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Guestroom at Hyatt Place Cancun Airport – Image Credit Hyatt
Hyatt Hotels Corporation is expanding its Essentials portfolio with new hotel deals and openings, including a Hyatt Studios hotel in Huntsville, Alabama, and appointing Jason Ballard as Global Brand Leader for the portfolio.
Hyatt Hotels Corporation is advancing its Essentials portfolio with significant developments, including the signing of over 20 new Hyatt Select deals in 2025 and reaching a total of 70 hotel deals for the Hyatt Studios brand since its inception. The expansion includes new market entries across the Americas and the appointment of Jason Ballard as Global Brand Leader for the Essentials portfolio.
Ballard will oversee the strategic direction and growth of the Essentials portfolio, which includes brands such as Caption by Hyatt, Hyatt House, Hyatt Place, Hyatt Select, Hyatt Studios, Unscripted by Hyatt, and UrCove. His role will focus on refining brand standards and ensuring quality and consistency across the portfolio.
Recent developments in the portfolio include the opening of the second Hyatt Studios hotel in Huntsville, Alabama. This location offers extended-stay accommodations with apartment-style suites, full kitchens, and dedicated workspaces. Additionally, the Hyatt Place brand is expanding in Mexico with new locations at Cancun Airport and Merida/Via Montejo, and in Canada with a new hotel at Toronto Airport.
The 2025 development pipeline for Hyatt includes several new U.S. market entries, with 50% of new deals representing entirely new markets for the company. Notable upcoming openings include a Hyatt Place hotel in Missoula, Montana, scheduled to open in 2027. The Hyatt Studios brand continues its growth with a pipeline of 70 executed deals, including new locations in Macon, Georgia; Danville, Virginia; Frankfort, Kentucky; Elizabethtown, Kentucky; Glacier Country, Montana; and Lafayette, Indiana.
The Hyatt Select brand has also executed more than 20 hotel deals this year, targeting modern travelers with shorter stays and streamlined amenities. The Unscripted by Hyatt brand recently opened Latitude Suites in Tinton Falls, New Jersey, and has additional deals in place for hotels in Allentown, Pennsylvania, and Durango, Colorado, expected to open in 2026 and 2027, respectively.
Hyatt’s development strategy focuses on expanding into new markets with limited intra-brand competition, providing opportunities for owners to enter new areas and develop the Hyatt network.
