Winston Opens Hilton Garden Inn in OH, and Homewood in NJ
Completes Sale of Courtyard by Marriott in Winston Salem, NC
RALEIGH, NC, December 1, 2006. Winston Hotels, Inc. (NYSE:WXH), a real estate investment trust and owner of premium limited-service, upscale extended-stay and full-service hotels, today announced the opening of two newly developed properties: the wholly owned, 142-room Homewood Suites in Princeton, N.J., which opened today, and the jointly owned 121-room Hilton Garden Inn in Akron, Ohio, which opened in early November.
Separately, the company announced it completed the sale of the 122-room Courtyard by Marriott hotel for net sale proceeds of $9.7 million, resulting in a gain of approximately $2.8 million. The sale brings to seven the number of hotel dispositions by Winston in 2006.
New Openings
o Homewood Suites - The 142-room property in Princeton, N.J. opened today, approximately three months ahead of schedule. Located in the Forrestal Center on Highway 1, the hotel is one mile from Princeton University. The Princeton market has approximately 12 million square feet of office space, including 6 million square feet of office space in the Forrestal Center complex.
o Hilton Garden Inn - Situated adjacent to the Akron-Canton Airport, the 121-room hotel, opened November 2nd. The property anchors Gateway Corporate Park, a new, 33-acre business park that includes 115,000 square feet of office space, retail and restaurants. Winston holds a 41.7 percent ownership interest in the joint venture and has provided an additional preferred equity investment of $2.2 million.
"We remain focused on constantly seeking ways to enhance our portfolio and shareholder returns," said Joe Green, president and chief financial officer. "We will continue to execute our strategy of selectively selling assets that no longer meet our long-term operating objectives and reinvest the net sales proceeds into facilities that have what we believe are better long-term growth prospects."
Marriott International, Inc. (NASDAQ: MAR) is a global leading lodging company based in Bethesda,Maryland, USA, with more than 4,200 properties in 80 countries and territories. Marriott International reported revenues of nearly $14 billion in fiscal year 2014. The company operates and franchises hotels and licenses vacation ownership resorts under 19 brands, including: The Ritz-Carlton®, BVlgari®, EDITION®, JW Marriott®, Autograph Collection® Hotels, Renaissance® Hotels, Marriott Hotels®, Delta Hotels and Resorts®, Marriott Executive Apartments®, Marriott Vacation Club®, Gaylord Hotels®, AC Hotels by Marriott®, Courtyard®, Residence Inn®, SpringHill Suites®, Fairfield Inn & Suites®, TownePlace Suites®, Protea Hotels® and MoxyHotels®. Marriott has been consistently recognized as a top employer and for its superior business ethics. The company also manages the award-winning guest loyalty program, Marriott Rewards® and The Ritz-Carlton Rewards® program, which together surpass 50 million members. For more information or reservations, please visit our website at 
