2 Amelia Island hotels see new management as tourism numbers rise

AMELIA ISLAND, Fla. — Two boutique hotels in Amelia Island have been acquired by an investment firm out of Dallas and a hotel company based in Florida. The reason is because of the tourism boom Nassau County is seeing.

Amelia Hotel and Ocean Coast Hotel were just purchased, and the developers believe the recent uptick in tourism shows the island has a promising future.

“The two hotels that we purchased are right next door to each other,” says Ted Ent, CEO of Innisfree Hotels.

Ent says they’ve partnered with RREAF Holdings LLC, a private real estate and investment firm.

He says both companies for over a decade have invested in beach properties in Florida, including on Amelia Island

“Both companies really appreciate Fernandina Beach, the community, and Amelia Island. Its exclusivity, its proximity to key drive to market demand generators,” says Ent.

Ent says they have big plans for these hotels.

“All the guests are going to have access to beach carts that they can pull over to the beach. We’re expanding our food and beverage offerings,” says Ent.

According to reports, Amelia Island saw 1.3 million visitors in 2021.

Because of this, in 2021 tourism’s economic impact has topped out at $1 billion in Nassau County.

“It certainly helped out decision that the demand in this area was very strong in 2021, but we’ve seen increased demand almost every year since we’ve been in Amelia Island,” says Ent.

So what makes this area so unique? I spoke with Gil Langley, the president and CEO of the Amelia Island Convention and Visitors Bureau.

He believes it’s the number of activities that the island has to offer.

“The beach, which is obviously important to golf, tennis, resorts, and a fine culinary product,” says Langley.

Terri Tatum, who is a boater from Savannah, agrees with Langley.

She says this area is a perfect location to stop and visit.

“I love the area. I like the variety of the downtown homes. The easy access to go from the marina the downtown to the beach,” says Tatum.

Now both companies tell Action News Jax they’ve already taken over management for both properties.

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