Company type | Holding company |
---|---|
Industry | Hospitality |
Founded | 1985 (Key West, Florida) |
Founder | Jimmy Buffett |
Headquarters | , United States |
Number of locations |
|
Key people | Jonathan Cohlan |
Owner |
|
Website | www.margaritaville.com |
Jimmy Buffett's Margaritaville is a United States-based hospitality company that manages and franchises a casual dining American restaurant chain, retail stores selling Jimmy Buffett-themed merchandise, and hotels.
The Brand is named after Buffett's hit song "Margaritaville" and is owned by Margaritaville Holdings LLC (a subsidiary of Cheeseburger Holding Company, LLC). There are locations in the United States, Canada, and Mexico, six island locations throughout the Caribbean as well as in Sydney, Australia, since September 2012.
Some locations are franchise-owned, such as the Caribbean, Australian, and Mexican locations. In 2014, a Brazilian company bought 12 Margaritaville restaurants and the rights to expand the company in the U.S. [1]
In 1985, singer Jimmy Buffett opened his first successful "Margaritaville" retail store in Key West, Florida, following a failed Margaritaville in Gulf Shores, Alabama. [2] [3] In 2002, he expanded his business ventures by partnering with Outback Steakhouse to develop the first Cheeseburger in Paradise restaurant in Southport, Indiana.
In late 2006, Buffett announced on the website that the Margaritaville cafes would no longer purchase or serve Canadian seafood products to protest Canada's treatment of seals. [4]
On May 15, 2007, Harrah's Entertainment, now Caesars Entertainment Corp. announced plans to build the $700 million Margaritaville Casino Resort in Biloxi, Mississippi on the site of the former Grand Casino Biloxi and Casino Magic Biloxi properties. [5] Due to the U.S. recession, however, construction of the casino ceased on June 10, 2008. [6]
On January 12, 2011, following the announcement of the new partnership between MVB Holdings and the Brosig, Sekul, and Sims families, for the differently planned Biloxi, Mississippi, casino, John Payne, Caesars Entertainment Corp. central division president, stated, "We are disappointed that our project with Margaritaville will not proceed." [7] This casino eventually opened in May 2012, then closed a few years later in September 2014.[ when? ] A Margaritaville resort opened on Highway 90 at the location of the old Grand Casino.[ when? ] This new resort does not have a casino.
Airport Lounge Restaurants
As of February 2020, United States retail store locations are in Key West; New Orleans; Orlando; Las Vegas; Myrtle Beach; Glendale (state not listed); Panama City Beach, Florida; Mohegan Sun; Honolulu; Pensacola Beach; Nashville; and Chicago. The newest concept, a "Landshark Surfshack Retail Shop", opened May 17, 2011 at the Myrtle Beach SkyWheel attraction. Mexico's retail locations are in Cancun and Cozumel. Canada's retail location is in Niagara Falls, Ontario. Caribbean retail locations in the British West Indies are in Montego Bay (including two "Air Margaritaville" locations at Sangster International Airport), Negril and Ocho Rios on the island of Jamaica; Grand Turk in the Turks and Caicos Islands; and George Town, Grand Cayman in the Cayman Islands. [8] [9] [10] [11]
In St. Thomas, Virgin Islands, and Rio Grande, Puerto Rico, are vacation clubs operated by Margaritaville. [12]
On June 28, 2010, the Margaritaville Beach Hotel (pictured to the right) opened on Pensacola Beach. The former site of a Holiday Inn, destroyed by Hurricane Ivan on September 16, 2004, [13] Margaritaville Hotel is on over 800 feet of gulf-front property. An additional 800 feet overlooks the bay. The beachfront hotel features 'barefoot elegance' with 162 guest rooms, including 24 corner rooms with wrap-around balconies. [14]
Future phased plans include an adjacent free-standing Margaritaville Cafe restaurant and a bayside waterpark. [15]
Plans for a second and third Margaritaville Beach Hotel were announced in 2010. The second, still in the planning stages, would be located in Myrtle Beach. [16]
The 349-room Margaritaville Hollywood Beach Resort opened in 2015 in Hollywood, Florida. [17]
In Early 2016, Margaritaville Resort Biloxi in South Mississippi opened. The building was the Casino Magic, which Hurricane Katrina destroyed. Margaritaville Biloxi has a 55,000 sq. ft. arcade with over 200 games for kids and adults. Along with 271 hotel rooms, Margaritaville in Biloxi has a 450-foot lazy river, lounge pool, water slides, water ropes course, and a swimup bar.
The Margaritaville Island Hotel opened in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee in 2015, followed by the Margaritaville Island Inn in 2017. The Margaritaville Resort opened in Gatlinburg, Tennessee, in 2018.
Margaritaville Lake of the Ozarks opened in the Spring of 2019 and offers a wide variety of bars, restaurants, water activities, golf, etc.- all right on the Lake. It has a large outdoor pool, tiki bar, marina, an indoor waterpark, and even horseback riding. [18]
In late 2020, Margaritaville Resort Palm Springs opened in California, becoming the first location on the West Coast. [19]
In spring 2021, Margaritaville Resort Times Square, New York, opened. The resort is the northernmost resort in the chain, and it opened alongside five restaurants. It features a Tropical NYC atmosphere and a 50-foot replica of the Statue of Liberty holding a Margarita. The resort also features New York's only year-round outdoor pool on one of its decks. [20]
In April 2023, Newport, Kentucky's Board of Commissioners, revealed that a new Margaritaville Resort Project has officially gotten the go-ahead from Newport City Commissioners. Plans now call for the resort, which includes 264 hotel rooms, three restaurants, and a rooftop pool, to be built and opened to guests in 2026. [21]
Margaritaville opened its first adults-only all-inclusive resort in Riviera Maya in June 2023. [22]
In 2011, the Las Vegas Margaritaville at Flamingo Las Vegas expanded to include a 15,000 sq ft (1,400 m2) Margaritaville-branded casino. The casino opened October 1, 2011, [23] [24] operating until 2018. [25] The restaurant closed on May 30, 2024. [26]
On June 22, 2011, Paradise Casino LLC unveiled plans for the Margaritaville Resort Casino to be built in Bossier City, Louisiana. The complex, a $170 million, 400-room resort, would include an 18-story hotel tower, a 1,000-seat entertainment complex with a VIP balcony, and an outdoor tropical area visible to the north from the Louisiana Boardwalk. [27] [28]
In March 2013, the Muscogee (Creek) Nation announced that its River Spirit Casino on the Arkansas River in Tulsa would become a Margaritaville Casino as part of a $250 million project that would also add a 22-story, 500-room luxury tower to the existing facility. [29]
Latitude Margaritaville is a $1 billion retirement village in Daytona Beach, Florida. [30] [31] The project is a joint venture between Minto Communities and Buffett's Margaritaville Holdings, with the development being built on land close to LPGA Boulevard and about a mile to the west from Interstate-95. [30]
Phase one of the community will have 400 homes with a potential of 6,900 homes once the project is completed. As of March 2018, 250 lots have been sold with prices between the low $200,000s to the mid $300,000s. The community will have a pet salon, grocery store, and a private beach when it opens in April 2018. [30]
Since opening in Daytona, two other locations have been announced: Latitude Margaritaville Hilton Head, South Carolina, and Latitude Margaritaville Watersound, Florida. Hilton Head offers a wide range of home designs and floor plans. Amenities will include a resort-style pool, fitness center, social hall, game and hobby rooms, arts and learning programs, indoor and outdoor dining with signature Margaritaville food and beverage concepts, tennis and pickleball courts, and a 290,000-square-foot Margaritaville retail center. Phase one is currently underway with 203 home sites. Current plans call for 3,000+ homes once the community is complete.
Latitude Margaritaville Watersound broke ground in 2019 and will be the third of the communities to be developed.
On December 8, 2021, it was announced that a partnership was reached with Bahamas Paradise Cruise Line and Margaritaville. The cruise line was rebranded as Margaritaville at Sea, and the line's sole ship, the Grand Classica was renamed as Margaritaville at Sea Paradise following a multimillion-dollar refit in 2022. Many of the ship's interiors and venues were rebranded to match the Margaritaville brand and décor. It currently operates 3 day/2 night cruises from the Port of Palm Beach to Grand Bahama Island. [32] [33] [34]
Margaritaville is featured in the 2015 film Jurassic World as one of the restaurants in the fictional theme park, with Buffett himself making a cameo appearance as one of the guests running away from the Pteranodon attack. [35]
James William Buffett was an American singer-songwriter. He was known for his tropical rock sound and persona, which often portrayed a lifestyle described as "island escapism" and promoted enjoying life and following passions. Buffett recorded many hit songs, including those known as "The Big 8": "Margaritaville" (1977), which is ranked 234th on the Recording Industry Association of America's list of "Songs of the Century"; "Come Monday" (1974); "Fins" (1979); "Volcano" (1979); "A Pirate Looks at Forty" (1974); "Cheeseburger in Paradise" (1978); "Why Don't We Get Drunk" (1973); and "Changes in Latitudes, Changes in Attitudes" (1977). His other popular songs include "Son of a Son of a Sailor" (1978), "One Particular Harbour" (1983), and "It's Five O'Clock Somewhere" with Alan Jackson (2003). Buffett formed the Coral Reefer Band in 1975.
Changes in Latitudes, Changes in Attitudes is the seventh studio album by American popular music singer-songwriter Jimmy Buffett. This is his breakthrough album, which remains the best-selling studio album of Buffett's career, and contains his biggest single, "Margaritaville". It was initially released in January 1977 as ABC AB-990 and rereleased on its successor label, MCA.
Hard Rock Cafe, Inc. is a chain of theme bar-restaurants, memorabilia shops, casinos and museums founded in 1971 by Isaac Tigrett and Peter Morton in London. In 1979, the cafe began covering its walls with rock and roll memorabilia, a tradition which expanded to others in the chain. In 2007, Hard Rock Cafe International (USA), Inc. was sold to the Seminole Tribe of Florida and was headquartered in Orlando, Florida, until April 2018, when the corporate offices were relocated to Davie, Florida. As of July 2018, Hard Rock International has venues in 74 countries, including 172 bar or cafe-restaurants, 37 hotels, and 11 casinos.
Harrah's Gulf Coast is a casino and hotel in Biloxi, Mississippi, owned by Vici Properties and operated by Caesars Entertainment.
Isle of Capri Casinos, Inc. was a gaming company headquartered in Creve Coeur, Missouri in Greater St. Louis which operated casinos and associated entertainment and lodging facilities in the United States.
Universal CityWalk is the name shared by the entertainment and retail districts located adjacent to the theme parks of Universal Destinations & Experiences. CityWalk began as an expansion of Universal's first park, Universal Studios Hollywood, and serves as an entrance plaza from the parking lots to the theme parks. CityWalk can also be found at Universal Orlando Resort in Florida, Universal Studios Japan in Osaka, Japan, and Universal Beijing Resort in Beijing, China.
"Cheeseburger in Paradise" is a song written and performed by American popular music singer Jimmy Buffett. It appeared on his 1978 album Son of a Son of a Sailor and was released as a single, reaching No. 32 on the Billboard Hot 100. "Cheeseburger in Paradise" became one of Buffett's signature songs, and was selected as the first track on his greatest hits album Songs You Know by Heart.
Cheeseburger in Paradise was a casual dining theme restaurant chain in the United States that operated between 2002 and 2020. The chain started in 2002 as a partnership of American musician Jimmy Buffett's company, the Orlando, Florida-based Margaritaville Holdings LLC, and OSI Restaurant Partners, with Buffett licensing the name and Outback Steakhouse operating the franchising of restaurants. After a change of ownership in 2012, most of the restaurants were closed by 2014. The last location, located in Secaucus, NJ, closed in September 2020.
Hemisphere Dancer was singer-songwriter Jimmy Buffett's personal seaplane. A Grumman HU-16 Albatross flying boat, former U.S. Navy Bureau Number (BuNo) 137928 and civil registration number N928J. The aircraft is central to the action in Buffett's best-selling memoir A Pirate Looks at Fifty.
Margaritaville Resort Biloxi is a resort hotel in Biloxi on the Mississippi Gulf Coast. It previously operated with a dockside casino as Casino Magic Biloxi Casino & Hotel, until it was severely damaged by Hurricane Katrina in 2005. The property has a 373-room hotel, located on 10.6 acres (4.3 ha) of land.
"Margaritaville" is a song by Jimmy Buffett.
The Margaritaville Casino and Restaurant is a closed casino and restaurant in Biloxi, Mississippi in the United States. The 68,000-square-foot (6,300 m2) property is in the "Back Bay" area of Biloxi. It opened on May 22, 2012 and closed on September 15, 2014. Its brand was licensed from Jimmy Buffett's Margaritaville.
Jimmy Buffett sound board live albums are a series of live albums by American singer-songwriter Jimmy Buffett recorded directly from the sound board without further editing thus resembling bootleg recordings. The albums were recorded at various concerts throughout the United States and represent typical Buffett live shows of their era with most of the albums recorded during Buffett's 2003 Tiki Time Tour. They have been released on compact disc on Buffett's own Mailboat Records distributed by RCA.
Legends in Concert is a live tribute artist production with shows located primarily in Las Vegas, Nevada; Myrtle Beach, South Carolina; Branson, Missouri; and Waikiki, Hawaii. Legends in Concert features live concerts paying tribute to musical icons of the past and present. The performers resemble and sing like the original artists while being backed by a live band and dancers. Performances are scheduled year round across the globe and its five primary locations in the United States.
"Boat Drinks" is a song written and performed by American singer-songwriter Jimmy Buffett. It was released as a B-side on MCA in 1979. Despite not being a single, it is one of his most popular songs, frequently played in concert and occasionally on the radio, and has been included on many compilation albums including Songs You Know by Heart. Despite its popularity, the song was notably absent from Meet Me in Margaritaville: The Ultimate Collection.
Pier Park is a lifestyle center in Panama City Beach, Florida. It opened in 2008 and features Dillard's, J. C. Penney, and Target as anchor stores.
Margaritaville Casino or Margaritaville Resort may refer to any of several properties using Jimmy Buffett's Margaritaville brand:
Margaritaville at Sea is a cruise line that operates two-day voyages out of Port of Palm Beach in Riviera Beach, Florida to Grand Bahama Island. The company was originally founded as Bahamas Paradise Cruise Line in late 2014, and began operating its first cruises in February 2015 with the now retired Grand Celebration. In May of 2022 the company was rebranded to Margaritaville at Sea following a partnership between Bahamas Paradise Cruise Line and Jimmy Buffett's Margaritaville brand. Their sole ship, the Grand Classica, was refurbished and renamed the Margaritaville at Sea Paradise. Before the cruise line's rebranding, Margaritaville at Sea was previously a small chain of Margaritaville-style restaurants and bars that were included or later added to the newer Norwegian Cruise Line ships starting in 2015 with the Norwegian Escape. The partnership with Norwegian Cruise Line ended in late 2019. The restaurants were later unbranded and converted into other dining venues.
Margaritaville Resort Orlando is a 300-acre resort, shopping center, water park, and master-planned residential community located in Kissimmee, Florida, located 4.7 miles from Disney's Animal Kingdom. The complex opened on January 15, 2019, and is owned and operated by Margaritaville Holdings. A parcel of the southern and eastern property bordering Fins Up Circle, Formosa Gardens Blvd. and Funnie Steed Rd. sits on land previously occupied by the Splendid China theme park, which closed in 2003.