Carlson Hospitality Worldwide Wins Best Reservations Center Award At Top International Lodging Industry Awards Ceremony

Press Release
January 4, 2002
MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. – Minneapolis, Minn.-based Carlson Hospitality Worldwide was recently honored with a prestigious international lodging award for having the "Best Reservations Center" in the industry. The Hermes Award was presented to Carlson Hospitality Worldwide in Paris, France, by MKG Consulting and HTR Eurotrends and Marketing magazine, organizers of the Hermes Awards for the World Lodging Industry.

Carlson Hospitality was selected for its outstanding capabilities in reservation distribution through its several channels including the Internet, Global Distribution Systems and toll-free phone. Carlson was also cited for its award-winning reservation system, Curtis-C which generates over 7.9 million room nights per year. The Carlson brands booked through the reservation center include Regent International Hotels, Radisson Hotels & Resorts, Country Inns & Suites By Carlson, Park Plaza and Park Inn hotels and Radisson Seven Seas Cruises.

"To be recognized in the industry for the best reservation center is quite an honor and it truly demonstrates that cutting-edge technology and top quality employees are the reason we have achieved such a major acknowledgement," said Christine Brosnahan, vice president of reservation and distribution services, Carlson Hospitality Worldwide.

Carlson's central reservations center is located in Omaha, Neb., with satellite offices in Dublin, Ireland; Sydney, Australia; Mexico City, Mexico; and five offices located in several cities in India.

To book online, go to the following web sites: www.radisson.com; www.countryinns.com; www.parkhtls.com; and www.regenthotels.com. To make reservations from North America, call 800-333-3333 for Radisson; 800-456-4000 for Country Inns & Suites; 800-670-7275 for Park Inns and Park Plazas; and 800-545-4000 for Regent.

Carlson Hospitality Worldwide is a global leader in hospitality services, encompassing more than 1,530 hotel, resort, restaurant and cruise ship operations in 80 countries. In addition to the hotels and cruise line, other brands include Carlson Lifestyle Living (Carlson Park); Carlson Vacation Ownership; T.G.I. Friday’s and other restaurant brands; and Provisions, a worldwide procurement division.

Carlson Hospitality Worldwide is one of the major operating groups of Carlson Companies, Inc., a global leader in providing corporate solutions and consumer services in the marketing, travel and hospitality industries. Additional names in the Carlson family of brands and services are Carlson Wagonlit Travel and Carlson Marketing Group, the world leader in Relationship Marketing. Ranked among the largest privately held corporations in the United States, Carlson Companies is based in Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA. Carlson-related brands and services have system wide annual sales of $31 billion, and employ about 192,000 people in more than 140 countries. Carlson Companies is on Working Mother magazine's 2001 list of "The 100 Best Companies for Working Mothers."

----------------------------------------

Contact:
Ms Betsy Day
Phone: 763 212-1433
Fax: 763 212-3400
E-mail: bday@carlson.com