Starwood Hotels & Resorts News and Developments Update
TORONTO, OT, December 6, 2005.
W HOTELS
W WILL BECOME WORLD'S FASTEST GROWING LUXURY HOTEL BRAND IN 2008
Starwood announces W Hotels will make its debut in Shanghai with a 400-room hotel in Pudong, Shanghai's central financial district, opening in 2008. The newly built hotel will cater especially to upscale business and leisure travellers when it opens, making it the 28th W in the group since the brand's debut in 1998. W Shanghai - Pudong will feature exciting dining, nightlife and entertainment options for which the brand is known, complete with a spa, meeting space, and a W retail store. www.whotels.com
ST. REGIS
ST, REGIS HOTEL, ATLANTA TO DEBUT IN 2008
Starwood announces plans to build a new St. Regis property in Atlanta. Owned by SR Hotel Development, LLLP and managed by St. Regis, the 26-story, 150-room hotel is expected to be Atlanta's most luxurious hotel. Scheduled to open in the first half of 2008, The St. Regis, Atlanta will also feature 50 magnificent wholly-owned St. Regis Residences, destined to be the finest dwellings in the area. www.stregis.com
WINES OF THE WORLD IN ROME!
The concept of 'wine by the glass' has totally changed at The St. Regis Grand Hotel in Rome, with its "Wines of Italy" promotion, now even the finest wines can be tasted by the glass, 32 top Italian wine producers are participating in this project. This is possible thanks to a new revolutionary system of introducing nitrogen into the open bottle, allowing the wine to keep its quality and characteristics. For more information: www.tasteinitaly.com / www.starwoodrestaurants.com / www.stregis.com/rome
WESTIN
THE OPEN CHAMPIONSHIP RETURNS TO WESTIN TURNBERRY FOR 2009
The 138th Open Championship will be returning to the Westin Turnberry Resort, Ayrshire from 16th to 19th July 2009, taking place on the resort's renowned Ailsa Course. Turnberry has been host to the Open Championship on 3 previous occasions. In 1977, it was the venue for the famous 'Duel in the Sun' between Tom Watson and Jack Nicklaus and again in 1986 and 1994. The Ailsa is regularly acknowledged as one of Britain's top 3 courses as well as being ranked in the world's top 20 courses. With spectacular views across the Irish Sea to the Ailsa Craig, the Isle of Arran and the Mull of Kintyre, the Ailsa will provide a magnificent setting for this championship and reinforces Turnberry's reputation as one of the greatest Open Championship venues. www.westin.com/turnberry
WESTIN HOTELS & RESORTS GOES SMOKE FREE
Starwood announces that its upper upscale brand, Westin Hotels & Resorts, will become the first hotel chain to introduce a brand wide smoke-free policy. Effective January 2006, all 77 Westin hotels in the U.S., Canada and the Caribbean will go 100% smoke-free including all guestrooms and public areas. Westin Hotels & Resorts is dedicated to providing a clean, comfortable and relaxing environment for its guests and the brand's new policy is a result of customer data and a clear demand from guests for a healthy, smoke-free hotel experience. www.westin.com
THE WESTIN TRILLIUM HOUSE BLUE MOUNTAIN NOW OPEN
Starwood and Intrawest Corporation are pleased to announce the opening of the 222-suite luxury condominium hotel, The Westin Trillium House Blue Mountain in the heart of the newly developed 32-acre resort known as the Village at Blue Mountain in Collingwood, Ontario - Canada. Guest rooms overlook the ski runs and have one, two or three bedroom suites, all featuring Westin's signature products. Additional services include more than 10,000 sq ft of meeting space with outdoor access; year round outdoor pool, two outdoor whirlpools and the WestinWORKOUT(R) Powered by Reebok fitness facility. The hotel also offers ski lockers and changing facilities mountainside. 121 of the deluxe rooms and suites are now open, with an additional 101 rooms and suites opening in the spring of '06. www.westin.com/bluemountain
LE MERIDIEN
STARWOOD COMPLETES ACQUISITION OF THE LE MERIDIEN BRAND
Starwood Hotels & Resorts has acquired the Le M'eridien brand and the related management and franchise business for the portfolio of 130 hotels and resorts globally for approx. $225m. With 43 properties in Europe, 47 properties in Africa and the Middle East, 28 properties in Asia Pacific and India and 12 in the Americas, the brand is a perfect complement to Starwood's current geographical footprint, securing its position as one of the leading consumer lifestyle hotel and leisure companies in the world. The deal also brings Starwood's total hotel brand portfolio to eight, including the recently announced aloft. www.lemeridien.com
LE MERIDIEN SHE SHAN SHANGHAI OPENS IN CHINA
Overlooking Yuehu Lake, the 327-room Le M'eridien She Shan Shanghai, which opened on the 15 Nov., is located in the National Tourist Resort of She Shan, in the Northern suburb of the Songjiang Satellite City in Shanghai, just 40min. from downtown Shanghai. Facilities include extensive convention facilities for over 2,000 delegates, 3 restaurants, retail outlets, swimming pools, a health club and comprehensive spa facilities which are due to open in Dec. '05. www.lemeridien.com/shanghai
SHERATON
STARWOOD DEBUTS IN SAN SALVADOR
Starwood announces the opening of its first property in the Central American Republic of El Salvador - the Sheraton Presidente San Salvador. Located in the bustling capital city of San Salvador, the hotel features 220 guestrooms, various dining options, meetings and conventions facilities including 11 meeting rooms and a fitness centre, with saunas and outdoor swimming pool. www.sheraton.com/sansalvador
SHERATON FOTA ISLAND GOLF RESORT & SPA CORK TO OPEN IN SPRING 2006
Starwood announces opening of a second property in Ireland in Spring '06, with the newly build five star Sheraton Fota Island Golf Resort & Spa, Cork. The 133-room luxury resort, on the beautiful Fota Island in County Cork, is the site of the existing Fota Island Golf Club - host to the AIB Irish Seniors Open Golf Championship in Jun '06. In addition hotel and lodge guests will also enjoy the full service destination Spa with 17 treatment rooms, a speciality restaurant, an all day dining restaurant and Whiskey Bar. The resort will also include over 250 luxury residential lodges. www.sheraton.com / www.fota.ie
STARWOOD CELEBRATES GRAND OPENING OF SHERATON SALTA, ARGENTINA
Starwood announces the grand opening of the newly built Sheraton Salta. The hotel is owned by Complejo Monumento G"uemes S.A. and will be managed by Starwood. The 145-room hotel offers the brand's signature Sheraton Sweet Sleeper Bed in all rooms, over 4,500sq ft of flexible meeting space and a fully equipped business centre. Dining options include a gourmet restaurant serving regional and local Argentine cuisine, a buffet-style restaurant and lobby bar. The outdoor swimming pool features a Jacuzzi offering spectacular mountain views, a sun deck, and a poolside snack bar. Additional guest services include a spa, sauna and a fitness centre. www.sheraton.com/salta
OTHER NEWS
STARWOOD ANNOUNCE $1.6 BILLION JOINT VENTURE FOR DEVELOPMENT IN THE BAHAMAS
An unprecedented joint venture between Starwood, Baha Mar Resorts Ltd. and Harrah's Entertainment, Inc. will create the Caribbean's largest resort. Baha Mar will be a 1,000-acre, mixed-use, one-of-a-kind project located in Nassau, Bahamas. Baha Mar will feature a collection of 4 Starwood hotels at a single resort, a 300-room W at Baha Mar, including 100 condo units; a 300-room St. Regis at Baha Mar, including 100 condo units, a 700-room Westin at Baha Mar; and a 700-room Sheraton at Baha Mar all of which will be managed by Starwood. In addition, Starwood's Bliss and Rem`ede branded luxury spas are also planned at the W and St. Regis, respectively. This project will also feature of a 95,000 sq ft casino, luxury spa facility, an eco-water park attraction, 175,000 sq ft of meeting space and a 20-acre beach and pool experience with 3,000 ft of continuous beachfront. Construction will begin in 2007, with the opening set for 2010. www.bahamar.com
STARWOOD HOTELS TO SELL PORTFOLIO OF REAL ESTATE ASSETS TO HOST MARRIOTT
Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. (NYSE: HOT) announces a definitive agreement under which Host Marriott Corporation (NYSE: HMT) will acquire 38 properties from Starwood -- including hotels under the Sheraton, W, Westin, St. Regis and Luxury Collection brands -- in a stock-and-cash transaction valued at approximately lb2.3 billion, including debt assumption. As part of the agreement, Starwood will generally continue to manage the properties under their current flags for up to 40 years. The boards of directors of both companies have approved the proposed transaction. www.starwoodhotels.com
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