Skift Take
While travelers can run hot and cold in their preferences, the Nordic spa trend appears to be going full-steam ahead. Maine is the latest playground.
When brothers Tony and Nate DeLois opened The Francis, a boutique hotel in Portland, Maine, back in 2017, they realized something was missing in the market. “There has been a lot of hotel development in the past 10 years in Portland, and every new hotel that has been built on the peninsula has been branded,” said Nate, the co-principal and chief financial officer of Uncommon Hospitality.
“That’s not hyperbole — that is every single one,” said Tony, co-principal and chief operating officer. Their goal with The Francis was to bridge the gap between a large, corporate hotel and a bed and breakfast.
“All the hotels in Portland are over 90 rooms or less than 9 rooms, and really nothing in between,” said Nate.
After opening, though, the fourth-generation Maine residents realized they could go bigger. The Francis, set in a historic mansion built in 1881, has only 15 rooms and no space for a s