STARWOOD HOTELS & RESORTS WORLDWIDE, INC. OPENS W SEATTLE, SEPTEMBER 1, 1999
A Style Hotel for a 21st Century Lifestyle

Press Release: Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc.

September 2, 1999
SEATTLE, WASH -- W Hotels, a new brand of business hotels being launched nationwide by Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc., opened the newly constructed 419-room W Seattle September 1, 1999 at 1112 Fourth Avenue at Seneca Street. Equally well suited to satisfy road-weary travelers and culinary aficionados alike, W Seattle offers the best of all worlds. The new hotel combines a unique union of style and substance with top-of-the-line business technology and amenities, including a frequent-guest program that extends throughout the Starwood hotel group, and a fresh new restaurant and bar designed as the place to see and be seen.

Located in the very heart of downtown Seattle's financial, retail and entertainment district, W Seattle is just five blocks from Pike Place Market, two blocks from the new Benaroya Symphony Hall, and surrounded by upscale boutiques and restaurants.

W Seattle features several exterior details that embody a contemporary interpretation of Seattle's classic architecture. The building is crowned by a steel and mesh pyramid, which glows softly at night and will be visible for blocks.

The sleek, modern, two-story lobby, showcasing floor-to-ceiling windows and which W refers to as the "living room," becomes a focal point where guests can meet, socialize, dine, drink or simply relax.

The 26-floor W Seattle offers 419 deluxe guestrooms, including 16 suites, with the focus of each guestroom being the luxurious W bed, complete with a pillow-top mattress, 250 thread-count linens, and goose down comforters and pillows.

Guestrooms feature an upholstered banquette, dark wood desk, rich natural fabrics throughout and specially designed room accessories. Other signature W features include a snack and beverage bar stocked with everything from trail mix and Gummy Bear candies to the best local Microbrew; a coffeemaker with W's own blend of coffee; a lush terry-lined, cotton pique W bathrobe, and custom-formulated Aveda bath products.

"Today's business traveler has a unique set of needs and expectations. Seattle, as an international trade and high tech center, is host to countless business and entertainment industry visitors each year,'' says W Seattle's General Manager Tom Limberg. "These individuals cannot afford to step away from mission-critical business operations back at the office. W Seattle will allow these guests to stay connected to their business through a high-speed technology framework, while pampering them with hip ambiance, high-quality services and exceptional dining."

To truly meet the needs of today's business traveler, guestrooms feature the latest hotel communications and information technology, including a 27" color TV equipped with the most advanced in-room entertainment system in the industry. This sophisticated interactive program uses the latest digital technology to provide guests with everything from a large selection of first- run movies and video programs on demand to ultra-fast Internet access (via an infrared keyboard) at speeds up to 100 times faster than conventional modems. Guests can also set up their own personal, secure email addresses while staying at W Hotels. In addition, all guestrooms are furnished with a radio/CD player. There is a full-service business center with 10,000 square feet of meeting and banquet space, including nine meeting rooms and a 4,700-square-foot ballroom.

Futurist Marshall McLuhan must have had an environment like W in mind when he first coined the phrase "high tech/high touch." Each guestroom has two phones (one with dataport and speakerphone capabilities and another 900MHz cordless dual-line phone).

Nearly any business equipment or service is available on request to W guests. At least 20% of the rooms in the W Seattle will be designated "W Home Office'' rooms and offer special amenities geared specifically to the business traveler, such as a combination printer/copier/fax/scanner and video cassette player with extensive video and CD libraries.

Other amenities include custom-made game boards, a state-of-the-art fitness center and 24-hour room service and concierge guaranteed to provide: ``Whatever You Want, Whenever You Want It.''

The new hotel showcases two dining venues. Earth & Ocean promises to be one of Seattle's most sought-after new restaurants offering seating for 120 people, complete with open-air terrace dining along Fourth Avenue. A unique dining experience created expressly for W Seattle, Earth & Ocean was developed with Drew Nieporent of Nobu and Tribeca Grill fame. Founder of New York City's Myriad Restaurant Group, Drew worked closely with W Seattle's Executive Chef Jean Michel Boulot to develop an outstanding line-up of unique dishes from the indigenous bounty of the Pacific Northwest.

Jean Michel says the cuisine "reflects the multi-ethnic flavors of my culinary journeys,'' a career that has taken him from the Sofitel hotels of San Francisco and Paris to positions with the Ritz-Carlton in Palm Beach and Phoenix, and overseas positions with Hilton International in Bangkok and Honolulu.

The W Cafe destination lobby bar serves light fare and coffee throughout the day and cocktails in the evening. W Cafe also hosts a newsstand featuring a wide assortment of international magazines and newspapers.

Joining General Manager Tom Limberg and Executive Chef Jean Michel Boulot is Director of Sales & Marketing Jolene DiSalvo, CMP. Jolene joined Starwood Hotel & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. in August 1997 as the first employee of the new W brand. She serves as a principal community contact for W Seattle. She brings more than 15 years of hotel industry experience to her new position, including strategic assignments at the Brown Palace Hotel in Denver and the Sir Francis Drake in San Francisco.

The first W Hotel, W New York, opened in November 1998 in New York City, W Atlanta debuted in February 1999, and W San Francisco in May 1999. Following the opening of W Seattle, 14 additional W Hotels properties will open through 2001 including Honolulu in October 1999; two more W Hotels in New York City - The Tuscany and The Court in November 1999; Los Angeles in January 2000; Sydney in February 2000 and Chicago, Denver, Washington D.C., Boston and New Orleans to follow. The properties will range in size from roughly 120 to 720 rooms.

All W Hotel guests will have the opportunity to enjoy the benefits and perks of Starwood's international reservation system "Starlink'' and global "Starwood Preferred Guest" program, which will encompass all Starwood brands including W, Westin, St. Regis/Luxury Collection, Sheraton, Four Points and Caesars.

W Hotels are managed (and in some cases, owned) by Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc., a hotel owner, operator and franchiser with more than 700 hotels in 72 countries with 130,000 employees. In addition to W, Starwood owns some of the world's most renowned hotel and casino brands including Sheraton, Westin, The St. Regis/Luxury Collection, Four Points Hotels by Sheraton and Caesars.

Opening room rates at W Seattle start at $225 per room per night. For reservations and information, call toll free 877-WHOTELS or locally 206-264-6000, or visit the website at www.whotels.com.

SOURCE: Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc.