Sunburst Inn featured on hit HGTV show this season. Owner shares behind-the-scenes details

A Florida hotel got a special spotlight during the current season of one of HGTV's hit shows.

Indian Shores's Sunburst Inn was featured as the season premiere special for 100 Day Dream Home: Beachfront Hotel last month, still seeing a surge in demand from both fans of the show and upcoming vacationers.

Co-owner Andi Bennett shared how the star-studded renovation happened, as well as their vision for the hotel and how the community has reacted to their new look.

What's the owners' origin story with the Sunburst Inn in Indian Shores?

When they bought the property over six years ago, Bennett admits they didn't originally seek to keep it as a hotel. They had intentions of knocking down the roughly 75-year-old hotel and putting up townhouses.

The hotel was still operational, so she said they decided they would continue to run the hotel until the time was right to knock it down.

And that time never came.

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"(Through the years) We just kind of fell in love with it … we were having Thanksgiving out there with our families. We were having birthdays, going out for a timeout at the beach, and really fell in love with the hotel," Bennett recalled, adding she also fell in love with Indian Shores as a whole.

Once they decided to move forward with keeping up with the hotel, they wanted to pursue a big renovation. Bennett said while it had good bones, it was outdated. In order to be profitable, they needed to raise the daily rates but they felt like they couldn't until they changed the aesthetic.

Bennett recalls when they decided this was their next step, she wanted to go big and wanted to get it on TV. She didn't know exactly how to make this dream happen, just speaking it out to the universe in case something happened.

How did they end up on HGTV's hit 100 Day Dream Home season premiere?

After several months, something did happen — a serendipitous meeting between Bennett's husband and hotel co-owner, Pete, and an HGTV host suddenly fell into place.

Mika Kleinschmidt, a cohost of 100 Day Dream Home and realtor, came into her husband's office with one of her clients regarding another piece of property that he owned. As they got talking, Kleinschmidt asked about any other projects he was starting within a certain timeframe, mentioning the show she and her husband, Brian, were working on.

While he didn't have any at the time, he decided to mention the Sunburst Inn and its renovation project, asking if she'd be interested in that.

One thing led to another and they got on board, making Sunburst Inn a part of their show. The HGTV couple had never done a commercial piece of property before as part of the show, so Bennett said this was something brand new for them as well.

After the renovation, the Sunburst Inn not only ended up just being featured on the show. The Indian Shores hotel got it's own two-episode special titled "100 Day Dream Home: Beachfront Hotel," which premiered ahead of its new 11-episode season premiere of 100 Day Dream Home in May.

What was the process like throughout the renovation?

Bennett gave a behind-the-scenes look at what the renovation process looked like for them, saying the project actually wrapped really close to the 100-day mark.

"We get to work with them the whole time. I kind of told them the vision that I had … I wanted to continue to pay homage to the fact that it is a 75-year-old Florida piece of property," Bennett said.

They decided to go for a retro feel but still modern, working with their designers to figure out how to make that vision a reality. She also highlighted that the project was mainly beautification without changing the bones or the existing structure of the hotel.

In the end, the property's 12 rooms were updated with coastal-inspired retro decor with new amenities throughout the hotel. In photos on their website, bright colors and updated luxury furniture fill the spaces both on the interior and exterior.

How did the community react after the two-part special HGTV premiere?

Bennett said the whole thing was super exciting. While the new spotlight does put an additional level of pressure and stress, she says it's worth it and something that she would do again.

As for what this spotlight has meant for the Indian Shores community and hotel visitors, she said they love it.

"It was great before because the location is absolutely awesome. It's literally right on the beach, you walk outside and you're in the sands, but now it's just so cute and it's definitely on trend right now," Bennett said.

Who are the hosts behind HGTV's 100 Day Dream Home?

Hailing from Tampa, hosts  Brian and Mika Kleinschmidt are the married HGTV stars of “100 Day Dream Home.”

On HGTV's website, they sum up the show as a "husband-and-wife team from Tampa, Florida, that makes dream homes come true. She's the realtor, he's the developer and together they help clients both design and build the perfect house from the ground up in 100 days or less."

The show has had four seasons since launching in 2020. According to a press release, the last season of “100 Day Dream Home” attracted more than 18.1 million viewers.

Where can I find the Sunburst Inn?

The Sunburst Inn is located at 19204 Gulf Boulevard in Indian Shores. On their website, visitors can find photos of the renovated rooms and hotel, as well as prices and when they are available for vacation.

How can I watch the Sunburst Inn's episode?

The two-episode special is available to watch on Discovery Plus, under "100 Day Dream Home: Beachfront Hotel."

This article originally appeared on Fort Myers News-Press: Indian Shores Florida hotel Sunburst Inn featured on hit HGTV show