Waldorf Astoria Lake Tahoe

Waldorf Astoria Lake Tahoe, a 76-room luxury hotel from developer EKN Development Group, is planned to replace the shuttered Tahoe Biltmore casino in Crystal Bay, Nevada, marking the brand's first Sierra Nevada property. The project has weathered a 2024 loan default notice and asbestos-related demolition delays, and a public 2027-2028 target should be read with those setbacks in mind.

The place

Crystal Bay, Nevada, on the lake's North Shore, on the site of the shuttered Tahoe Biltmore casino, which closed in 2022 and is being demolished rather than renovated.

The concept

Hilton's own release describes the project as 'the new build luxury hotel' replacing the Tahoe Biltmore, a casino-hotel that traded for decades before closing in 2022. SB Architects, part of Egis Group, is leading the design of the 15-acre mixed-use development; the firm has said a primary goal was elevating the lobby to capture lake views. Beyond the 76 hotel rooms, the project includes 61 branded residences and 25 separately owned residences (neither counted in the room figure above), plus a roughly 10,000-square-foot casino. EKN Development has faced real financing turbulence: a loan default notice was filed in 2024 over an $85 million loan on the property, later rescinded, and demolition of the main Biltmore building was delayed because it contained far more asbestos than the owners had planned for. As of the most recent reporting, the old structure was still standing and the project's completion date remains a public target rather than a locked-in schedule.

Dining & wellness

Planned dining includes an all-day brasserie, Waldorf Astoria's signature Peacock Alley lounge, and a poolside restaurant, alongside the Waldorf Astoria Spa and an outdoor pool terrace. None of these venues is open yet and no chef or operator has been named.