Crescent Hotels & Resorts Bulks Up with Eight New Hotels

WASHINGTON, D.C., May 4, 2009—Officials of Crescent Hotels & Resorts today announced the company has added eight management contracts and is ahead of schedule to achieve its goal of adding 12 contracts to its portfolio by year’s end.

The company added 18 hotels in 2008.

“The challenged operating environment has played an important role in our recent additions,” said Michael George, (top right photo) Crescent president and CEO.

“Owners who are not satisfied with the results at their hotels are seeking “A” operators more than at any time in the past, “B” and “C” operators are under the gun to perform, or be replaced. Our same-store portfolio has consistently outperformed its competitive set throughout this downturn, and we have quickly turned around new additions.

“Because of our proven track record in all phases of the economic cycle, we are talking to owners across a broad spectrum of property types from luxury to premium-branded focused-service.

"We have a very active pipeline, and have the infrastructure in place to comfortably add individual hotels and resorts.”

George said that Crescent is approaching the take-over of new properties with a multi-tiered strategy tailored to each market.

“According to recent forecasts, the hotel industry may be approaching the bottom of this cycle, with a modest upturn expected in 2010,” he noted.

“Our goal is to first stabilize the property through cost analysis and aggressive direct sales efforts, and then accelerate into a results-oriented plan to enhance returns as the economy begins to rebound. These plans are targeted to speed up the recovery process and quickly gain market share, while keeping a close eye on margins.”

The eight hotels are located from Texas to New York City:

Sheraton Fort Worth Hotel and Spa, Texas (top left photo)

The 430-room Sheraton Fort Worth Hotel and Spa is one of two designated host hotels for the Fort Worth Convention Center. The property offers 22,000 square feet of flexible meeting space, a 257-seat Shula’s 347 Grill, an oversized Link@Sherton lobby, and an 8,000-square-foot luxury fitness center and spa. Guest rooms feature a comfortable Sheraton Sweet Sleeper(SM) Bed, 32-inch flat panel HD television, and high-speed Internet access.

· Sheraton Herndon Dulles Airport Hotel, Va. (top right photo underneat Michael George photo)

The newly opened 184-room Sheraton Herndon Dulles Airport Hotel, is located adjacent to Dulles International Airport.

The hotel features the signature Sheraton Sweet Sleeper (SM) Bed and the Sheraton Fitness center, with equipment by Life Fitness®, which offers Core Performance-endorsed stretching equipment by Go Fit.

The property has two onsite dining options, Capitol Connections Restaurant and the Capitol Lounge. The Link@Sheraton experience with Microsoft, allows for free Wi-Fi Internet access, PC workstations and printing services.

Crowne Plaza St. Paul-Riverfront, Minn. (top left photo underneath Sheraton Fort Worth Hotel & Spa photo)

The Crowne Plaza St. Paul-Riverfront overlooks the Mississippi River in downtown St. Paul, and is convenient to Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport. With 470 guestrooms and suites, the Crowne Plaza is an anchor hotel for St. Paul conventions, and features complimentary high-speed wireless Internet access, and Crowne Plaza Sleep Advantage bedding.

The property offers a fitness center and indoor pool, 50,000 square feet of classic and functional meeting space, featuring the 10,000 square-foot, glass-enclosed Great River Ballroom, and the spectacular roof top ballroom Windows of St. Paul. Dining options include Restaurant 11 and Port of Call.

Holiday Inn L.I. City-Manhattan View, New York (middle right photo underneath Sheraton Herndon/Dulles Airport hotel)

The contemporary designed, newly opened high-rise 136-room Holiday Inn L.I. City-Manhattan View is near top New York City attractions, including the Empire State Building and the Statue of Liberty, and is easily assessable to LaGuardia, JFK and Newark airports. The hotel offers free high-speed Internet access, a fitness center, indoor pool, and two onsite dining options, Swirl and 39 Below.

Hyatt Place Herndon/Dulles Airport-East, Va. (middle left lobby photo)

The Hyatt Place Herndon/Dulles Airport-East is the first new-build prototype for the brand in the mid-Atlantic region and located directly adjacent to Dulles International Airport.

Its 151 rooms feature flat panel high-definition televisions, the signature Hyatt Grand Bed™, and the Hyatt Plug Panel™. The hotel offers a 24-hour complimentary Stay Fit® fitness center, equipped with state-of-the-art Life Fitness® exercise equipment and advanced LCD touch screen consoles.

Hilton Garden Inn St. Paul City Center, Minn. (middle right underneath Hyatt Place Herndon lobby photo on left)

The Hilton Garden Inn St. Paul City Center has more than 11,000 square feet of flexible meeting space and 251 spacious rooms, each offering flat-screen HDTVs, complimentary high-speed Internet access, and the signature Garden Sleep System™.

The property is near the Minneapolis Convention Center and the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, and features an indoor skyway to the Government Center and adjacent retail stores. The hotel offers a fitness center, pool, and the distinctive eating and drinking option, the Great American Grill®.

SpringHill Suites by Marriott Gainesville, Fla. (bottom right photo)

The SpringHill Suites Gainesville is located minutes away from the University of Florida, Ben Griffin Memorial Stadium and Bivens Arm Nature Park. Each of the 126 suites offer SpringHill Suites by Marriott bedding, well-lit work desk and free high-speed Internet access. The hotel features a fitness center, outdoor pool, and full-service business center.

Hampton Inn Saginaw, Mich.

Near Tri-City International Airport, the Hampton Inn Saginaw is close to the Japanese Cultural Center and Tea House, the island of Ojibway, and Bronners Christmas Wonderland, the world's largest Christmas store. The 120-room, pet-friendly property features a heated outdoor pool and exercise room, business center, and complimentary On the House® hot breakfast and Hampton's On the Run™ breakfast bags.

Headquartered in Fairfax, Va., outside of Washington, D.C., Crescent Hotels & Resorts owns, manages and co-invests in hotel real estate, and is an independent, third-party operator of hotels and resorts.

The company currently owns or operates approximately 55 hotels and resorts aggregating more than 9,000 rooms in 26 states.

The company’s portfolio encompasses properties in the resort, upper upscale full-service, boutique, convention and premium select-service segments under the premier hotel brands of Marriott, Hilton, Starwood, Hyatt, InterContinental, Radisson, Preferred, and Wyndham, as well as independent hotels, resorts and Golf Clubs.

Additional information about Crescent Hotel & Resorts may be found on the company’s Web site http://www.chrco.com/

Contact: Jerry Daly or Chris Daly, media (703) 435-6293 rl@dowhotelco.com