Last Updated on July 25, 2026 by Daniel Globe
La Quinta is a well-known hotel brand with roots in San Antonio, Texas, but the answer to “Who owns La Quinta hotels?” has two parts. Wyndham Hotels & Resorts owns the La Quinta brand and franchise system. The buildings themselves, however, may be owned by independent franchisees, real estate investors, or other hotel companies.
Quick Answer
Wyndham Hotels & Resorts owns the La Quinta brand and its franchise system. However, Wyndham does not necessarily own each hotel building. Most La Quinta locations operate under franchise or management agreements, so the real estate may belong to an independent owner, investment group, or another hotel company.
Key Takeaways
- Wyndham Hotels & Resorts is the corporate owner of the La Quinta brand.
- Individual La Quinta hotel buildings may be owned by separate franchisees or property investors.
- Wyndham completed its $1.95 billion acquisition of La Quinta’s franchising and management business in May 2018.
- Immediately before the sale, La Quinta’s owned real estate was separated into CorePoint Lodging, so the transaction was not a simple purchase of every hotel building.
- Wyndham reported 893 La Quinta properties and 85,892 rooms worldwide as of December 31, 2025.
The History of La Quinta Hotels
La Quinta began in San Antonio in 1968, when brothers Sam and Philip Barshop opened their own hotel concept in time for HemisFair ’68. The brothers already had experience building and operating Ramada Inns on family-owned land. After an unsuccessful attempt to buy the Rodeway Inn brand, they developed La Quinta instead.
The early concept focused on clean, spacious, business-friendly rooms at reasonable rates. La Quinta helped popularize the limited-service hotel model by removing costly features such as bell service, room service, bars, and full-service restaurants while keeping the parts travelers valued most.
The original article connects the name La Quinta only with the Spanish phrase for “the fifth.” However, historical usage of quinta is broader, and reliable brand records do not document a symbolic “fifth hotel” explanation. It is safer to describe the name as Spanish-inspired without assigning an unsupported motive to the founders.
The Founders of La Quinta Hotels
Sam and Philip Barshop founded La Quinta, with their sister Doris Spector participating as a silent partner. The brothers developed the first properties in San Antonio and then expanded the concept as demand grew.
According to the University of Houston’s Conrad N. Hilton College, the original La Quinta properties helped establish the limited-service lodging model for frequent business travelers. Philip left the company in 1977 to focus on real estate, while Sam continued as chairman, president, and chief executive until retiring in 1994.
Today, features such as breakfast, Wi-Fi, and pet-friendly rooms are important parts of the La Quinta guest experience. Availability and fees can vary by location, so travelers should review the individual hotel page before booking.
The Current Ownership of La Quinta Hotels
La Quinta is currently part of Wyndham Hotels & Resorts. Wyndham’s latest annual filing lists La Quinta subsidiaries, including La Quinta Holdings Inc., La Quinta Franchising LLC, and La Quinta Worldwide LLC, within the Wyndham corporate group.
Wyndham’s 2025 Form 10-K reported 893 La Quinta properties with 85,892 rooms as of December 31, 2025. Of those properties, 864 were in the United States, with the rest spread across Canada, Asia Pacific, Europe, the Middle East and Africa, and Latin America.
Note: Wyndham’s ownership of the La Quinta brand does not mean Wyndham owns the land and building at every location. Brand ownership, hotel management, and real-estate ownership are separate legal and business roles.
Brand Owner vs. Hotel Property Owner
| Role | Who Usually Handles It | What It Includes |
| Brand ownership | Wyndham Hotels & Resorts and its subsidiaries | Trademarks, brand standards, reservations, marketing, technology, and Wyndham Rewards participation |
| Property ownership | An independent franchisee, investment group, real estate company, or another hotel owner | Land, building, furniture, renovations, financing, taxes, and property-level risk |
| Hotel operations | The owner, a third-party management company, or in some cases a Wyndham-affiliated manager | Staffing, housekeeping, maintenance, local service, and day-to-day guest operations |
Wyndham owns the La Quinta name and hotel system, but the owner shown on a specific hotel’s deed may be a completely different company.
The Acquisition of La Quinta by Wyndham Hotels & Resorts
| Metric | Verified Detail |
| Completion date | May 30, 2018 |
| Acquisition amount | $1.95 billion in cash |
| La Quinta network added | More than 900 franchised hotels and nearly 89,000 rooms at closing |
| Business acquired | La Quinta’s hotel franchising and management business |
| Owned real estate | Separated into CorePoint Lodging immediately before Wyndham completed the acquisition |
| Expected cost and revenue synergies | $55 million to $70 million annually at announcement; Wyndham later reported a $68 million annual run-rate in 2019 |
Wyndham completed the acquisition of La Quinta’s franchising and hotel-management business for $1.95 billion in cash. The transaction added more than 900 franchised hotels and nearly 89,000 rooms to Wyndham’s network at the time.
The ownership structure changed immediately before the acquisition. According to Wyndham’s May 30, 2018 Form 8-K, La Quinta transferred its owned real estate and certain related assets to CorePoint Lodging, which became a separate publicly traded company. Wyndham then acquired the remaining franchising and management business. This is why saying “Wyndham bought every La Quinta hotel” is inaccurate.
The transaction also brought La Quinta’s loyalty program into Wyndham’s system. La Quinta Returns was later combined with Wyndham Rewards, giving La Quinta guests access to Wyndham’s broader loyalty network.
Who Owned La Quinta Before Wyndham?
La Quinta’s ownership changed several times before the 2018 Wyndham deal, as documented in La Quinta’s 2017 Form 10-K and Wyndham’s acquisition filings:
- 1968: Sam and Philip Barshop founded La Quinta in San Antonio.
- 1970s: The company became publicly traded as it expanded.
- January 2006: Blackstone acquired La Quinta.
- April 2014: La Quinta Holdings completed an initial public offering and traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker LQ.
- May 2018: La Quinta’s owned real estate was separated into CorePoint Lodging, and Wyndham acquired the franchising and management business.
La Quinta is no longer a separately traded public company. Investors who want exposure to the brand would generally look at Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, which trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker WH.
The Franchise Model of La Quinta Hotels
La Quinta operates mainly through Wyndham’s asset-light franchise system. Under this model, Wyndham licenses the La Quinta name, trademarks, reservation network, operating standards, and other brand services to hotel owners. Franchisees pay fees and agree to follow the brand’s requirements.
The local hotel owner usually funds the property, employs or contracts the staff, maintains the building, and handles daily operations. Some owners run their hotels directly, while others hire a third-party hotel-management company. This structure allows La Quinta to expand without Wyndham purchasing every property.
Wyndham’s 2025 annual report says its global franchisees range from sole proprietors to institutional investors, including real estate investment trusts. That broad ownership base explains why service, renovation schedules, pet fees, and some amenities may differ from one La Quinta location to another even though each hotel uses the same brand.
How to Find the Owner of a Specific La Quinta Hotel
The La Quinta sign alone does not identify the legal owner of a particular building. To research one location:
- Check the hotel’s official Wyndham page for the exact address and contact details.
- Look at the hotel’s receipt, terms, privacy notice, or posted licenses for the operating company’s legal name.
- Search the county property-appraiser or land-records database using the street address to identify the deed owner.
- Search the relevant state business registry for the legal entity shown in the property records.
- Call the hotel and ask for the general manager or ownership company if you need a business contact.
Pro Tip: The company operating the hotel may not be the same company that owns the real estate. Check both the business entity on the receipt and the deed owner in county records.
The Future of La Quinta Hotels Ownership
Current corporate filings continue to place La Quinta within Wyndham Hotels & Resorts. No completed ownership change for the brand is reflected in Wyndham’s latest annual report.
Wyndham continues to develop La Quinta through new hotels, conversions, and franchise partnerships. In 2025, Wyndham announced a development agreement intended to introduce and grow La Quinta in India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, and Bangladesh, with the first locations expected to open from late 2026. Expansion agreements do not transfer ownership of the global brand; they allow regional developers and hotel owners to build or convert properties under Wyndham’s La Quinta standards.
Future changes are more likely to occur at the individual-property level. A La Quinta building can be sold to a new real estate owner while remaining in the franchise system, or it can leave the brand when a franchise agreement ends. Those property transactions do not automatically change Wyndham’s ownership of the La Quinta name.
How Ownership Affects La Quinta’s Brand and Services
Wyndham controls the core brand system, including trademarks, marketing, reservations, technology platforms, loyalty-program participation, and brand standards. This gives La Quinta hotels a shared identity and booking network.
Property owners and operators control many day-to-day details. They are responsible for staffing, maintenance, local management, and investments in the physical hotel, subject to the franchise agreement and brand requirements. As a result, guests may notice differences in room condition, local service, parking charges, pet fees, pools, fitness centers, and breakfast selections.
La Quinta’s official brand pages promote free daily breakfast and pet-friendly rooms, but terms can vary. Wyndham’s pet policy states that select locations may impose weight limits and that an optional pet fee may apply. Guests should confirm the exact policy with the hotel before arrival.
La Quinta’s Competition and Market Position
La Quinta competes in the midscale and upper-midscale lodging market, where travelers compare price, location, cleanliness, loyalty benefits, breakfast, pet policies, and room quality. The closest competitive set varies by city and property type. It may include other select-service brands as well as nearby economy hotels such as Super 8, Motel 6, or Red Roof Inn.
The brand benefits from Wyndham’s reservation platform, Wyndham Rewards, and a large franchise-development network. Many La Quinta properties are located near highways, airports, business districts, and suburban travel corridors, which supports both business and leisure demand.
Ownership does not guarantee identical service at every location. The most useful approach for travelers is to review the individual hotel’s recent guest feedback, renovation status, listed amenities, and local policies instead of relying only on the national brand name.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who owns La Quinta hotels?
Wyndham Hotels & Resorts owns the La Quinta brand, trademarks, and franchise system. Individual hotel buildings may be owned by independent franchisees, investment groups, or other property companies.
Does Wyndham own every La Quinta hotel building?
No. Wyndham owns the brand, but many La Quinta properties are owned by separate franchisees or real estate investors. The hotel may also be operated by a third-party management company.
Who owned La Quinta before Wyndham Hotels & Resorts?
La Quinta was founded by Sam and Philip Barshop in 1968. It later operated as a public company, was acquired by Blackstone in 2006, returned to the public market in 2014, and was acquired by Wyndham in 2018 after its owned real estate was separated into CorePoint Lodging.
How much did Wyndham pay for La Quinta?
Wyndham completed the acquisition of La Quinta’s franchising and hotel-management business for $1.95 billion in cash on May 30, 2018.
Is La Quinta a franchise-based hotel business?
Yes. La Quinta mainly operates through franchise agreements. Wyndham provides the brand system and support, while local hotel owners usually invest in and operate the individual properties.
Can I buy La Quinta stock?
La Quinta is not a separately traded company. Its former NYSE ticker, LQ, ended with the 2018 acquisition. Wyndham Hotels & Resorts trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker WH.
How can I identify the owner of a specific La Quinta location?
Use the hotel’s street address to search county property records, then check the listed company in the state business registry. The legal operator may also appear on the hotel receipt, posted licenses, or booking terms.
Sources
- Wyndham Hotels & Resorts 2025 Form 10-K — current corporate structure, franchise model, and La Quinta property and room counts.
- Wyndham acquisition announcement — acquisition date, price, hotel count, room count, and loyalty-program integration.
- Wyndham Form 8-K dated May 30, 2018 — CorePoint real-estate separation and the acquisition structure.
- La Quinta Holdings 2017 Form 10-K — Blackstone ownership, the 2014 IPO, and La Quinta’s pre-Wyndham corporate history.
- University of Houston profile of Sam Barshop — founders, early hotel concept, and leadership history.
- Wyndham’s 2025 South Asia development announcement — planned La Quinta expansion into India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, and Bangladesh.