A $386 million senior construction loan from Civitas Capital Group will fund the InterContinental Orlando, a 700-key luxury hotel rising on International Drive in the heart of Orlando's tourism corridor. Flag Luxury Group and Unicorp National Developments secured the financing, with vertical construction slated to begin in the first quarter of 2027 and the property set to open in the third quarter of 2029.
Food & Beverage Footprint
For hospitality operators and food-and-beverage professionals, the project's scale is notable. The InterContinental Orlando's program includes multiple food and beverage outlets alongside approximately 105,000 square feet of meeting and pre-function space — a configuration designed to capture both leisure travelers and the high-volume convention and group business driven by Orlando's Orange County Convention Center. The property will also feature the brand's signature Club InterContinental lounge, a spa and wellness facility, pool, and fitness center. Guest rooms will average approximately 471 square feet across 700 keys, including 33 junior suites, 50 suites, and five VIP and presidential suites.
Chuck Whittall, President of Unicorp National Developments, framed the project in explicitly market-driven terms. "International Drive has never had more momentum," he said. "This loan allows us to break ground on the first phase of a multi-billion-dollar masterplan and will create jobs, anchor group business for the convention center, accommodate Epic Universe customers, and bring a world-class brand to the corridor."
Why Orlando, Why Now
The timing tracks with documented visitor demand. According to Visit Orlando, the city welcomed 76.7 million visitors in 2025, making it the most-visited destination in the United States. The InterContinental Orlando will sit three miles from Universal Epic Universe — the massive new theme park that opened in 2025 — and within minutes of Walt Disney World and Universal Orlando, positioning the property to serve a diverse mix of leisure, group, and business travelers.
Austin Khan, Managing Director and Head of Investments for Civitas, cited Orlando's institutional ownership depth and the sponsors' experience as key underwriting factors. Paul Kanavos, Chairman and CEO of Flag Luxury Group, called the financing milestone the moment "the InterContinental Orlando moves from vision to construction," adding that the resort is intended to set a new luxury benchmark for the International Drive corridor.
Florida-based design-build firm FINFROCK will serve as general contractor. The firm has a prior relationship with the sponsorship, having completed more than $350 million in projects together, including the 2,800-room Endless Summer Resort at Universal Orlando and the Terra Luna Resort adjacent to Universal Epic Universe. JLL Hotels & Hospitality Group advised Flag and Unicorp on the transaction.
For operators tracking large-scale hospitality development and the pipeline of new full-service properties entering the market, the InterContinental Orlando represents one of the most significant single-asset construction commitments in the current cycle. The project's heavy meeting-space component and multi-outlet F&B strategy also signal continued operator confidence in Orlando's group business fundamentals — a trend worth watching across the broader food and beverage hospitality sector as convention calendars recover and expand.
Written by Michael Politz, Author of Guide to Restaurant Success: The Proven Process for Starting Any Restaurant Business From Scratch to Success (ISBN: 978-1-119-66896-1), Founder of Food & Beverage Magazine, the leading online magazine and resource in the industry. Designer of the Bluetooth logo and recognized in Entrepreneur Magazine's "Top 40 Under 40" for founding American Wholesale Floral, Politz is also the Co-founder of the Proof Awards and the CPG Awards and a partner in numerous consumer brands across the food and beverage sector.
