Downtown San Antonio’s long-shuttered El Tropicano Riverwalk Hotel is finally trading cobwebs for cabanas. New owners are steering the 1960s-era property toward a full reinvention as a 315-room urban resort with expanded riverfront amenities and a large pool deck, aiming to reopen in the third quarter of 2026.
Developers locked in a key piece of the plan late last year, when county records and local reporting showed a roughly $79 million construction loan was arranged to bankroll the overhaul, according to KSAT. That funding is slated to cover structural upgrades, a new river-level patio and an expanded pool deck the team has described as the largest in San Antonio.
Chicago-based developer Trestle Studio is leading the rebirth, after Trestle and its partners closed on the hotel in December 2023, according to the firm’s project listings. City plan filings and the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation list Studio8 Architects as the lead design firm and show the team moving designs through historic and design review, per Trestle Studio.
Planned build: rooms, riverfront bars and a huge pool deck
The renovation blueprint calls for 315 guest rooms, multiple waterfront food-and-beverage spots, a 5,000-square-foot fitness center and spa, and roughly 24,000 square feet of event space anchored by a new Riverview Ballroom, according to the project’s listing with one of the ownership partners. Plans also outline a new staircase and river deck to better connect the hotel to the River Walk, plus a street-front café and pool bar intended to keep the property lively at both the sidewalk and river levels, per The Town Lake Co..
Where it fits in downtown’s hotel wave
El Tropicano’s revival is joining a broader wave of downtown hotel investment in San Antonio, from luxury conversions to more modest renovations, the San Antonio Express-News reports. Project leaders say the refreshed property is meant to help stitch activity between the north River Walk and nearby neighborhoods while offering a updated, midscale resort alternative.
Timeline and next steps
Owners are targeting a third-quarter 2026 reopening, as reported by the San Antonio Business Journal. The team still needs to finalize permits and construction sequencing before sharing a public timeline, although project files and lender documents indicate the work is funded to move ahead, per TDLR…