HGTV’s Star-Studded ‘100 Day Hotel Challenge’: Who’s in the Cast

When married HGTV stars Mika and Brian Kleinschmidt compete against each other in the network’s new “100 Day Hotel Challenge,” they’ll both have plenty of star power behind them. A whole crew of network celebrities will help them try to win bragging rights and $50,000 for the charity of their choice, according to a network press release issued on July 16, 2024.

The fiercely competitive Kleinschmidts, who currently appear in the fifth season of HGTV’s popular “100 Day Dream Home,” are competition show experts. Together, they won 2023’s “Barbie Dream House Challenge” and season two of “Rock the Block.” But they’ve have never been split up on the network to compete against each other.

But in “100 Day Hotel Challenge,” scheduled to premiere on August 13, they will go head-to-head as they transform two outdated hotels along North Carolina’s Crystal Coast in just 100 days, each with a team of HGTV celebrities to help them.

HGTV first announced the Kleinschmidts’ upcoming competition show in February, revealing that the couple would each have a $225,000 budget and a tight three-month timeline to renovate two run-down hotels. According to HGTV’s newest release, Mika and Brian will work separately to transform The Beacon Hotel, formerly known as The Salter Path Inn, and The William & Garland Motel into “charming waterside retreats.”

Here Are All the HGTV Stars on the ‘100 Day Hotel Challenge’ Teams

“100 Day Hotel Challenge” was filmed in North Carolina throughout the spring, with multiple guest stars sharing sneak peeks on social media.

In the extended, 90-minute premiere on August 13, both teams will “give new life” to their hotels’ standard and double guest rooms, per HGTV. Brian will get help from Bryan and Sarah Baeumler, who have lots of beach renovation expertise with their HGTV shows “Renovation Island” and “Battle on the Beach.”

Mika, meanwhile, will be helped by Jonathan Knight and Kristina Crestin on the first challenge. They’ve been hard at work on Knight’s own waterside retreat on “Farmhouse Fixer: Camp Revamp.”

In a February 18 Instagram post, Sarah posted a photo of all six of them and wrote, “Happy Sunday! Busy day on set with @mikamakesmoves and @mrbreakingground as they go head to head in a brand new showdown! Looking forward to having some fun on set with this crew & sharing it on @hgtv this summer… stay tuned!”

On the second episode, when it’s time to revamp the hotel lobbies, Brian will get a hand from “Luxe for Less” host and “Rock the Block” season 4 winner Michel Smith Boyd while Mika teams up with “Home in a Heartbeat” star Galey Alix. Back when they were filming the challenge in March, they shared a sneak peek of what they were up to on social media.

For the kitchenette guest room upgrades, Brian and Mika will team up with HGTV alums who haven’t been on the network in a while. “Reno My Rental” and “Design Star” alum Carmeon Hamilton will help Brian while Grace Mitchell from “One of a Kind” and “Ty Breaker.”

The outdoor lounge areas will get “high-end beach style” when Brian teams up with Mike and Denese Butler of “Fix My Frankenhouse,” which is due to air its second season in 2025. For that challenge, Mika will team up with Lauren Makk of “Urban Oasis” and “Vacation House Rules” star Scott McGillivray.

In the next round, the hotels’ luxury suites will get makeovers, too, as Brian gets a hand from Cristy Lee, who was a guest judge on “Battle on the Mountain” and starred in “Steal This House” and Poonam Moore, the designer on “Rico to the Rescue.” Meanwhile, Team Mika that week will consist of Kim Myles and Kim Wolfe, last seen together on “Battle on the Mountain.” Wolfe also stars in “Why the Heck Did I Buy This House?”

The final episode of “100 Day Hotel Challenge,” airing on September 17, will be all about the hotels’ exterior makeovers, though it’s not clear who will help Brian and Mika navigate that challenge. The winner of the series will be announced that night.

Drew & Jonathan Scott Will Serve as Judges to Determine Whether Brian or Mika Kleinschmidt Win ‘100 Day Hotel Challenge’

GettyDrew, left, and Jonathan Scott.

“Property Brothers” stars Drew and Jonathan Scott, who already have their hands full with their current HGTV show, “Backed by the Bros” and the just-announced August premiere of seven new “Celebrity IOU” episodes, will serve as judges on “100 Day Hotel Challenge.”

Each week, they’ll decide which spouse’s team did a better job executing the challenge. HGTV said Drew and Jonathan will base their decisions on the following criteria: amenities, overall guest experience, design, hotel owners’ requests and room rate increases.

Each weekly win comes with $5,000 to be donated to the winner’s chosen charity, and the spouse who wins the overall competition gets the $50,000 purse.

When HGTV posted the premiere date on social media, some of the “100 Day Hotel Challenge” competitors chimed in.

Crestin wrote on Instagram, “We are ready to bring it!” and added the hashtag #teammika.

Boyd, meanwhile, commented, “Let’s GO !!!!!!! #teamBRIAN”

Hamilton also wrote, “Let’s goooooo!!!! 🙌🏾🙌🏾🙌🏾 #teamBrian”

Not to be outdone, Mitchell commented, “TEAM MIKA ALL THE WAY!!!!!! 🙌🙌🙌🙌”

“100 Day Hotel Challenge” will premiere on August 14 at 8 p.m. Eastern time.

Liv Lane is an entertainment writer who covers the Hallmark Channel, HGTV, American Idol and The Voice for Heavy. Based in Minneapolis, she has three decades of experience as a local and national radio host, columnist and publicist, interviewing and working with a wide range of celebrities over the years, from Deepak Chopra to Lil Nas X. More about Liv Lane