Gaylord Acquiring Westin La Cantera Resort
Planning Three-year, $250 million Expansion
NASHVILLE, TN, November 26, 2007. Gaylord Entertainment Company (NYSE: GET) today announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to purchase the Westin La Cantera Resort in San Antonio, Texas for $252.5 million. The deal is expected to close in the first quarter of 2008 pending satisfactory completion of due diligence and other customary closing conditions. The acquisition will be financed using the Company's existing line of credit.
La Cantera Resort is one of the region's most in-demand hotels for meetings and conventions. It has won numerous hospitality awards including the 2007 AAA Four Diamond Award, Conde Nast Traveler's 2007 Gold List of "The Worlds Best Places to Stay" and the 2007 AAA Four Diamond Award Restaurant for Francesca's at Sunset. Additionally, San Antonio is one the nation's most popular tourist destinations, with nearly 21 million people visiting the city each year.
The resort property includes approximately 508 rooms, 39,000 square feet of meeting space, two championship golf courses and is situated on 691 acres. Gaylord has also purchased approximately 90 acres of undeveloped land adjacent to the resort property. In addition to the purchase of the asset, Gaylord is planning an estimated three-year, $250 million expansion that will bring the resort to approximately 1,000 rooms and approximately 160,000 square feet of meeting space. Gaylord plans to complete the expansion in 2011, pending regulatory and board approvals.
"The purchase of La Cantera marks an important step in our strategy to increase distribution through acquisitions," said Colin V. Reed, chairman and chief executive officer of Gaylord Entertainment. "La Cantera is already a premier attraction for both leisure tourists and convention customers and will be a wonderful addition to our strong network of hotels. Further, the hotel has tremendous potential for growth as the substantial amount of land surrounding the hotel will afford us the opportunity to enhance the resort through additional long-term development. San Antonio is a top 10 convention destination and we will be entering the area with the premier property in the market, which will serve as an important component of our successful rotational strategy where our loyal customers book meetings at multiple properties over several years."
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