Dallas investors buy Craig Hall’s luxury hotel in California’s wine country

Hall and his wife Kathryn bought the property in 2006 when it was a small bed and breakfast.

The Senza Hotel, located between the towns of Napa and Yountville in Northern California, was a small bed and breakfast when Dallas real estate investor Craig Hall and his wife, Kathryn, purchased the property in 2006.(Contributed / Senza Hotel)

By Steve Brown

4:25 PM on May 30, 2023

An exclusive Northern California hotel has traded in a deal between two Dallas-based investment groups.

The 48-room Senza Hotel in Napa was developed by Dallas real estate investor Craig Hall and his wife, Kathryn. The Halls own the adjoining vineyard.

The luxury hotel has been purchased by a venture of Cienda Partners and Pendant Capital, both Dallas investment firms.

“For nearly two decades, Senza has been a passion project for us in a region that holds great meaning to our business and our family,” Craig Hall, founder and chairman of Hall Group, said in a statement.

“We are currently involved in several new hospitality projects, and felt it was the right time to pass the torch to allow us to better focus on these new endeavors,” he said. “With Cienda Partners and Pendant Capital, we found a buyer in which we saw great cultural alignment and fit — who recognized the distinctive quality and high standards of Senza and wanted to invest for the long-term.”

Located between the towns of Napa and Yountville, the Senza was a small bed and breakfast when the Halls purchased the property in 2006. Kathryn Hall and her family had been grape growers in Mendocino County since 1972 and she managed the family vineyard from 1982 to 1992. In 1995, the Halls bought their first vineyard in Napa Valley.

Terms of the sale were not disclosed.

The new owners plan to renovate the hotel’s common areas and expand its food and beverage offerings. The hotel includes a swimming pool, fitness center and private guest spa.

“The acquisition of Senza, a beautiful luxury hotel, was a rare opportunity in a difficult-to-enter market,” said Barry Hancock of Cienda Partners. “We are pleased to add this hotel in the heart of Napa Valley to our growing portfolio of unique boutique hotels.”

Cienda Partners also owns the century old La Fonda Hotel, the Old Santa Fe Inn and El Rey Inn, all in Santa Fe.

In Dallas, Cienda Partners is developing a large section of North Oak Cliff that includes the site of the former Oak Farms Dairy on the Trinity River.