Carlson Hotels Worldwide

MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. -- Carlson Hospitality Worldwide, one of the world's major hotel, resort, restaurant and cruise ship companies, today announced it has achieved systemwide sales of $6.5 billion in the year 2001 while adding one new location every 1.6 days throughout the world.

In adding 222 locations during 2001, Carlson Hospitality Worldwide experienced important unit growth within its three operating units: Carlson Hotels Worldwide, Carlson Restaurants Worldwide and Carlson Cruises Worldwide.

"We are pleased to have ended the year 2001 with a total of 1,545 locations in 80 countries," said Curtis Nelson, president and CEO of Carlson Hospitality Worldwide. "This continuing growth is a result of the strength of our brands and the customer-focused business platform which is the strategic cornerstone of our organization," Nelson said. "In spite of a very challenging year in the overall industry, Carlson Hospitality Worldwide is larger, more energized and connected than at any other time in company history," he added.

Nelson outlined the following highlights for the yearCARLSON HOTELS WORLDWIDE

Carlson Hotels Worldwide continued to experience strong expansion of its global organization in 2001. Strategic highlights of the year included the addition of 120 locations in key locations. Various Carlson brands opened hotels in such key markets as London, Berlin, Sao Paulo, Shanghai, Los Angeles, Baltimore, and Philadelphia. The company also completed construction on the world's first Carlson Park community, which opened in San Antonio, Texas with a luxury Radisson Resort as its centerpiece.

Regent International Hotels - Carlson's luxury hotel company, Regent International Hotels, continues to earn top honors from consumers and travel publications around the world as a luxury leader in the hotel industry. The company expanded its portfolio to Europe, opening The Regent Schlosshotel Berlin, in Berlin, Germany on Jan. 1, 2002, and has developments underway in Boston, Massachusetts; Roquebrune, France and Mdina, Malta.

Radisson Hotels & Resorts - In the year 2001, Radisson Hotels & Resorts added 34 new hotels and resorts in key destinations around the world. In the U.S., Radisson increased its investment and management of hotels, adding 12 corporate-managed hotels in top business destinations such as Baltimore, Md.; Dallas, Texas; and Philadelphia, Penn. Radisson also added hotels in Los Angeles (International Airport), Calif.; Shanghai, China; Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt; and St. Petersburg, Russian Federation. The brand also made its debut in Sao Paulo, Brazil, making way for additional expansion throughout the region. Through an agreement with Atlantica Hotels International, 10 more hotels and resorts will be developed in Latin America over the next three years. Radisson also strengthened its corporate presence in the Asia-Pacific region when it privatized Sydney, Australia-based DC International Limited (“DCI�), which had previously operated 18 Radisson hotels and resorts as an independent licensee in that region. Radisson ended 2001 with 430 locations representing 101,226 guest rooms in 59 countries.

Country Inns & Suites By Carlson - Country Inns & Suites By Carlson continued to be Carlson's fastest-growing hotel brand adding 54 new locations during 2001, ending the year with 298 properties. The brand opened its first hotel in Australia and Quebec, Canada and began construction on company-owned hotels in key locations such as Newark International Airport, New Jersey and Paris, France.

Country Inns & Suites continues to be recognized for quality, having been named as one of the highest-ranked hotel chains in its category for the second consecutive year in a 2001 survey conducted by J. D. Power and Associates. In addition, Consumer Reports magazine ranked Country Inns & Suites third in overall satisfaction and received one of the highest marks for value among 20 hotel chains in the moderate price-range category.

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The brand also launched Book It And Return, an in-house library program in its North American hotels which lends guests complimentary books while donating $5 per returned book to Laubach Literacy, the world’s oldest and largest nonprofit educational literacy organization. The program focuses on Country Inns & Suites' continuous 98 percent guest return rating, the cornerstone of the brand's strategy.

Park Hospitality - Park Hospitality, which consists of Park Inn and Park Plaza hotels in North America and Asia Pacific, enjoyed tremendous growth with the addition of 32 properties during 2001. The company added 24 hotels in North America and eight in the Asia-Pacific region, following an agreement with its Asian brand partner Park Plaza Asia Pacific to unify many areas of the company. The company also implemented Park Rewards, a customer loyalty program; unveiled Park Pride, a training and recognition program; and launched a new Web site, .

Carlson Lifestyle Living - Carlson Lifestyle Living completed construction on its first lifestyle-community development, which opened in January 2002. Carlson Park Hill Country in San Antonio, Texas combines a 227-room Radisson resort with 108 condominiums and 74 townhouses on 27 acres. The luxurious resort offers a first-class spa, a concierge and business center, meeting facilities, restaurants and bars.

CARLSON RESTAURANTS WORLDWIDE

Carlson Restaurants Worldwide added 122 new locations worldwide in 2001 under all of its brands, including the acquisition of Pick Up Stix restaurants. Pick Up Stix features fresh, high-quality Americanized-Chinese food that is cooked to order in a wok. Since CRW acquired the 52-restaurant chain, Pick Up Stix has signed two franchise agreements that will result in the addition of 14 restaurants in California over the next three years.

In total, Carlson Restaurants Worldwide ended 2001 with a total of 742 restaurants in 55 countries under all brands and concepts.

T.G.I. Friday's celebrated the opening of its 500th location in the U.S. at Newark International Airport and introduced all-natural Meyer Natural Angus beef burgers. This new

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menu item is regarded as the highest quality, best tasting hamburger available in the U.S., translating into a T.G.I. Friday’s burger with mouth-watering flavor and incredible tenderness.

T.G.I. Friday's also debuted a completely revamped "dinnerpart" menu featuring sophisticated flavors and menu items. New flatware and glassware as well as new uniforms were also introduced to help refocus attention to guests, rather than servers.

CARLSON CRUISES WORLDWIDE

Carlson's cruise operation, Radisson Seven Seas Cruises, introduced its sixth ship, the 700-passenger, all-balcony Seven Seas Mariner, the world's first all-suite, all-balcony ship with the highest space-per-guest ratio in the industry. The ship features four restaurants including the only restaurant staffed by chefs of the famed Le Cordon Bleu of Paris. The Seven Seas Mariner will sail for the first time in Europe starting this year.

A seventh vessel, the m/s Seven Seas Voyager, is currently under construction and is scheduled to launch in the year 2003.

Radisson Seven Seas Cruises, has earned market leadership in the luxury segment of the industry and was recently honored as the "Best Small Cruise Line" in the 2001 "World's Best" awards from readers of Travel & Leisure.

During 2002, Radisson Seven Seas Cruises will conduct its first world cruise. The m/s Seven Seas Navigator will circumnavigate the globe through Australia, China, the Indian Ocean, South Africa, South America and the Caribbean. New innovations in Radisson Seven Seas Cruise offerings also will be introduced in 2002 including butler service in the top suites of the Radisson Diamond and Paul Gauguin.

CARLSON HOSPITALITY WORLDWIDE

TECHNOLOGY AND RESERVATIONS

In 2001, Carlson Hospitality Worldwide earned awards for both its reservation center and its new wireless, portable system, known as MACH-1 (Mobile Access to Carlson Hospitality – version 1). Carlson Hospitality Worldwide received a prestigious international lodging award

for having the "Best Reservations Center" in the lodging industry. The Hermes Award was presented by MKG Consulting and HTR Eurotrends and Marketing magazine, organizers of the Hermes Awards for the World Lodging Industry. Carlson Hospitality was selected for its outstanding capabilities in reservation distribution through its several channels including the Internet, Global Distribution Systems and toll-free phone, and for its award-winning reservation system, Curtis-C which generates over 7.9 million room nights per year.

Carlson Hospitality Worldwide's wireless system MACH-1, which gives Carlson hotel executives access to essential management information in real time, was also awarded Best IT Project of 2001 in the category of 100 Units or More by Hospitality Technology magazine.

PROVISIONS

Provisions, which has sales of more than $800 million annually, supports the cost-effective purchasing and delivery of hospitality products and services throughout the company’s worldwide system of hotels and resorts as well as to other independent clients within the hospitality industry. During 2001, Provisions launched an innovative, cost-efficient purchasing program for Carlson hotels and their affiliates called "Buy Direct Preferred - The Buyer's Solution," through a partnership with hospitality distribution giants Guest Supply, Inc. and American Hotel Register Co. The program provides exceptional savings on brand-specific products.

Carlson Hospitality Worldwide is a global leader in hospitality services, encompassing more than 1,530 hotel, resort, restaurant and cruise ship operations in 80 countries. Specific brands include: Regent International Hotels; Radisson Hotels & Resorts; Country Inns & Suites By Carlson; Park Plaza and Park Inn hotels in North America; Carlson Lifestyle Living (Carlson Park); Carlson Vacation Ownership; Radisson Seven Seas Cruises; T.G.I. Friday’s and other restaurant brands; and Provisions, a worldwide procurement division.

Carlson Hospitality Worldwide is one of the major operating groups of Carlson Companies, Inc., a global leader in providing corporate solutions and consumer services in the marketing, travel and hospitality industries. Among the names in the Carlson family of brands and services are: Carlson Marketing Group®, Carlson Wagonlit Travel®, Regent® International Hotels, Radisson® Hotels & Resorts, Country Inns & Suites By Carlson®, Park Plaza® and Park Inn® hotels, Results Travel, Cruise Holidays, Radisson Seven Seas Cruises® and T.G.I. Friday’s® restaurants. Recognized by both Fortune and Working Mother magazines as one of the "100 best places to work in America," Carlson Companies' corporate headquarters are in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

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Lori Sater Anderson
763-212-1024
Radisson Hotel Group