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W Hotels Hears London Calling

By: W Hotels Worldwide |  2 Shares     107 Reads

The World's Fastest Growing Luxury Hotel Brand Announces the Debut of W London-Leicester Square in 2010

New York--(BUSINESS WIRE)--London's lively West End will soon be home to the city's newest insider escape. Hot in pursuit of the world's most intriguing destinations, Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. (NYSE: HOT) today announced the opening of W London-Leicester Square and The Residences at W London-Leicester Square in late 2010. Redefining contemporary luxury with its innovative design, signature amenities and whimsical style, W London-Leicester Square will be built on the site of the former Swiss Centre building in the heart of Leicester Square. This sleek, new hotel will feature 194 luxurious guest rooms and 10 two-level, luxury branded residences, as well as a signature spa, fitness facility, a world-class destination restaurant and W's exclusive Living Room experience where guests are invited to mix, mingle and relax in a stylish social atmosphere.

"As part of the W brand's global expansion, W London-Leicester Square will provide a unique alternative for our global guests while facilitating their discovery of one of the world's most fashionable cities," said Roeland Vos, President of Starwood Hotels & Resorts, Europe, Africa and Middle East. "W London-Leicester Square will offer escape, exclusivity and innovative design in the heart of London's most dynamic district."

Further accelerating the W Hotels' aggressive international expansion, W London-Leicester Square will be the newest hotel to join the W Hotels brand's growing portfolio in Europe, Africa and the Middle East. By the opening of W London-Leicester Square in 2010, W Hotels will have doubled the size of its property portfolio globally. Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. (NYSE: HOT) is partnering with one of Northern Ireland's leading construction and property development companies, McAleer & Rushe Group, to open W London-Leicester Square as part of a 10-story, mixed-use development. Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels represented McAleer & Rushe in the operator search and negotiations for the Leicester Square hotel.

The stylish public spaces in W London-Leicester Square's flirty, cosmopolitan escape will be complemented by the innovative design of the hotel's luxurious appointed guest rooms and suites. W London-Leicester Square's 194 rooms include nine suites, two WOW Suites and one Extreme WOW Suite, all featuring custom-made furnishings, stylish accents unique to London, W's signature "munchie boxes" stocked with exclusive amenities, and the highly acclaimed W bed, a luxurious ensemble featuring a feather-top mattress, 350 thread-count Egyptian cotton sheets and goose-down comforter. Guest rooms will offer the latest in cutting-edge technology and the most advanced in-room entertainment systems in the industry.

Leicester Square is the epicenter of London's entertainment scene and host to numerous high-profile movie premiers and celebrity events throughout the year. W London-Leicester Square will provide an exciting new venue for such events, while serving as a sophisticated urban sanctuary for discerning travellers and local insiders. The hotel's vibrant and highly desirable location gives guests access to the city's finest theaters, restaurants, lounges and nightclubs and is within walking distance to Trafalgar Square, Covent Garden and Piccadilly Circus.

W London-Leicester Square will also provide guests with fully wired, innovative meeting space and the brand's exclusive Whatever/Whenever(R) service, a 24-hour concierge that provides whatever guests want - from box seats at a Premier League game to a private shopping excursion at Harrods - whenever they want it.

"Attracting a prestigious global brand like W Hotels to the UK only adds testimony to the major significance of our Leicester Square project," said Eamonn Laverty, Managing Director of McAleer & Rushe. "This new mixed-use development of hotel, retail and leisure will create a highly visible landmark gateway to Leicester Square and forms part of McAleer & Rushe's wider involvement in the regeneration of London's West End."

W London-Leicester Square, will be the newest hotel in the UK for Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. (NYSE: HOT), joining sister properties under the Sheraton(R), Le Meridien(R), St. Regis(R), Westin and The Luxury Collection(R) brands in London, Heathrow, Birmingham, Edinburgh, and Ayrshire.

About W Hotels Worldwide

W Hotels is a global lifestyle brand with 23 properties in the most vibrant cities around the world. Inspiring and indulging its guests with thoughtful, refreshing and stylish experiences, signature restaurants, bars and destination spas, W has become the fastest growing luxury hotel brand in the world. Each hotel offers a unique mix of innovative design, comfort, and cultural influences from fashion and design to music and art and everything in between. W's first residential property, W Dallas-Victory, opened in June of 2006, and soon thereafter was named a Forbes Magazine "Top Business Hotel." In North America and Latin America, W Hotels have been announced in Austin, Buckhead Atlanta, Downtown Atlanta, Boston, Fort Lauderdale, Hoboken, Hollywood, Huntington Beach, Minneapolis, Downtown New York, Santiago, Scottsdale, South Beach, and Washington, D.C. In Europe, W Hotels have been announced in Athens, Barcelona, Milan and St. Petersburg. In Asia, W has announced properties in Bangkok, Guangzhou, Hong Kong, Macao-Studio City, Shanghai and Yokohama. In Africa and the Middle East, W has announced properties in Amman, Doha, Dubai-Festival City, Dubai-The Palm and Marrakech. W's first Retreat & Spa, W Maldives, opened in September of 2006. In 2007, W Maldives received the prestigious Travel + Leisure Design Award for Best Resort. W has plans to open Retreat & Spa hotels in Bali, Koh Samui, Vieques and Verbier, the latter of which will serve as W's first ski retreat. For more information, visit www.whotels.com.

Starwood Hotels & Resorts

Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. is one of the leading hotel and leisure companies in the world with approximately 900 properties in more than 100 countries and 155,000 employees at its owned and managed properties. Starwood Hotels is a fully integrated owner, operator and franchisor of hotels, resorts and residences with the following internationally renowned brands: St. Regis(R), The Luxury Collection(R), W(R), Westin(R), Le Meridien(R), Sheraton(R), Four Points(R) by Sheraton, and the recently launched Aloft(SM), and Element(SM). Starwood Hotels also owns Starwood Vacation Ownership, Inc., one of the premier developers and operators of high quality vacation interval ownership resorts. For more information, please visit www.starwoodhotels.com.

McAleer & Rushe Group

Established in 1967, McAleer & Rushe Group is a leading Irish property development and investment company with their own expertise in design and build construction. They are specialists in high density mixed use schemes with current projects located in London, Newcastle-upon-Tyne, Sheffield, Nottingham, Derby, Swindon, Southampton, Exeter, Plymouth, Belfast and Dublin. They are market leaders in the design and construction of hotels having completed over 40 hotel buildings and in the region of 10,000 bedrooms in the UK and Ireland over the last 10 years. During this time they have built an enviable reputation for delivering high quality projects on time and within budget. For more information, please visit www.mcaleer-rushe.co.uk

About Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels

Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels, the first and leading global hotel investment services firm, is uniquely positioned to provide both the depth and breadth of advice required by hotel investors and hotel companies, through a robust and integrated local network. In 2007, Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels provided sale and purchase advice on 259 hotel transactions globally; representing a combined value of US$13.9 billion, a total of 54,763 hotel rooms in 84 cities. In addition advisory and valuation services were provided on 660 assignments globally for 182,048 rooms across more than 300 cities. The global team comprises over 270 hotel specialists, operating from 31 offices in 18 countries. The firm's advice is supported by a dedicated global research team, which produced over 45 publications in 2007 in addition to bespoke client research. Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels' services span the hospitality spectrum; from luxury single assets and large portfolios to select service and budget hotels, resorts and pubs. Their services include investment sales, mergers and acquisitions, capital raising, valuation and appraisal, asset management, strategic planning, operator selection, management contract negotiation, consulting, industry research and project development services. Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels' clients have access to the resources of its parent company, Jones Lang LaSalle (NYSE: JLL). www.joneslanglasallehotels.com

SOURCE: Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc.

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