SUN INTERNATIONAL GOING AHEAD WITH TIMESHARE, NEW HOTEL AT ATLANTIS
Staff Writer - The Timeshare Beat
August 20, 1999
NASSAU, Bahamas -- Sun International Hotels Ltd. (NYSE:SIH) is planning to build a new 800- to 1,000-room hotel
on Paradise Island in Nassau, the Bahamas, as well as 400 timeshare cottages.
According to the Nassau Tribune, Sun president Howard "Butch"
Kerzner said the new hotel will make the company's Atlantis resort one of the two largest hotel/entertainment complexes
in the world.
"We would like to be firmly established in the gaming markets of Las Vegas, the Bahamas and New Jersey, and
add one or two new mega-projects, possibly in the Americas," he said.
Recently Kerzner's father, Sun chairman Sol Kerzner, announced a $200 million expansion for Atlantis, to include
the expansion of the five-star, 58-room Ocean Club hotel, further development of the Atlantis Marina, the redevelopment
of the golf course and the construction of timeshare facilities. The company will add 50 more rooms to its existing
hotels on the island and build 400 timeshare cottages overlooking the Paradise Island Marina and Nassau Harbor.
The timeshares will be managed jointly by Sun and Vistana, of Orlando, Florida, a major timeshare company which
was recently purchased by Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide.
In addition, Butch Kerzner recently reaffirmed Sun's intention
to develop 350 timeshare units at the Desert Inn in Las Vegas in a marketing alliance with Starwood Hotels &
Resorts Worldwide (NYSE: HOT). As part of the alliance, Sun's properties on Paradise Island, particularly The Ocean
Club and Atlantis, as well as The Desert Inn, will be included in Starwood's Preferred Guest Program. Customers
will also be able to make reservations at Atlantis, The Ocean Club and The Desert Inn utilizing Starwood's reservation
center.
Sun is the largest private employer in the Bahamas with 6,000 local workers.
Compliance with South Africa's new National Gambling Act reduced Sun's casino licenses to seven from 16 in that country earlier this year. Sun, which saw heavy losses as a consequence, closed several of its casinos there in order to improve its bottom line.
Sun International Hotels Limited is an international resort
and gaming company which develops and manages premier resort and casino properties. The Company currently operates
resort hotels and casinos in The Bahamas, Connecticut, Atlantic City and the Indian Ocean, with several projects
in development. The Company's largest property is the $85-million Atlantis, Paradise Island, a 2,327-room resort
and casino located on Paradise Island, The Bahamas, which completed a $600 million expansion in December 1998.
Atlantis initially was redeveloped in 1994 as an ocean-themed destination resort through a $140 million capital
expenditure program.
The Company currently operates ten hotels and casinos containing approximately 4,500 rooms, three casinos with
an aggregate of over 300,000 square feet of gaming space containing more than 6,000 slot machines and 350 table
games. The Company has invested more than $1 billion in new construction since its founding in 1993. In addition,
the Company is involved in building a $450 million resort in conjunction with the Mohegan Sun Casino, a gaming
and family entertainment complex in Connecticut.
In 1994, the Company acquired approximately 562 acres or almost 70% of Paradise Island, of which approximately
220 acres continue to be available for future development. Following the acquisition, the company invested approximated
$140 million to redevelop the facilities and in December 1994, the 1,147-room hotel was relaunched as Atlantis.
Part of the attractions included a 14-acre waterscape of lagoons, waterfalls and water attractions, including the
world's largest outdoor marine habitat home to over 14,000 fish.
In addition to Atlantis, the Company's Paradise Island operations include the Ocean Club Golf & Tennis Resort,
a luxury resort hotel with 59 guest rooms and villas, and a championship 18-hole golf course.
The Company's website can be accessed at http://www.sunint.com/
Starwood is one of the world's largest hotel companies which,
through its subsidiaries, operates the Sheraton, Westin, St. Regis/Luxury Collection and W brands. Starwood's portfolio
of owned, managed and franchised hotels include approximately 700 hotels in 72 countries with approximately 215,000
rooms. Additional information, including more detailed financial information, is available at the Company's website
at http://www.starwoodhotels.com