Alabama’s First Westin Hotel Opens in Huntsville

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. | Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. (NYSE: HOT) and O&S Holdings, LLC are pleased to announce the highly anticipated opening of The Westin Huntsville on Saturday, April 12, 2008. The 11-story hotel features 210 beautifully appointed guest rooms and 74 residential condominiums on the top six floors. Guests are invited to refresh and rejuvenate at this elegant new property with the help of the Westin brand’s signature services and amenities.

Overlooking a scenic, ten-acre lake, The Westin Huntsville is the newest addition to the Bridge Street Town Centre, a premier mixed-use lifestyle center within Huntsville's Cummings Research Park, the hub of North Alabama’s space and defense industry and the second largest technology park in the United States. The offices of Boeing, Northrop Grumman and Lockheed Martin are all close by. Guests will also enjoy proximity to the U.S. Space and Rocket Center, the Huntsville Botanical Gardens and several area golf courses.

“The Westin Huntsville will inspire personal renewal at the heart of one of the nation’s most dynamic technology hubs,” said Sue Brush, Senior Vice President, Westin Hotels & Resorts, Worldwide, Inc. “Westin provides a sensory-rich environment and an array of signature services, designed to send guests home feeling better than when they arrived.”

The Westin Huntsville will delight the senses upon entry into the hotel. The soothing Westin Welcome that blends sensory elements such as white tea scent, music, botanicals and mood lighting to create a memorable first impression and set the tone for a relaxing stay. In their rooms, guests can luxuriate in the signature Westin Heavenly Bed®. Grand, stylish, and plush, these beds consist of a custom-designed pillow-top mattress, down blanket, three crisp sheets, luxurious duvet, and five dreamy pillows. All guest rooms are also equipped with high speed Internet access, flat screen LCD televisions and the highly acclaimed Westin Heavenly Bath® products.

The Westin Huntsville features the largest hotel ballroom in the city, with 7,900 square feet of space that can accommodate as many as 850 guests. For smaller events, this space can be divided into six separate meeting rooms. A state-of-the-art, 792-square foot boardroom is also available.

The Sage Grille offers tasty Mediterranean fare and a refreshing, contemporary setting for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Additional facilities include a full-service spa, an indoor/outdoor heated pool, the WestinWORKOUT® fitness center, a business center and concierge service.

Bridge Street Town Centre is a 550,000 square-foot, retail lifestyle center with space for more than 70 stores and restaurants, many of which are new to the North Alabama market. In addition to shopping and restaurants, Bridge Street also features the 14 screen Monaco Pictures, 210 room Westin Hotel, 74 luxury Westin Huntsville Residences, and 133,000 square feet of office space. Construction will continue on the Offices at Bridge Street, which will open later this year.

Westin Hotels and Resorts, with 155 hotels and resorts in more than 31 countries and territories, is owned by Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. (NYSE:HOT). Starwood Hotels and Resorts is one of the leading hotel and leisure companies in the world with approximately 860 properties in more than 95 countries and 155,000 employees at its owned and managed properties. Starwood Hotels is a fully integrated owner, operator and franchisor of hotels and resorts with the following internationally renowned brands: St. Regis®, The Luxury Collection®, Sheraton®, Westin®, Four Points® by Sheraton, W®, Le Meridien® and the recently announced AloftSM and ElementSM. Starwood Hotels also owns Starwood Vacation Ownership, Inc., one of the premier developers and operators of high quality vacation interval ownership resorts.

O&S Holdings, LLC, was formed in 1992 by Gary Safady and his cousin Paul Orfalea, who founded Kinko’s Copies. O&S Holdings and its affiliates own more than eighty properties in the United States, including the Louisiana Boardwalk – a 550,000 square foot waterfront entertainment and outlet shopping center anchored by Bass Pro Shops Outdoor World and a 14 screen Regal Theater. Also under development are the 1.1 million square foot Bridge Street Town Centre in McKinney, Texas, and the 4 million square foot Bridge Street Town Centre in Will County, Illinois.

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