Happy 15th Anniversary! It’s all about the view!
With an outdated pink flamingo Spanish Hacienda-style exterior, seashells stenciled throughout the guest rooms, floral upholstered rattan wicker furniture, overgrown plants, and no in-house dining, the Malibu Beach Inn was hardly conjured thoughts of the luxurious community, people from around the world think of when picturing “Malibu.”
Built in the 1980’s, the hotel’s interior and exterior remained untouched until it was purchased from the original owner by our client, philanthropist and media mogul, Mr. David Geffen in 2005. This is the only beachfront hotel in the City of Malibu.
Located on Carbon Beach, Malibu, California, just south of the Malibu Pier, the Malibu Beach Inn underwent a twenty-seven month long complete transformation. Nothing was spared, “no stone unturned” as they say. The existing hotel was demolished to its original wood framing: The pink flamingo hacienda would become a distant memory!
dbaArchitects’ design concept was to reimagine the entire guest experience, to bring to life what many envision Malibu to be: luxurious and elegant. The guest experience would begin the moment of arrival at the Inn, with the new addition of a porte cochere and lush tropical vegetation, providing a private formal covered entry and privacy screen, leading you away from the noise and speeding traffic along Pacific Coast Highway.
The new hotel color palette throughout would be a mixture of warm cream and neutrals tones, dark wenge wood, natural stone, and glass. The environmentally-friendly furnishings would compliment the overall tone with custom furniture (also designed by dbaArchitects), luxurious bedding, and in-house amenities. The creation of the exclusive, guest and member-only, Carbon Beach Club would provide in-house dining with the construction of a commercial kitchen and formal dining room, which was previously non-existent.
The hotel acquisition, design, government approvals, and construction of the once outdated hotel was transformed from a 3-Star to 4-Star, forty-seven room luxury boutique hotel in just twenty-seven months, instead of years. With our efficient design-build method, dbaArchitects was able to shorten the timeline and achieve an enhanced rating, which allowed the hotel to double the room rate and occupancy demand.
The Malibu Beach Inn was sold in 2015 to the current owner, who subsequently remodeled the hotel interiors, we’re happy to celebrate the anniversary of its transformation and evolution.
