Long Beach’s iconic five-star hotel has officially opened its doors, and at a ceremony Monday, VIPs got a glimpse inside its historic halls, rooms and restaurants.
After hundreds of millions of dollars in renovations lasting more than five years, the Fairmont Breakers Long Beach boasts 185 guest rooms, two fine-dining restaurants, three bars, a rooftop pool with a bar, a spa and 10 meeting rooms just north of the Long Beach Convention Center.
Rooms, ranging from 287 to 790 square feet, start at $349 per night.
“When we’re selling our city and we’re inviting people to our city, this adds an incredible asset,” Mayor Rex Richardson said at Monday’s ribbon-cutting ceremony.
Even though the Breakers is opening its doors as a Fairmont for the first time, the building itself has a long, storied history.
The hotel originally opened in 1926 and was designated as a historic landmark in 1989.
Famous guests who stayed there over the years include Cary Grant, Babe Ruth, Elizabeth Taylor, John Wayne, Clark Gable and aviator Charles Lindbergh who got lost in the fog off the coast before spotting the illuminated letter B atop the Breakers — eventually landing at Long Beach’s Airport.
The hotel’s 13th-story restaurant, the Sky Room, was established in 1938 by famed hotel mogul Conrad Hilton. It still offers elegant cuisine and drinks with a view of the Pacific Ocean and the Queen Mary.
Countless Long Beach residents have fond memories attached to the Sky Room.
John Molina, founding partner of Long Beach-based investment and development group Pacific6 that bought the Breakers building in 2017, said he remembers dining in the Sky Room years ago when he told his mom and his in-laws that his wife was pregnant.
The walls of the Sky Room now contain a 1940 photo of Molina’s grandmother dining there with family members.
Before Pacific6 bought the Breakers, the building was an assisted living facility from 1991 to 2015.
Pacific6 partnered with French multinational firm Accor, which manages the Fairmont Brand, to run the hotel.
“It’s a perfect partnership because we share their vision: to make Fairmont Breakers not only one of the top luxury hotels in Southern California but to establish it as the social epicenter of this incredible city,” said Mark Steenge, the hotel’s general manager.
Halo – the hotel’s rooftop bar – offers a 360-degree view from the 14th floor.
The Alter Ego bar will host live music and has the option of attaching itself to the lobby restaurant La Sala, which offers breakfast pastries and coffee before switching to cocktails in the evening.
The hotel’s spa contains eight treatment rooms, a couples room, a relaxation lounge and steam rooms in each of the locker rooms.
Next to the spa is a two-story fitness center.
In two years, when Long Beach hosts the U.S. Conference of Mayors, the hotel property will be celebrating its centennial, and the Breakers owners took care to honor that 100-year-long history.
Renovations, including the addition of an elevator, all had to be approved by the Long Beach Cultural Heritage Commission.
“This is the jewel of Long Beach, this is the history of Long Beach and we’re so proud to have brought it back,” Molina said.