The Four Seasons Resort The Biltmore Santa Barbara is a luxury resort

hotel A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. Facilities provided inside a hotel room may range from a modest-quality mattress in a small room to large suites with bigger, higher-quality beds, a dresser, a re ...

located in

Santa Barbara, California Santa Barbara (, meaning ) is a coastal city in Santa Barbara County, California, of which it is also the county seat. Situated on a south-facing section of coastline, the longest such section on the West Coast of the United States excepting A ...

known for its Spanish Colonial Revival architecture and gardens. It opened in 1927 as the Santa Barbara Biltmore, part of the Bowman-Biltmore Hotels chain. The hotel closed in March 2020, due to the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

. It is set to reopen in 2025, following major renovations.

History

The Santa Barbara Biltmore was designed by architect Reginald Johnson and landscape architect Ralph Stevens in 1926-1927. Their design of the hotel and outdoor garden rooms synthesizes Mediterranean Revival, Spanish Colonial Revival and

Moorish Revival Moorish Revival or Neo-Moorish is one of the exotic revival architectural styles that were adopted by architects of Europe and the Americas in the wake of Romanticism, Romanticist Orientalism. It reached the height of its popularity after the mi ...

styles of

architecture Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and construction, constructi ...

. The $1,500,000 construction cost was funded by the Bowman-Biltmore Hotels Corporation of New York City, with a 5 March 1927 groundbreaking. Since its 1927 opening, the hotel has been known popularly simply as 'The Biltmore'. Allied Properties of San Francisco bought the Biltmore in 1936. They sold the property in 1976 to Marriott for $5.25 million and the hotel was renamed Marriott's Santa Barbara Biltmore. Marriott sold the hotel to Four Seasons Hotels in 1987 for $55 million and it was renamed the Four Seasons Resort Santa Barbara. In 2000, billionaire

Beanie Babies Beanie Babies are a line of stuffed toys created by American businessman Ty Warner, who founded Ty Inc. in 1986. The toys are stuffed with plastic pellets ("beans") rather than conventional soft stuffing and come in many different forms, mostly ...

creator

Ty Warner Harold Ty Warner (born September 3, 1944) is an American billionaire toy manufacturer, businessman, and convicted felon. He is the CEO, sole owner, and co-founder of Ty Inc. which manufactures and distributes stuffed toys, notably Beanie Babies. H ...

purchased the hotel for $150 million, while retaining Four Seasons as the management company. He restored the hotel at a cost of $240 million and brought back the historic 'Biltmore' name soon after, renaming the hotel the Four Seasons Resort The Biltmore Santa Barbara. The hotel closed in March 2020, due to the

. The hotel has remained closed, due to a dispute between Warner and the Four Seasons chain. In August 2024, it was reported that Warner intends to add a huge pool and beach area to the property, including a "lazy river waterway" and waterfall. This created conflict with the Montecito Board of Architectural Review, which felt the alterations would damage the historical character of the resort. Warner's representatives said the new pool complex was essential, because hotel guests no longer have access to Warner's adjacent Coral Casino Beach & Cabana Club. They stated that "this property cannot open without another pool complex area." In November 2024, a modified pool design was approved by the Montecito Board of Architectural Review. Work began in early 2025. In April 2025, it was announced that the hotel will have a Nobu restaurant when it reopens.

Coral Casino

Coral Casino Beach and Cabana Club, built across the street in 1937, was also purchased by Warner in 2000. Guests of the Santa Barbara Biltmore had access to it until 2020.

References

External links

Four Seasons Resort The Biltmore Santa Barbara website
{{Authority control Hotels in California Bowman-Biltmore Hotels Santa Barbara, California Buildings and structures in Santa Barbara County, California Tourist attractions in Santa Barbara County, California Hotels established in 1927 Hotel buildings completed in 1927 1927 establishments in California Mediterranean Revival architecture in California Moorish Revival architecture in California Spanish Colonial Revival architecture in California

History

Coral Casino

References

Further reading

External links