Skip to main content

On-Campus Hotel Gets Upgrades, New Name

The JB Duke Hotel in Thomas Executive Conference Center to open in 2017

Duke recently unveiled the new name of its flagship on-campus accommodation, announcing the former R. David Thomas Center will reopen in January 2017 as the JB Duke Hotel.

The space has been undergoing renovations since March 2015, with Duke’s Facilities Management Department overseeing updates to the 27-year old hotel. Crews are making extensive upgrades to modernize the building, which will feature 198 guestrooms, including 11 unique suites, to be used by visitors to Duke and Durham.

In addition to providing rooms for nightly use, the $62 million project at 230 Science Drive will provide space to be used by Duke’s MBA programs for working professionals and non-degree executive education courses hosted by the Fuqua School of Business. Duke’s Science Drive/Cameron Boulevard parking garage is also scheduled to be completed in January next year, and will accommodate 2,320 vehicles.

Highlights of the hotel and conference center include:

  • A full-service restaurant specializing in a la carte and conference dining.
  • Two full-service bars: One in the lobby to serve as a main gathering space and another adjacent to the main dining room with views to showcase Duke’s athletic campus.
  • 20,850 square feet of meeting and event space in the newly named Thomas Executive Conference Center. 

The hotel has been renamed in honor of James Buchanan “JB” Duke, son of Washington Duke, for whom the university was named. The hotel is owned by Duke and will be managed by Durham’s WDI Hospitality, LLC, which oversees the Washington Duke Inn & Golf Club.

For more information about the JB Duke Hotel and to follow along as renovations are completed, visit the hotel website as well as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.