Many Augustans rent out their homes to golfers and golf fans for Masters week, but traditional hotels in Augusta are booked and bustling this week, too.
The famed Partridge Inn on Walton Way, which has 143 guest rooms, had one vacancy for Tuesday and Thursday night and 10 for the weekend as of Monday morning, said general manager Holly White.
“I fully expect we will get booked up because we usually book up Masters week, and demand has been stronger this year than last year,” she said.
The hotel, which takes pride in being the closest hotel to the famed Augusta National Golf Course, has seen many last-minute bookings from visitors who just got tickets or just found out they could go, White said. About 50% of the bookings come from corporate groups, she said.
The Patridge Inn, founded in 1910, brings in additional team members for Masters week to help with daily shuttle service to and from the course, food and beverages, the front desk, housekeeping, valeting and other services, she said. The hotel also provides live entertainment every night for guests, she said.
“Many guests say this trip was on their bucket list,” White said.
Another iconic hotel, the 222-room Augusta Marriott at the Convention Center on Tenth Street along the Savannah River is fully booked for the week of the tournament, according to a hotel representative.
The Marriott Hotel brand, which includes names like Aloft, Westin, Fairfield and Sheraton, has just two properties within a 50-mile radius of the course with availability this week: its Fairfield Inn property on Washington Road with rates starting at $1,211 per night and its Fairfield Inn property on Gordon Highway with rates starting in the $900s.
Other hotels that are booked solid for the week include the 180-room Crowne Plaza luxury hotel overlooking the Savannah River, the Queen Ann Inn in Olde Town Augusta, Lookaway Inn in North Augusta and the 123-room Home2Suites by Hilton off of I-20.
This week there has been a 65% increase in searches for Augusta hotels compared to two weeks before, during a more “normal week,” according to Hotels.com spokeswoman Nancy Lien. Vrbo, an online marketplace for vacation rentals, saw a 22% increase in searches for properties for The Masters this year compared to last year, she said.
The 182-room DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel near Augusta Exchange is fully booked this week with families, college golf teams and media personnel, including from CBS and ESPN, according to the front desk agent, Chinita Selton.
“A lot of people we’ve talked to have said this is either their first time or it’s an annual tradition for them or their company,” she said. “It’s been very busy.”
