Acquisitions & Hotel Openings

Starwood's Element Brand Debuts in South Florida with 209-room Element Miami International Airport

STAMFORD, CT - February 21, 2012 - The Florida sun is shining its light on a smart new lodging option for travelers, with the opening of Element Miami International Airport. Element , the trailblazing eco-wise brand of Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. (NYSE: HOT), brings a fresh update to the Miami hotel scene with 209 guest rooms and suites built green from the ground up.

Element Miami International Airport typifies the “balance” that Starwood’s Element brand offers to business and leisure travelers. The hotel’s strategic location puts it at the doorstep of one of the world’s busiest air-travel hubs - Miami International Airport - and just two blocks from the long anticipated Miami Central Station, a world-class transportation hub that will transform options for travelers in several phases starting in spring 2012. The new facility includes Airport Link Metrorail service, providing a direct rail connection to Downtown Miami. For those needing a car during their travels, the transportation hub includes a brand new rental car facility that unites 16 rental car companies in a stunning new 6,500 vehicle facility.

“With its own combination of beautiful natural elements and singular style, Miami is a perfect fit for the Element brand,” said Brian McGuinness, Senior Vice President of Specialty Select Brands for Starwood. “Element offers guests a bright, energizing environment that’s conducive to both work and play, all while affording easy access to the city and to the airport.”

The Element brand made history with its 2008 launch. It is the first major hotel brand to mandate that all properties pursue the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design certification for high-performance buildings. The Element Miami International Airport features all the brand’s signatures, including:

  • Rise, Element’s hearty and healthy complimentary breakfast
  • Motion, a state-of-the-art, 24-hour fitness center
  • Relax, complimentary evening receptions
  • Restore, a gourmet food pantry
  • A 791-square-foot meeting room with modular furnishings, flexible layout and state-of-the-art technology that can be customized to meet and business or social needs
  • ChargePoint electric vehicle charging station
  • Dynamic gathering spaces, from a lobby flooded with natural light to a multi-storied window wall and from an outdoor fire pit, to water features and a barbecue
  • Light filled guest rooms with a fluid design of modular furniture, swiveling flat-screen televisions, large desks with open shelving, and custom-designed closets
  • The signature Heavenly® Bed
  • Spa-inspired bathrooms with an invigorating rain-shower and dual-flush toilet
  • Fully equipped kitchens featuring filtered water, ENERGY STAR-rated appliances and utensils to prepare a gourmet meal

“We’re very excited to bring Element’s fusion of style, personal wellbeing and sustainability to Miami, and we think guests will appreciate having a fresh option so close to MIA,” said Lew Wiens, President of True North Hotel Group, the hotel’s management company. “Our location adjacent to such a key transportation hub makes Element Miami unbeatable for business and leisure travelers alike.”

About Element Hotels
Eco-wise and energizing, Element Hotels is about smart design for savvy travelers. For guests seeking balance on the road, Element offers bright, spacious environments that offer flexibility for work or relaxation. Rooms are stylish, sustainable (incorporating recycled materials and environmentally-friendly fixtures) and eminently livable. Element affords easy access to its surrounding destinations - along with inspiration to make the most of the trip. A healthy complimentary breakfast called Rise, an evening reception called Relax, and gourmet food pantry called Restore, fuels the guest’s sense of well-being. Other signatures, including saline swimming pools, bikes to borrow, and electric vehicle charging stations, inspire guests to go and do.

Starwood’s latest brand innovation, Element made history in 2008 as the only major hotel brand to mandate pursuit of LEED certification for all its hotels brand-wide. There are now 10 Element hotels in 10 U.S. markets, with new domestic and international hotels in development. Visit http://www.elementhotels.com or connect on Facebook.

About Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc.
Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. is one of the leading hotel and leisure companies in the world with 1090 properties in 100 countries and territories with 154,000 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®, The Luxury Collection®, W®, Westin®, Le Méridien®, Sheraton®, Four Points® by Sheraton, Aloft®, and Element SM. The company boasts one of the industry’s leading loyalty programs, Starwood Preferred Guest (SPG), allowing members to earn and redeem points for room stays, room upgrades and flights, with no blackout dates. 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 http://www.starwoodhotels.com.

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