Buckhead says ‘goodbye’ to the Ritz, welcomes The Whitley

Since the mid-1980s, the Ritz-Carlton, Buckhead has stood prominently at the corner of Peachtree and Lenox roads, facing Phipps Plaza and Lenox Square.

As of this morning, the luxury hotel’s shadow is gone—figuratively.

The hotel has been rebranded “The Whitley, A Luxury Collection Hotel, Atlanta Buckhead,” a rather long-winded member of the Marriott/Starwood collection of hotels.

According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, the 507-room property is undergoing a $20-million renovation and modernization, along with the rebranding. The renovation has stripped much of the classical and ornate detailing, in favor of a more streamlined approach.

Call it a sign of the times.

Once a favorite of celebrities and Atlanta socialites, the grand hotel had struggled to retain relevance in the changing hospitality market. The famed dining room, once the only Five Star restaurant in the city, shuttered a few years back.

The Whitley

While the hotel is hoping to appeal to a younger crowd, not all of the old has been foresaken. Rather, the hotel’s new name evokes distant history and pays homage to Buckhead itself.

Early Atlanta-area settler John Whitley is said to have shot a buck and mounted its head on a pole, lending a name to the then-wooded area. The name stuck.

Despite all the changes, one thing remains the same at the new property: A room will set guests back several hundred dollars a night.

• Cheers, maybe some tears as Buckhead Ritz-Carlton becomes The Whitley [Atlanta Journal-Constitution]