100 Day Dream Home’s Brian and Mika Kleinschmidt revamped their first large-scale vacation destination when they joined forces to transform Sunburst Inn in their home state of Florida. For their second adventure in the hospitality industry, they set their sights on Salter Path, a beach community on North Carolina’s Crystal Coast, and found two family-owned properties deserving of their attention. Which would they tackle?

The answer is both. The Kleinschmidts are HGTV’s winningest couple (thanks to victories on both Rock the Block and the Barbie Dreamhouse Challenge), and it was time for them to go head-to-head. With matching 100-day timelines, budgets of $225,000 apiece and help from other HGTV stars, Brian and Mika each set out to renovate a beachfront business. The rules: Teams have 15 days to complete a particular space, then face judgment based on amenities, overall guest experience, design, hotel owners' requests and room rate increase. Weekly winners receive $5,000 for a charity of their choice, and the overall winner at the competition's end receives $50,000 for charity. “We’re kind of giving [the owners] a blueprint and a road map to success for the future,” Mika told Brian. “You and I really want to win, but the hotels are going to be the real winners!”

Raj (left) and his uncle Roc purchased Salter Path Inn, a 1.5-acre, 23-unit property 400 feet away from the beach, in 2017. One year later, devastating floodwaters from Hurricane Florence damaged 85% of the property’s rooms. They hired three different teams of contractors and spent nearly $1 million on recovery efforts, but, “we do need professional help!” Roc said. “We’re never going to sell this hotel,” Raj added. “We’re going to keep this as part of our legacy, as part of our family. [Roc’s] two boys [and] my two boys — they’re going to take it into the future.”

Brian was ready to help the duo convert their bad hand into a winning one. “It’s time for us to reimagine the Salter Path Inn, and you two are the perfect people for the job,” he said.

For the first round of competition, Brian and Mika each renovated one of their hotel’s single and double rooms — and Brian called in a pair of industry ringers. Renovation Island hosts Sarah and Bryan Baeumler own and operate a Caribbean resort, so it’s safe to say they know a thing or two about firing up and running a beachfront business. “You’re the experts to help me get this [place] back on track,” Brian told them. “Roc and Raj, the hotel owners, they love vacationing in Tulum, Mexico, so we really want to have that as an inspiration for the entire hotel. For these spaces, that’s pretty much the only request.” Team Brian budgeted $30,000 total to cover both rooms.

“I’ll be honest: it’s not horrible,” Bryan said. “It’s got that ‘motel off the highway, you’re driving somewhere, you need somewhere to stay real quick’ [vibe].” That said, the space lacked a beachy feel, the refrigerator at the foot of the bed and the lost-in-space table on the far wall chopped up the layout — and as Sarah noted, cleaning beneath the bed would be a hassle. “There’s a reason hotel beds go to the floor,” she explained. “It costs more from a housekeeping perspective to clean under there, because they have to vacuum under there. They have to sweep. They have to wash the floor.”