AmWins Destination Resorts Program: A Hotelier's Guide

What Is the AmWins Destination Resorts Program?

The AmWins Destination Resorts & Hotels program is a specialty insurance program operated by AmWins Program Underwriters (APU) that bundles every coverage a destination resort needs onto A.M. Best A-rated carrier paper, with a single underwriter coordinating property, liability, and ancillary lines. It is purpose-built for independently owned destination resorts — not a repurposed general business owner's policy, and not a franchise-only program.

APU is the dedicated program division of AmWins, the largest specialty insurance distributor in the United States. Program business — as opposed to standard wholesale brokerage — means APU has written authority from the carrier to underwrite, bind, and issue policies within a defined class of business. For destination resorts, that means coverage decisions get made in days, not weeks, and the policy forms are tailored to the class rather than borrowed from generic commercial property language.

If you own or operate a luxury resort, hot springs spa, guest ranch, country inn with fine dining, sportsmen's lodge, or any other true destination property, the APU program is almost always part of the market analysis we run on your account. See our Hotels & Destination Resorts Insurance page for the full marketing strategy we use.

Who Is the AmWins Destination Resorts Program Designed For?

The AmWins Destination Resorts program is designed for independently owned and operated destination resorts — properties where the experience is the reason guests travel, not just a place to sleep near somewhere else. Target classes include:

• Luxury hotels and VIP resorts with on-site amenities like fine dining, spa, recreation, and event venues.
• Coastal and beachfront resorts — listed as a target class within APU's appetite.
• Hot springs spas and destination spa hotels with mineral baths, treatment rooms, and wellness programs.
• Luxury guest ranches and sportsmen's lodges with horseback riding, hunting, fishing, and outfitter operations.
• Country inns with fine dining where the restaurant is a draw, not a convenience.
• Golf resorts and country clubs with lodging — the program's Tee to Green coverage is built for this class.
• Historic hotels — APU offers a specific Historic Hotel Building Valuation endorsement that addresses the replacement-cost gap for buildings of architectural significance.

It is not designed for: chain-branded budget hotels, motel-class properties on roadside locations, or hotels whose primary business is room rental without meaningful resort amenities. AmWins Excess Casualty and other AmWins divisions write those classes — but they're separate programs.

What Coverages Are Included in the AmWins Destination Resorts Program?

The AmWins Destination Resorts program includes property, hospitality and leisure enhancements, golf course (Tee to Green) coverage, flood and earthquake, historic hotel valuation, equipment breakdown, package-only commercial auto, crime, inland marine, umbrella, liquor liability, salon and spa professional liability, and abuse and molestation coverage. It is a one-stop program for a class of business that, until APU built it, required four to six separate policies from four to six separate carriers.

Property & Hospitality Enhancements

The property form is written specifically for hospitality risk. The "Hospitality & Leisure Enhancements" endorsement extends standard commercial property to include guest property, lost key coverage, mechanical breakdown of in-room amenities, food spoilage from power outage, and the kind of guest-facing exposures generic commercial forms simply don't anticipate.

Tee to Green Coverage

For resorts with golf operations, the Tee to Green endorsement is built specifically for golf course exposures — greens, fairways, tee boxes, irrigation systems, golf cars, and turf chemicals. Standard property forms have major exclusions for grass, soil, and below-ground irrigation that Tee to Green is designed to fill.

Flood & Earthquake

Flood and earthquake can be written into the program rather than placed as standalone NFIP or DIC (Difference in Conditions) policies. This is a real workflow win — one underwriter, one claim adjuster, one form.

Historic Hotel Building Valuation

Historic hotels — those built before 1930, on the National Register, or with significant architectural value — face a coverage gap on standard replacement-cost forms because rebuilding to match original detail can cost dramatically more than building modern equivalents. APU's Historic Hotel Valuation addresses that gap explicitly.

Equipment Breakdown

Hotel HVAC, refrigeration, boilers, elevators, laundry equipment, kitchen equipment, and increasingly sophisticated guest-room electronics all fall under equipment breakdown. APU includes this on the program form rather than requiring a separate boiler & machinery policy.

Commercial Auto (Package Only)

This is an important detail: commercial auto is available within the program but only as part of the package — APU does not write monoline auto for destination resorts. This works well for properties with shuttle vans, valet operations, food and beverage delivery vehicles, and resort-owned recreation vehicles.

Crime, Inland Marine, Umbrella

Crime (employee dishonesty, money & securities, computer fraud), inland marine (fine art, on-premises floater, scheduled property like sculptures and antiques), and umbrella excess liability round out the financial-loss and high-limit liability layers.

Liquor Liability

Any resort with food and beverage operations needs liquor liability — and APU includes it on the program rather than forcing it onto a separate policy. This matters for claim coordination: when a single incident involves slip-and-fall, liquor service, and abuse allegations, having one carrier coordinating defense is dramatically simpler.

Salon & Spa Professional Liability

Destination spa hotels and resorts with on-site salons need professional liability for treatments — massage therapy, facials, cosmetic services, medical aesthetics in some cases. Standard GL excludes professional services; the program endorsement adds it back.

Abuse & Molestation Coverage

This is a hard-to-place coverage that most standard hotel programs exclude completely. APU includes abuse and molestation on the program — critical for resorts with children's programs, summer camps, day-care facilities, equestrian operations, or any guest-facing programming with minors.

How Much Does the AmWins Destination Resorts Program Cost?

The AmWins Destination Resorts program has a $25,000 minimum account premium. Below that, the program isn't economically viable for the carrier — there's too much underwriting work for a small account. Above the minimum, premium scales with Total Insured Value, GL exposure, liquor sales, payroll, and the mix of ancillary exposures (spa, golf, equestrian, etc.).

For context, typical APU destination resort accounts fall in these ranges:

These are illustrative; actual pricing varies significantly with claims history, construction class, distance to coast (for coastal risks), and the specific coverage package selected.

Where Is the AmWins Destination Resorts Program Available?

The AmWins Destination Resorts program is available in all 50 U.S. states except Hawaii, and is not currently available in U.S. territories. Hawaii's exclusion is a function of carrier appetite and reinsurance constraints around volcanic and Pacific-cyclone exposure; Puerto Rico, Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands are similarly excluded.

Within the continental U.S. and Alaska, every state and territory tier is in play — including high-risk coastal states (Florida, Texas Gulf Coast, the Carolinas), wildfire-exposed western states (California, Oregon, Colorado), and weather-volatile states across the Midwest and Northeast. Local underwriting decisions still apply; not every risk in every state will receive a competitive quote, but the program door is open everywhere except HI.

How Does AmWins Destination Resorts Compare to Other Hospitality Programs?

APU's program is the most class-tailored option in the market, but it's not the only one. Here's how it stacks up against the other markets we regularly access for destination resort accounts:

How Do You Qualify for the AmWins Destination Resorts Program?

Qualification for the AmWins Destination Resorts program requires meeting both an account-size threshold ($25,000 minimum premium) and a class-of-business fit (independently owned destination property). Here is the typical path:

Why Don't Most Local Insurance Agents Have AmWins Access?

Most local insurance agents don't have access to the AmWins Destination Resorts program because APU is a wholesale program market that requires a broker relationship, demonstrated hospitality book of business, and a willingness to handle the complex submission requirements that program markets demand.

There are several reasons your typical local Main-Street agent can't quote you APU:

• It's an E&S / wholesale channel. Local retail agents have to access APU through a wholesale broker — they can't write directly.
• The submission package is heavy. Resort Comprehensive Profile, multiple amenity supplementals, five-year loss runs with narratives. Many agents don't have the bandwidth or hospitality expertise to assemble this.
• Program markets reward specialists. Underwriters prefer to work with brokers who understand the class. A broker who submits one resort risk every five years isn't a priority compared to one who submits twenty per year.
• Class fit is narrow. If a local agent's book is dominated by personal lines or main-street commercial, the few hotel risks they touch don't justify building the carrier relationships needed to access programs like APU.

When we evaluate a hotel or resort account, APU is one of the first markets we approach for risks that fit the class — and we coordinate the wholesale relationship so the resort owner doesn't have to manage it directly.

What Should I Have Ready Before Requesting an AmWins Quote?

To get a meaningful APU quote turned around quickly, prepare the following before your discovery call:

• Current declarations pages for all in-force policies (property, GL, auto, umbrella, workers' comp, liquor, cyber).
• Five-year loss runs, currently valued (issued within last 60 days), with descriptions of any claim over $10,000.
• Statement of values for all locations and buildings, including year built, square footage, construction class, occupancy, and replacement cost.
• Annual revenue split — rooms, food & beverage, spa, golf, banquet/events, retail, recreation, and any other revenue streams.
• Payroll by classification (front desk, F&B, housekeeping, maintenance, recreation/spa staff, etc.).
• Resort marketing materials — your website, brochures, and amenity descriptions help the underwriter understand the property.
• List of recreational activities offered to guests, including any contracted-out third-party operators.

Frequently Asked Questions About the AmWins Destination Resorts Program

If you operate a destination resort — luxury, coastal, country, historic, or golf — and want to know whether the AmWins program fits your property, visit our Hotels & Destination Resorts Insurance page, request a quote, or call (860) 970-0977. We have direct access to APU and the surrounding carrier set, and we'll build the marketing strategy around the program that fits your risk profile best.