Hotel Alba Tampa — Tapestry Collection by Hilton
The Most Dramatic Hotel Exterior on Tampa's Westshore
Hotel Alba Tampa — formerly the Crowne Plaza Tampa Westshore — underwent a complete repositioning to become one of Tampa's premier boutique lifestyle hotels as part of Hilton's Tapestry Collection. The property at 5303 W Kennedy Blvd sits at the heart of Tampa's Westshore business district, minutes from Tampa International Airport and Tampa Bay.
LED Artistry was brought in to transform the hotel's exterior presence after dark — creating an arrival experience that communicates immediately that this property is something different. The result visible in these photographs: an 11-story building washed in RGBW blue from base to roofline, with warm white column lighting at the porte-cochère entrance and palm and landscape uplighting framing the approach.
When a guest pulls into the Hotel Alba driveway after dark, the first impression is set before they step out of the car. That impression is LED Artistry's work.
All Four Sides. Every Floor. One System.
Photographed during the Crowne Plaza era — the same RGBW system LED Artistry installed carries through to Hotel Alba today.
Full hotel exterior from Kennedy Blvd — RGBW blue facade wash across all 11 stories, porte-cochère, and palm uplighting
Front angle — RGBW blue facade, palm uplighting, and porte-cochère entrance
Wide view — full building RGBW blue facade and warm white entrance lighting
The side wing — RGBW blue uplights hitting every cornice line, floor by floor, from ground to roofline
Hotel pool area — warm white palm uplighting perimeter and illuminated pool deck
Full Installation Scope
Color-changing RGBW linear fixtures were installed on all four sides of the 11-story building, washing the entire exterior with programmable color. The deep blue shown in the project photographs is the hotel's signature evening color — commanding and unmistakable on the Westshore skyline. The system is fully programmable for seasonal colors, special events, and holiday displays.
The arrival experience at the Hotel Alba entrance required lighting integrated directly into the architectural columns of the porte-cochère. LED Artistry core-drilled every column, ran conduit inside the concrete structure, and re-patched each penetration seamlessly. The result: fixture light emerging from the column surface with no visible hardware, no surface conduit, no visible wire. It looks like the columns were designed to glow.
The mature palm trees lining the Hotel Alba entrance approach are individually uplighted — each addressed with its own fixture at the correct beam angle and color temperature to fill the canopy. The warm white palm uplighting creates a deliberate contrast with the cool blue facade wash above — grounding the building in warm natural light while the architectural wash commands attention from the street.
Every element of the hotel's exterior perimeter was addressed — parking approach lighting, landscape bed uplighting, entrance feature lighting. The goal: from the moment a guest turns off Kennedy Blvd onto the hotel property, the experience is consistent and designed. No dark zones. No afterthought fixtures. Every foot of the property communicates the same standard.
No Surface Is Off-Limits
The column lighting at Hotel Alba's porte-cochère is a precise example of what separates LED Artistry from every other outdoor lighting company in the Tampa Bay market. A standard lighting company looks at a concrete column and sees a surface that cannot be penetrated without visible damage. LED Artistry looks at the same column and sees an installation opportunity.
We core-drill. We route. We restore. Every penetration sealed to match the original surface. No visible conduit. No surface-mounted hardware breaks. The finished result looks like the architect designed the lighting into the building — because we execute it with the same level of craftsmanship the architect applied to the structure itself.
This approach takes more time. We do not take shortcuts on the installation to meet a faster schedule. If getting the light into the right position requires drilling through concrete, running conduit through a structural element, or spending an additional day on a single column detail — we do it. That is the LED Artistry standard. That is why the Hotel Alba entrance looks the way it does.
“We want to make our product stand out — so we create areas no matter how much time it might take to get the lights in those areas. We're gonna find a way and we're gonna make sure it looks amazing.”
LED Artistry — Florida's Hospitality Lighting Specialist
LED Artistry has completed outdoor lighting installations for hotels, resorts, and hospitality properties throughout Florida. We understand the hospitality standard — the arrival experience, the brand consistency requirement, the need for a system that performs every night without fail and looks as good in year five as it did on installation day.
We offer a complimentary on-site demonstration for hotel and resort properties. We visit after dark, demonstrate the proposed lighting system on the actual building, and leave a complete proposal. No obligation.
Your Property Deserves to Command Attention After Dark
Free on-site demonstration. All four sides. Every architectural detail addressed. Florida's hospitality lighting specialist — 18 years of experience.