Listen to this articleBelow is our recent interview with Mitchell Murray, CEO of Playpark Hospitality:
Q: Could you provide our readers with a brief introduction to your business?
A: HiMark Hotel is a centrally located South Lake Tahoe hotel currently being reimagined into a boutique, wellness-focused retreat. Just steps from Heavenly Village, the lake, beaches, dining, and year-round outdoor adventure, the property offers one of the most convenient home bases among the best hotels in South Lake Tahoe.
Today, guests can enjoy comfortable accommodations, a seasonal outdoor pool and hot tub, and an on-site breakfast offering, all within walking distance of Tahoe’s most popular attractions. Over time, the hotel will evolve into a more elevated boutique hotel in South Lake Tahoe, with redesigned rooms, expanded wellness amenities, and thoughtfully curated spaces designed around rest, recovery, and connection.
HiMark Hotel is part of a growing collection of Lake Tahoe hotels operated by Playpark Hospitality, alongside The Jeffrey Hotel in South Lake Tahoe, pet-friendly Station House Inn in South Lake Tahoe, and Firelite Lodge in North Lake Tahoe. Across the portfolio, the focus is on creating stays that feel more intentional and aligned with how modern travelers want to live—whether that’s through thoughtful design, local partnerships, or a more seamless guest experience from arrival onward.
Q: Can you tell us something more about your latest announcement?
A: Our recent announcement marks the official transition of HiMark Hotel from a Holiday Inn Express into a new kind of boutique hotel in South Lake Tahoe. While the property remains open and welcoming guests today, it is beginning a multi-year transformation into a wellness-focused stay.
What makes this project unique isn’t just the physical renovation, but the philosophy behind it. Travel often disrupts the routines people work hard to maintain—whether that’s eating well, staying active, or simply taking the time to rest and recover after long travel days. HiMark is being built around the idea that it doesn’t have to be that way.
As the hotel evolves, it will introduce redesigned guest rooms, a new lobby gathering space, and expanded wellness amenities such as a spa, sauna, and cold plunge—creating an environment where guests can more easily maintain how they want to feel while traveling. All of this is set within one of the most walkable and centrally located hotels in South Lake Tahoe, California.
Q: What are your plans for the next 12 months?
A: Over the next 12 months, HiMark Hotel will begin the first phase of its transformation while continuing to operate as one of the most accessible and well-located South Lake Tahoe hotels.
A major focus will be reimagining the lobby into a more welcoming, social space with integrated food and beverage service, including the addition of beer and wine and a more curated, choice-driven breakfast experience. With the transition away from a traditional chain model, HiMark now has the flexibility to partner with local businesses—whether that’s coffee, food, or beverage partners—allowing us to create a more authentic and higher-quality experience that reflects the Tahoe community.
Equally important is the launch of Playpark Hospitality’s Stay With Purpose program at HiMark Hotel from day one. Through this initiative, $4 from every reservation is contributed directly to local nonprofits and community efforts. Across our portfolio of South Lake Tahoe hotels, this program has already supported organizations like the Boys & Girls Club of Lake Tahoe and will continue to grow through partnerships with groups like Clean Up the Lake.
This program is core to how we operate—it ensures that every stay contributes to the place people are visiting. For HiMark, bringing this initiative in from the beginning is key to building meaningful, long-term relationships within the local community.
We will also continue enhancing the guest experience through technology, including a more seamless modern check-in experience. By allowing guests to complete key steps digitally before arrival, we can significantly reduce wait times and eliminate the traditional front desk bottleneck—so after a long drive or flight, guests can get to their rooms quickly and begin to relax. It’s a small but meaningful shift that reflects how today’s travelers expect the best South Lake Tahoe hotels to operate.
Q: What is the best thing about your organization that people might not know about?
A: What many people don’t realize is that HiMark Hotel is being designed to offer a fundamentally different kind of stay compared to many hotels in South Lake Tahoe, California. It’s not just about providing a place to sleep—it’s about supporting how guests want to feel throughout their trip.
Travel can often make it difficult to maintain healthy habits, whether that’s finding quality food options, staying active, or simply carving out time to rest and recover. HiMark is being built to make those choices easier, with more intentional amenities, flexible food and beverage offerings, and spaces designed around balance rather than excess.
That philosophy ultimately comes to life in the guest experience itself. At the heart of HiMark Hotel is a commitment to delivering a truly thoughtful stay. From our modern check-in experience to a team focused on making each feel personal and welcoming, we aim to create something memorable enough to earn our place among the best Tahoe hotels. We believe great hospitality is not just about the place, but about the people—and that same mindset extends to our community. Through Stay With Purpose and local partnerships, we’re committed to supporting the place our team calls home, where they live, work, and raise their families.
As part of a collection of boutique hotels in South Lake Tahoe, HiMark Hotel brings together the accessibility of a larger property with a more thoughtful, community-driven approach—something that continues to set it apart among the best hotels in South Lake Tahoe.
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