Downtown Dallas’ new posh travel destination, JW Marriott, readies for opening

Downtown Dallas’ newest hangout for well-heeled travelers will soon open its doors.

After more than two years of construction, the JW Marriott Hotel on Ross Avenue is scheduled to open in mid-June.

It’s the first North Texas location for Marriott’s top-tier brand.

The 267-room, 15-story hotel was built on top of a parking garage at Ross and Harwood Street. The project was developed by Plano’s Sam Moon Group.

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The hotel was one of the only such Dallas-Fort Worth projects to start during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, when the hospitality industry faced an uncertain outlook. Since then, travel has returned and hotel bookings have surged.

The new JW Marriott is already taking reservations with standard rates starting at close to $570 a night.

“It’s been very brisk,” said John Klukan, the hotel’s director of sales and marketing.

The JW Marriott overlooks the Dallas Arts District and is blocks from Klyde Warren Park and the booming Uptown district.

“Many of the meeting planners we have toured have been surprised at the vibrancy here,” Klukan said.

The hotel’s 9,000-square-foot ballroom has full-height windows overlooking the area. “Nobody has this kind of view in meeting space in Dallas,” Klukan said.

Hotel guests will enter a ground-floor lobby on Harwood Street and take elevators up to the main reception on the 11th floor. On that level, they’ll find a 180-seat restaurant, bar, library lounge and coffee shop.

The JW Marriott also boasts a large fitness center, smaller conference rooms and a private executive lounge for its platinum- and titanium-level guests.

An 11th floor pool deck with an outdoor bar and lounge gives unbroken views along Ross Avenue and north of downtown.

“These views will never change because there is no way anyone could build around it,” Klukan said while giving a tour of the property.

Work on the guest rooms and suites is mostly completed with furniture installed on all but two floors. “We really could open tomorrow; we are just waiting for approvals,” Klukan said. “We just put the mattresses and sheets in the rooms, and we are pretty much done.”

Dallas architect HKS designed the building and Looney & Associates did the interiors. DPR Construction was the project general contractor.

The Dallas JW Marriott is Sam Moon Group’s third North Texas hotel.

The company — which got its start in retail sales — developed the almost $100 million Legacy West Renaissance Hotel in Plano and the 303-room Hyatt Regency Stonebriar in Frisco.

The JW Marriott flag is on more than 100 hotels in 35 countries worldwide. The luxury brand already has four hotels in Texas.

“I can’t believe we don’t already have a JW Marriott in Dallas,” Klukan said.

The full-service hotel will compete with nearby high-end properties, including the Ritz-Carlton in Uptown, Crescent Court and the Mansion on Turtle Creek.

Dallas-Fort Worth is the country’s fastest growing hotel market, with 176 new properties in development containing more than 20,000 rooms.