Steph Sitt and Luke Shantz invested their life savings in a crumbling motel with a dream of turning it into a vacation hot spot.

Luke: It was one of those things when you also have HGTV on board, that’s a lot of pressure too. You have the whole world watching and want to make sure you make this look as good as possible. It sped up the process.

Betting on Paradise stars Luke Shantz and Steph Sitt are embarking on the “journey of a lifetime” on HGTV’s new series, which premieres Tuesday, Jan. 7. Prior to the premiere, Shantz and Sitt opened up to PopCulture.

HGTV's eye-wateringly beautiful series 'Betting on Paradise' is filmed in this breathtaking, jealousy-inducing, tropical location.

HGTV’s “Betting on Paradise” premieres Tuesday, January 7 at 9 p.m. ET. Stream the new series on Philo, DIRECTV Stream, and Hulu.