W Hotels Announces Major Hotel Development in Atlanta's Exclusive Buckhead Community

The world renowned Buckhead community is recognized for its elegant homes and the more than 1,400 luxury retail stores such as Neiman Marcus, Bloomingdale's, Louis Vuitton, Tiffany's, Kenneth Cole, Versace, and Cartier that line its streets as well as its prominent corporate headquarters. Additionally, the area is poised for even more growth over the next several years as significant new luxury residential, retail and office developments are being completed and will become part of the powerful Buckhead skyline.

"W Atlanta-Buckhead promises to be an irresistible destination for visitors to Atlanta, as well as for Atlanta residents who can escape the city and experience modern Southern hospitality," said Ross Klein, President of Starwood's Luxury Brand Group. "As one of the country's 10 most affluent communities, Buckhead provides guests with a wealth of entertainment options, including world-class shopping and proximity to Atlanta's most popular attractions, making it a perfect fit for the W brand."

"We are excited to make yet another significant investment in Atlanta, our hometown and headquarters. Along with our $96 million W Atlanta-Midtown which will open in the spring of 2008, the W Atlanta-Buckhead will be a significant addition to a vibrant city that has been underserved by true stylistic, modern luxury hotels," said Mit Shah, CEO of Noble. "This dramatic re-development of one of the most strategic and desirable real estate addresses in Buckhead will also provide us the opportunity to add approximately 350,000 square feet of W branded residences and ancillary amenities adjacent to the project at a later date."

Style guru, Thom Filicia, is designing this iconic project. Prior to his role on NBC/Bravo's Emmy award-winning "Queer Eye for the Straight Guy" as the interior design specialist for the "Fab Five," Filicia garnered world-wide acclaim for his own Manhattan-based interior design company, Thom Filicia, Inc., where he shares his unique and innovative vision of time-honored classic simplicity, combined with unexpected modern flair. His signature use of simple strong lines, a muted palette with splashes of bold color and rich textures and patterns will maintain the grand traditions of Southern hospitality at the W Atlanta-Buckhead. Thom's approach will also combine a comfortable, urban style with the city's deep history and culture. From arrival to departure, guests will feel like they are visiting close friends while enjoying sophisticated, fresh and gracious hospitality in a chic yet geographically relevant locale.

In related news, W Hotels also announced today that it has launched a brand partnership with Thom Filicia, Inc. In addition to the design of W Atlanta-Buckhead, Filicia will redesign and renovate the brand's iconic W Los Angeles-Westwood property and renovate the Living Room space at W San Diego.

W Atlanta-Buckhead will include a spectacular destination rooftop bar with both indoor and outdoor areas, accessed by a glass-enclosed elevator that will ascend along the exterior of the building. The property will feature 291 fully upgraded rooms and suites, all outfitted with W's signature bed, plasma television and wireless Internet access. W's signature Living Room will offer a lounge-like atmosphere perfect for reading the paper, sipping a cappuccino or enjoying a cocktail with friends, while a to-be-named restauranteur will serve creative, contemporary entrees for breakfast, lunch and dinner at the front door to Peachtree Road. W Atlanta-Buckhead will be situated just minutes from popular Atlanta attractions like the Georgia Aquarium (the world's largest aquarium), the High Museum of Art, the Atlanta History Center, newly-opened Atlantic Station, CNN's global headquarters, the Fernbank Science Center, one of the nation's largest planetariums, as well as the many museums showcasing Atlanta's history and artists.

Additional amenities offered by the W Atlanta-Buckhead include a Sweat workout facility, approximately 7,000 square feet of meeting space, and W's Whatever/Whenever service, the hotel's 24-hour concierge that provides whatever guests want - from a pair of running shoes to a bathtub filled with hot chocolate - whenever they want.

About W(R) Hotels Worldwide
W Hotels is a global lifestyle brand with 21 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 to music to 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." W Residences, offering the W lifestyle at home, have been announced for Scottsdale, Fort Lauderdale, Downtown New York, Hoboken, Philadelphia, Downtown Atlanta, South Beach, Hollywood, Phoenix, Austin, and Las Vegas. Internationally, W has announced plans for hotels in Hong Kong, Istanbul, Doha, St. Petersberg, Santiago, Milan, Athens, Shanghai, Dubai-Festival City, Barcelona, Dubai-The Palm and Guangzhou. W's first Retreat & Spa, W Maldives, opened in September of 2006 and in March of 2007, received the prestigious Travel + Leisure Design Award for Best Resort. W has plans to open Retreat & Spa hotels in Vieques, Koh Samui, and Verbier, the latter of which will serve as the brand's first ski retreat. For more information, visit .

About Noble Investment Group
Noble Investment Group is an integrated real estate investment management, operating and development organization focused on value-added investments in luxury and upscale hotels and resorts throughout North America. Through its private equity funds, Noble and its predecessors have acquired and developed over $1.5 billion in lodging assets. Noble's current discretionary private equity fund represents $310 million of equity commitments and expects to invest over $1 billion in assets during the next three years. By strategically utilizing the organization's in-house property management and project development core competencies, Noble has achieved premium risk-adjusted investment returns since 1993. For more information, please visit .

About Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc.
Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc.(R) is one of the leading hotel and leisure companies in the world with approximately 850 properties in more than 95 countries and 145,000 employees at its owned and managed properties. Starwood(R) Hotels is a fully integrated owner, operator and franchisor of hotels and resorts with the following internationally renowned brands: St. Regis(R), The Luxury Collection(R), Sheraton(R), Westin(R), Four Points(R) by Sheraton, W(R), Le Meridien(R) and the recently announced ALOFT(SM) and ELEMENT(SM) Hotels. 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 .

About Thom Filicia, Inc.
Founded in 1998, Thom Filicia, Inc. (TFI) quickly gained celebrity for its unique aesthetic approach to the residential, hospitality and commercial markets. Based in New York City's Soho, TFI has attracted a diverse roster of prestigious clients ranging from international luxury hotel companies to leaders in fashion, entertainment, real estate and finance. Founder and principal, Thom Filicia, the star of Style Network's Dress My Nest and design guru from TV's Emmy award winning Queer Eye, is able to uniquely blend the worlds of mass media and high-end interior design to create a daringly indelible impression. Properties designed by TFI respect the importance of architecture, space, detail, and experience, while balancing a client's needs with the TFI aesthetic. For more information, visit .

Note: This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of federal securities regulations. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance or events and involve risks and uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results or events to differ materially from those anticipated at the time the forward-looking statements are made. These risks and uncertainties are presented in detail in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Although we believe the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are based upon reasonable assumptions, we can give no assurance that our expectations will be attained or that results and events will not materially differ. We undertake no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.