedzwiecki. “But that’s really changed over the last four or five years.”

The pandemic probably played a little role in that, he said. 

Hyannis and its neighbor Yarmouth in the mid-Cape area are known for having run-down motels, especially along the Route 28 corridor. 

However, Yarmouth’s Freebird Motor Lodge recently got an upgrade, and EOS recently bought the Red Jacket Resorts in Yarmouth and put in a $40 million renovation. 

“We’ve seen a lot of hotel rooms change hands during the pandemic and immediately after,” said Niedzwiecki. “That’s brought a lot of off Cape capital and invested it on the Cape, and we think that’s a good thing.”

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