posted 04-13-2005 10:10            

"Our aggressive growth strategy was engineered in direct response to robust market demand. We are developing mixed-use resorts under the Sheraton, Westin, and St. Regis flags in highly sought-after domestic and international locations," said Raymond L. "Rip" Gellein, Jr., Chief Executive Officer of Starwood Vacation Ownership, Inc. "The introduction of the St. Regis luxury brand to the already successful Westin and Sheraton brand line-up has been immediately validated with rapid, record-setting sales in Aspen."

Starwood Vacation Ownership's expansion plans include the following resorts:

Westin Ka'anapali Ocean Resort Villas, Ka'anapali, Maui, with 177 units to be completed by May 2005 as part of its Phase 2 construction. In addition, SVO will expand its presence in Maui with the construction of a new property immediately next door to the Westin Ka'anapali Ocean Resort Villas. This new property will have 258 lock off units upon completion.
Westin Mission Hills Resort & Villas, Rancho Mirage, California recently added 20 units as part of Phase 5, completed in February 2005.
Westin Kierland Villas, Phoenix, Arizona Phase 2 will be complete with 44 units in August 2005 and an additional of 66 units scheduled to be completed in 2006.
Sheraton Broadway Plantation, Myrtle Beach, South Carolina's latest phase includes 30 new units to be completed in May 2005.
St. Regis Residence Club, Aspen, debuted with 25 luxury residences in December 2004. Plans are currently being considered for additional St. Regis Residence Club locations.
Harborside Resort at Atlantis, Nassau, Bahamas, is constructing 116 units for its Phase 2 that will be completed in June 2005.
Sheraton Vistana Villages in Orlando, Florida is adding 200 new units encompassing 5 buildings in various stages of construction, some of which will be completed in 2005 and the balance in 2006.
Westin St. John Resort & Villas in St. John, Virgin Islands, opened 11 new units in December 2004.
In addition to the expansion above, Starwood Vacation Ownership is in the predevelopment phase of several new vacation ownership resorts including: one at Princeville on the island of Kauai, Hawaii and another in Cancun, Mexico. The company is also working on its second St. Regis-branded fractional resort at Punta Mita, Mexico.

"The Sheraton, Westin, and St. Regis brands have always enjoyed an elevated level of trust with consumers. Now we have something for everyone--from affordable vacation ownership options for families to exclusive offerings with high-end services and amenities for the luxury travel market," said Gellein.

About Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc.

Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. is one of the leading hotel and leisure companies in the world with approximately 750 properties in more than 80 countries and 120,000 employees at its owned and managed properties. With internationally renowned brands, Starwood® corporation is a fully integrated owner, operator and franchisor of hotels and resorts including: St. Regis®, The Luxury Collection®, Sheraton®, Westin®, Four Points® by Sheraton, and W®, Hotels and Resorts as well as Starwood Vacation Ownership, Inc., one of the premier developers and operators of high quality vacation interval ownership resorts. For more information, please visit www.starwoodhotels.com

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posted 04-14-2005 08:01            

I have held off on expressing my concern, but it has been more than two years since Starwood has announced a firm commitment to build at a new location (Westin Kaanapali). I expected many more options to have been firmly announced by now and it appears that Starwood is not serious about expanding its network and offering a product competitive with Marriott or Hyatt.

We heard rumours about Las Vegas, but Westgate won the timeshare rights for the Aladdin site. We also heard and continue to hear rumours of Cancun for more than six months and Kaui for more than a year, but the only firm announcements are expansions of existing sites.

I like the locations we have, but now believe that Starwood will relegate us to a much smaller network than we had hoped, with significant overlap in several locations (Orlando, Scottsdale and maybe Hawaii).

posted 04-14-2005 08:44            

quote:

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Originally posted by dgriffin7:
Thanks for posting the press release.

I have held off on expressing my concern, but it has been more than two years since Starwood has announced a firm commitment to build at a new location (Westin Kaanapali). I expected many more options to have been firmly announced by now and it appears that Starwood is not serious about expanding its network and offering a product competitive with Marriott or Hyatt.

We heard rumours about Las Vegas, but Westgate won the timeshare rights for the Aladdin site. We also heard and continue to hear rumours of Cancun for more than six months and Kaui for more than a year, but the only firm announcements are expansions of existing sites.

I like the locations we have, but now believe that Starwood will relegate us to a much smaller network than we had hoped, with significant overlap in several locations (Orlando, Scottsdale and maybe Hawaii).

Any other thoughts on this?

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I agree with you... It would be nice if they had property in more locations like Marriott. But we actually bought Westin in Maui because Marriott did not have a condo like unit. We didn't like Marriott's hotel conversion units (don't get me wrong they are nice units but I like the full kitchen). But there might be something said for a smaller timeshare less problems with booking rooms, etc... We will probably go to Maui every year for the rest of our lives so we are happy with our purchase!

Tina

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You can see my timeshare photos here:

posted 04-14-2005 16:49               

quote:

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Originally posted by dgriffin7:
Thanks for posting the press release.

We also heard and continue to hear rumours of Cancun for more than six months and Kaui for more than a year, but the only firm announcements are expansions of existing sites.

Any other thoughts on this?

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The article posted above has a "firm announcement" about Kaui and Cancun, but I agree with you, I hope that Starwood continues to expand and hopefully, not within the continental US.

In addition to the expansion above, Starwood Vacation Ownership is in the predevelopment phase of several new vacation ownership resorts including: one at Princeville on the island of Kauai, Hawaii and another in Cancun, Mexico.

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Denise

posted 04-15-2005 17:25               

quote:

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Originally posted by stevens397:
Of course, there is the rumor that Starwood is taking over Club Regina which, I think, includes resorts in Cabo, Cancun and Puerta Vallarta. Haven't heard much about it tho. Maybe they float these things to keep us quiet for awhile!

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When I was in Cabo last month, I wondered why Westin Club Regina or Sheraton Hacienda Del Mar was not part of the SVN.

I stayed at the "hotel" side of both resorts and the amenities were great.

Oh well....

Jerry

posted 04-17-2005 13:26               

quote:

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Originally posted by GNB:
Does anyone know, or have a good idea, when the Cancun property will be sold? Do you believe it will have a similar starting price point as the the Kierland property?

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I really doubt it - my guess is it will be priced more like the new Maui or Kauai properties.

posted 04-18-2005 11:50               

quote:

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Originally posted by dgriffin7:
I remain skeptical as to what a "preannouncement" means in terms of how firm a commitment Starwood has made, particularly since word of Kaui has been circulating for well over a year and SVO hasn't been able to announce groundbreaking.

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I thought that was because they decided to build another TS on Maui first.

posted 04-18-2005 13:36            

Then again, it's earnings season right now, so I guess we will see if there are any negative surprises.

My sense is that these projects are highly complicated, multi-faceted projects, and quickly rolling them out is not possible. From what I understand, the problem in Princeville is more around zoning approvals, etc.

But who knows.

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Shelley