Hotel Indigo reopens Raleigh’s round hotel with a top-floor lounge

The round hotel at 320 Hillsborough Street in downtown Raleigh, down Capital Boulevard from Wake Forest, is open again as Hotel Indigo Raleigh after a $36 million renovation. ABC11 reported on September 23, 2026, that the former Holiday Inn was taking reservations and would officially open the following Tuesday, September 29, and Lodging Magazine reported on October 1, 2026, that the hotel had opened.

The renovated tower has 204 rooms, according to Lodging Magazine. Tidal Real Estate Partners bought the building in 2021, and Denver-based Sage Hospitality Group manages it. The hotel’s IHG booking page lists it as Hotel Indigo Raleigh Downtown and was taking reservations on October 1. The front desk number on that page is (984) 383-0320.

General manager Carlos Faz described the scope of the work to ABC11: “The entire place was gutted out.”

High Ground Lounge and the hotel’s other food and drink

The top floor, which the hotel numbers as the 20th, now holds High Ground Lounge, a bar and restaurant with views of the downtown skyline. Lodging Magazine says the menu takes a contemporary approach to Southern flavors, with dishes drawn from North Carolina and the wider South, plus craft cocktails. Triangle Food Blog reported on September 25, 2026, that the reopening adds High Ground and a ground-floor café.

The places to eat and drink in the building, according to Lodging Magazine, the IHG hotel page and Raleigh Magazine:

• High Ground Lounge, on the 20th floor, serves Southern food and craft cocktails.
• A coffee bar in a vintage Airstream sits in the courtyard and connects the check-in and arrival spaces.
• A Marketplace inside the hotel sells snacks and beverages.
• A private dining area and flexible event space share the top floor with the bar, per Raleigh Magazine’s June 30, 2026, preview.

High Ground Lounge hours, according to the hotel’s dining page:

• Breakfast is served daily from 6:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m.
• Dinner runs from 5 p.m. to 10 p.m. Sunday through Thursday.
• Dinner runs from 5 p.m. to 11 p.m. on Friday and Saturday.

The lounge’s phone number is (984) 884-3770, and the dining page lists the dress code as business casual or casual.

What the $36 million renovation changed

Lodging Magazine and Raleigh Magazine describe the work this way:

• New York architecture and design firm Inc. designed the interiors, pairing sculptural forms, geometric patterns and bold colors with chrome accents and custom built-in furniture.
• Warm oak finishes refer to Raleigh’s “City of Oaks” nickname, and the hotel also uses natural cork.
• Art consultant nineDOTarts selected a collection of work by North Carolina artists.
• The architecture firm ESa oversaw the renovation and opened the ground floor into a community lounge.
• The lobby now opens onto Hillsborough Street through a glass entrance, replacing the 1960s drive-up arrival.
• Parking is valet only, at $30 a night according to the IHG hotel page.

Room and stay details, from the IHG hotel page unless noted:

• Check-in is at 4 p.m., check-out is at 11 a.m., and guests must be 21 to check in.
• Dogs and cats are allowed for a $150 nonrefundable fee per stay, up to two pets of 75 pounds or less.
• Meeting and event space totals more than 4,000 square feet.
• The fitness center is open 24 hours, and Lodging Magazine puts it at 1,500 square feet.
• The hotel has no pool.

Tidal principal Eyal Einik told Raleigh Magazine, “Every bit of that building has been reimagined.” Travis E. “Tripp” Parker, a principal at ESa, told Lodging Magazine the round form gives the hotel “character you simply can’t replicate in a new building.”

A 1969 round tower that was once slated for demolition

The building’s history, according to the National Register nomination posted by the N.C. State Historic Preservation Office:

• It was built as the State Capitol Holiday Inn, completed in 1969, and held its opening ceremony in April 1970.
• Lundgren and Maurer of Austin, Texas, designed it, basing it on the first round Holiday Inn that Leonard Lundgren drew for Austin in 1964.
• Raleigh developer Ben Haigh bought the property in 1966.
• The tower is technically 19 stories, and the top floor is called the 20th because the hotel skips a 13th floor.

Faz told ABC11 the building is one of nine round Holiday Inn towers left in the United States. The Holiday Inn closed in 2025, ABC11 reported. Raleigh Magazine reported that the building was once slated for demolition before Tidal bought it.

Hotel-online.com reported on July 15, 2026, that the hotel expected to employ nearly 100 people once fully running and that it is the third Hotel Indigo in North Carolina.

Seventeen more Raleigh hotels are under construction

Visit Raleigh CEO Denny Edwards told ABC11 that 17 new hotels are under construction in Raleigh and will open in the next three years. He said they add more than 2,600 rooms, a 14% increase in the city’s hotel room inventory. Visit Raleigh also reports $2 billion in infrastructure investment underway, including projects tied to tourism, according to ABC11.