Starwood Hotels Completes $340M Sale Of Sardinian Hotels To Colony Capital

WHITE PLAINS, NY— Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide has completed the previously announced sale of its four hotels and a 51% interest in its undeveloped land assets at Costa Smeralda in Sardinia, Italy, to Los Angeles-based Colony Capital, LLC for 290 million Euros, or approximately $340 million, plus additional consideration. Starwood will continue to manage the hotels under a long-term contract and will retain a 49% stake in the undeveloped land. Under the agreement, Colony Capital is buying from Starwoods CIGA portfolio of hotels and resorts: Hotel Cala di Volpe, Hotel Pitrizza, Hotel Romazzino, and Cervo Hotel & Conference Center; the Porto Cervo Marina and Shipyard; the Pevero Golf Club; a 51% stake in nearly 6,000 acres of undeveloped oceanfront land; and some ancillary facilities. The hotels total 382 rooms. According to Barry Sternlicht, Starwoods chairman/CEO, the company also plans to close its sale of the Hotel Principe di Savoia to the London-based Dorchester Group LTD for 275 million Euros, or approximately $320 million, within the next few weeks, as well as its sale of a 14-hotel portfolio in North America during the third quarter. An additional four-hotel portfolio sale in North America is expected in 2003. All together, proceeds from these sales will total approximately $1.1 billion and will be used to pay down existing debt and for other general corporate uses.