Gayle Benson is acquiring the Windsor Court, the storied high-rise hotel in downtown New Orleans that has anchored the city’s luxury travel scene since it opened in 1984. The deal marks the first time in the property’s history that it will be under 100% local ownership.
According to fox8live.com, the Berger Company, led by Darryl and Ryan Berger, will retain a minority interest in the Windsor Court and stay involved in hotel operations going forward. Benson, who owns the New Orleans Saints and Pelicans, told the station her vision was to build on the hotel’s excellence. As reported by NOLA.com, Benson is purchasing the hotel; a partnership that included Crow Holdings bought the property in 2009.
A World’s Fair-Era Landmark Changes Hands
The Windsor Court was developed by New Orleans businessman and self-described anglophile James “Jimmy” Coleman Jr. in 1984, ahead of the World’s Fair that was coming to the city, per the hotel’s own account on thewindsorcourt.com. That makes the property 42 years old, with a reputation built on English-country-house styling. Its presidential suite has hosted Paul McCartney, while heads of state have stayed at the hotel.
Benson plans improvements to the hotel, with the renovation focused on maintaining and enhancing the guest experience. Windsor Court General Manager Ralph Mahana has said the work is a chance to build on the hotel’s legacy.
Renovation Builds on Years of Prior Upgrades
The Windsor Court has been renovated twice under its prior ownership, including a $22 million restoration in 2012. A separate $15 million project in 2018 updated guest rooms and added a poolside bar, per the same account. The hotel’s 2,800-square-foot presidential suite, which includes two bedrooms, four bathrooms, a private gym and doors opening to a tiered patio and balcony, underwent its own $2 million renovation unveiled in March 2023, according to Forbes.
The hotel’s general manager welcomed the landmark’s local ownership, according to fox8live.com.
A Tough Market for New Orleans Hotels
The acquisition lands amid what one industry source describes as an unusually turbulent chapter for New Orleans hotels, with marquee properties trading at steep discounts to replacement cost. According to NOLA.com, the city’s hotel market has not fully recovered from the pandemic, and higher interest rates have pushed valuations dramatically lower. That outlet reports that Virgin Hotels New Orleans, a 238-room property built for roughly $80 million, is now expected to sell for about half that amount, while the 252-room Hilton St. Charles recently sold for $47 million — well below the $59 million its owner paid for it in 2014.
Other recent sales cited in that reporting include the Ritz-Carlton and its adjacent Marriott Courtyard, totaling 758 rooms, which sold for an estimated $195 million, and Le Pavillon, a 226-room hotel under contract to sell for about $43 million. New Orleans is adding very few new hotel rooms in the near term, the outlet notes, pointing to high construction costs, zoning complexity and elevated interest rates as the culprits.
Occupancy Trends and Looming Competition
Citywide hotel occupancy has fallen off in recent years. Per HVS, occupancy registered in the low 70s from 2014 through 2019, settled in the 60s after the pandemic, and declined to the high 50s in 2025. HVS projects that new supply could push occupancy back toward the mid-60s going forward, while a Pace Report forecast cited by NOLA.com expects convention bookings to return to their 2017–2019 average over the next two years before climbing sharply through 2030.
The Windsor Court also faces competition from the Four Seasons in New Orleans’ luxury hotel market. Whether Benson’s renovation plans can help the Windsor Court hold its ground in that tighter luxury market remains to be seen, but the shift to full local ownership gives the nearly 42-year-old hotel a new chapter heading into its next stretch of upgrades.
