Twelve Years in Downtown Reno

Whitney Peak Hotel turns 12 this July.

There are more conventional ways to mark an anniversary, but ours comes with a city proclamation, a climbing wall rising over downtown, a concert hall and at least one bathtub filled with ice-cold beer.

It has been an interesting 12 years.

A Different Kind of Reno Hotel

When Whitney Peak opened in 2014, the building at Virginia Street and Commercial Row had been sitting vacant. Reopening it as Reno’s first non-gaming, non-smoking full-service hotel was about more than renovating rooms. It was an investment in what Downtown Reno could become.

The new hotel brought upscale accommodations and meeting spaces back to the building, but it also made room for ideas that felt less expected.

BaseCamp gave locals and visitors a place to climb in the middle of downtown. Cargo Concert Hall created a home for live music just off the hotel lobby. Our restaurant became Café Whitney, serving the kind of food and drinks we actually want when we travel.

Together, they made Whitney Peak more than a place to sleep.

July 18 Is Officially Ours

When Whitney Peak celebrated its 10th anniversary, the City of Reno marked the occasion by officially designating July 18 as “Whitney Peak Hotel Day.”

We will admit that having our own day is pretty nice.

More importantly, the proclamation recognized the people who brought the property back to life and everyone who has kept it moving since. That includes the staff members who have welcomed guests, prepared rooms, cooked meals, booked shows, managed events and occasionally fulfilled some wonderfully specific requests.

Hospitality Gets Weird Sometimes

Over the years, our team has filled a guest’s bathtub with ice and beer. We have hidden photos of Nicolas Cage throughout a room because someone asked us to. We have welcomed touring musicians, climbing teams, families, business travelers, dogs and plenty of people who simply needed a good night’s sleep.

Those requests may not appear in a standard hotel manual, but they get to the heart of how we think hospitality should feel.

Pay attention. Be helpful. Take the guest seriously, even when the request is objectively funny.

Still Whitney Peak

Downtown Reno has changed considerably since 2014, and Whitney Peak has evolved along with it. We joined Hilton’s Tapestry Collection, refreshed our rooms and dining experience, expanded what happens inside BaseCamp and welcomed countless artists to the Cargo stage.

But the basic idea remains the same: create a comfortable, independent-minded hotel that feels connected to Reno and the Sierra Nevada.

Twelve years later, we still believe this city deserves places that take a chance on it.

To every guest who has stayed with us, every local who has climbed, eaten or seen a show here, and every team member who has helped shape Whitney Peak along the way, thank you.

Here’s to year 13.

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