Sheraton Signs Okinawa Ginowan, Japan

Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc. -- Hotels, 7/17/2008 8:38:00 AM

Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc (NYSE: HOT) today announces an agreement with Joint Hospitality Co., Ltd to open a new-build Sheraton Okinawa Ginowan Hotel in Japan. Targeted to open in 2010, the signing of Sheraton Okinawa Ginowan Hotel marks Sheraton’s entry into the dynamic Okinawa market.

“We are thrilled with the landmark entry of Sheraton into Okinawa, Japan’s year round paradise resort island and with Joint Hospitality Company’s decision to select the Sheraton flag for what will be an outstanding hotel in one of Japan’s most important destinations, in an agreement that will enhance Sheraton’s already impressive portfolio in Asia Pacific,” commented Lothar Pehl Regional Vice President, Starwood Hotels & Resorts, Japan, Korea and Guam region.

“We are confident that with the strength of the Sheraton brand, the great appeal of the location as well as the various Sheraton programs and services designed to connect guests to the destination, the local community and visitors from Japan and abroad, Sheraton Okinawa Ginowan Hotel will soon be a hotel of choice for travelers visiting the city,” added Pehl.

The new Sheraton will be located in Ginowan City, on the west coast of Okinawa main island, approximately a 15-minute drive from Naha City, the capital of the Okinawa prefecture and approximately 40 minutes from Naha airport.  The hotel has an advantageous location of being in close proximity to the Okinawa Convention Center, the largest convention center in the city, as well as Ginowan Port Marina.  Sheraton Okinawa Ginowan Hotel will comprise 245 guest rooms, of which at least 10% will be suites. Other facilities include a ballroom with 320 square meters, a lobby lounge, an all-day dining restaurant, a Japanese restaurant as well as spa and recreational facilities like gym and indoor/outdoor pool.

Okinawa is Japan's southernmost prefecture and consists of hundreds of islands known as the Ryukyu, an independent kingdom until 1879 when it became a prefecture of unified Japan. The island is over 1,000 km (621 miles) long, which extends southwest from Kyushu (the southern-most of Japan's four main islands) to Taiwan. Okinawa has the most beautiful beaches in all of Japan, with an average temperature of around 20 degree Celsius (68ºF) for most of the year. Okinawa enjoys a subtropical climate and is the destination of choice for Japanese retirees, where many coral reefs are found in this region of Japan and where wildlife is abundant.