CASE STUDY № 03

Hotel Marina Riviera.

Big Bear Lake, CA · Casetta Hotels · Opening, relaunch & earned media · 2025

A lakefront Big Bear relaunch that put a mountain town's new hotel in more than twenty national outlets within three months.

The challenge

A destination with press fatigue.

Big Bear read as a ski-cabin market with no recent hotel story worth telling. The renovated Marina Riviera needed a relaunch that repositioned the destination itself — midcentury design, lakeside leisure, and four real seasons — while the hotel ramped from day one.

What I did

Relaunch the hotel, reposition the mountain.

Pre-opening commercial strategy

Delivered brand, pricing, and performance marketing strategy ahead of reopening, tied to pacing targets.

Targeted press program

Rebuilt the property's press story through targeted pitching matched to each outlet's beat rather than a blast list.

Media hosting

Hosted writers on property so the design and lakefront told their own story, from robes to rooftops.

Destination narrative

Framed Big Bear as a design-forward, all-seasons alternative to Tahoe and Mammoth — a comparison Fodor's went on to publish.

The outcomes

Three months, twenty-plus placements.

Outcome ledgerMarina Riviera
National placements, first 3 months20+
Opening ramp vs. forecastAbove
USA Today GoEscape West, print2025
Travel + Leisure hotel review2025
National Geographic fall destinations2025
Full placement list available on request
Press & recognition

Coverage earned, not bought.

Travel + LeisureCondé Nast TravelerNational GeographicUSA TodaySunsetFodor'sSFGATEVerandaTime Out LAThe Hollywood ReporterThe InfatuationHospitality DesignLocaleHotels Above ParInside HookHello!ObserverDaily Mail
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