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ALOFT BRINGS THE NEW TWISTS IN TRAVEL TO NATIONAL HARBOR, ON THE POTOMAC RIVER ACROSS FROM WASHINGTON, D.C.

Aloft Washington National Harbor Opens Spring 2009 as a Hotel Centerpiece of 300-acre Mixed-use Waterfront Community.

Stylish 190-room Property will Feature Mikari Day Spa and a Branch of West Hollywood’s Hip Ketchup Restaurant.

NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. – January 15, 2009: aloha! Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc.® (NYSE:HOT) and its stylish new lifestyle brand, Aloftsm hotels, today announced plans to open the Aloft Washington National Harbor, one of the hotel centerpieces of the National Harbor urban waterfront community taking shape outside Washington, D.C. Starwood has partnered with NH-K Hotel, LLC, an investment group led by The Peterson Companies of Fairfax, Va., to develop the hotel, which will open in spring 2009 with 190 loft-like rooms, tech-savvy touches, a hip, social atmosphere, a trendy destination gourmet grill restaurant and urban day spa.

Aloft Washington National Harbor will occupy a prime location overlooking the central plaza at National Harbor, a dynamic, 300-acre waterfront community featuring premium office space, upscale retail, fine restaurants, stylish condominiums and world-class entertainment. The high-profile property in Prince George’s County, Md., situated on the Potomac River across from Alexandria, Va., and 15 minutes outside of Washington, D.C., includes a public marina, water taxis to and from both cities, and the Gaylord National Resort and Convention Center, a 2,000-room facility that brings 470,000 square feet of convention and special event space to the development.

Kokua Hospitality, LLC, of San Francisco, a property management affiliate of The Chartres Lodging Group, LLC, which is part of NH-K Hotel, LLC, will manage the completed property.

“Aloft Washington National Harbor will add even more energy and urban style to this landmark development, providing savvy business and leisure travelers with a unique loft-inspired hotel experience that truly maximizes their personal style,” said Brian McGuinness, Senior Vice President of Aloft hotels worldwide. “Aloft is proud to introduce a bold new lodging alternative at the new gateway to the Nation’s Capitol.”

As a Vision of W Hotels, Aloft is shaking up the lodging industry with urban-influenced design, accessible technology, style and a social atmosphere. Aloft offers a total-sensory experience, with guest lofts featuring loft-like, nine-foot ceilings and oversized windows to create a bright, airy environment. The centerpiece of the loft room is the ultra-comfortable signature bed, and large stylish bathrooms complement the guest experience with roomy walk-in showers and amenities created by bliss® spa.

Each guest loft is also a combination high-tech office and entertainment center, featuring wireless Internet access and plug & play, a one-stop connectivity solution for multiple electronic gadgetry such as PDAs, cell phones, mp3 players and laptops – all linked to a large flat panel HDTV-ready television for optimal sound and viewing.

Designed in conjunction with world renowned David Rockwell and the Rockwell Group, Aloft stays true to the W Hotel brand’s heritage, offering atmospheric public spaces designed to draw guests from their rooms to socialize and make friends. Guests can read the paper, work on their laptops via hotel-wide wireless Internet access, play a game of pool or grab a drink with friends at the re:mix communal lobby area and bar w xyzsm. The re:chargesm fitness center and splash, the indoor pool, give travelers options to de-stress and re-energize; while re:fuel by Aloftsm, a one-stop food and beverage area, offers sweet, savory and healthy food, snacks and beverages to grab & go, 24-hours a day.

Reflecting the high-profile, destination nature of National Harbor, the Aloft Washington National Harbor will serve as a signature property in the Aloft chain, and feature such enhancements as a larger w xyz bar and re:charge fitness center; an expanded back yard with its own firepit; additional guest rooms; six premium corner suites, including five with private balconies; and a dramatic, second-floor balcony that runs the length of the property to maximize views of the Potomac River and the activities at the National Harbor plaza. A number of creative design and amenity touches give each guest loft added drama.

The property will also feature the first East Coast branch of Ketchup, the popular West Hollywood, Calif., gourmet grill and lounge from Dolce Group partners Mike Malin and Lonnie Moore. Promising the same sleek, sophisticated feel as the flagship location on Southern California’s Sunset Boulevard, Ketchup at the Aloft Washington National Harbor will specialize in gourmet hamburgers, Kobe beef hot dogs, three kinds of fries and five varietals of homemade ketchups, as well as fresh fish and poultry dishes.

Another highlight of the Aloft Washington National Harbor will be Mikari Spa, a destination urban day spa oasis offering both traditional relaxation therapies and up-to-the-minute beauty treatments for the hair, skin, body and nails. Guests can make treatment reservations from their rooms or the Aloft aloha desk, and take advantage of in-room treatments and exclusive offers.

“Aloft Washington National Harbor will be a destination within a destination, offering visitors and locals an exciting, unconventional new vantage point from which to experience all the remarkable changes taking place in Washington, D.C.,” added McGuinness. “It definitely is the right hotel in the right city at the right time.”

Aloft opened its first hotel in 2008 and expects to open 500 properties worldwide in the next five years. For more information on Aloft, please visit www.alofthotels.com.

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 900 properties in more than 100 countries and 155,000 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, and the recently launched AloftSM, and ElementSM. 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 www.starwoodhotels.com.

About NH-K Hotel, LLC

NH-K Hotel, LLC, consists of The Peterson Companies, which owns 85 percent of the property under the entity NH-K Investors; and Oxford JHG National Harbor, LLC, which owns the remaining 15 percent and includes The Chartres Lodging Group, LLC, The John Hardy Group, and Vann Avedisian.

The Peterson Companies and its affiliates have had a major impact on Washington, D.C.-area real estate development since the early 1970s, and remains one of the largest privately owned development companies in the region, offering experience in acquisition, planning and zoning, community development, building and management. The Fairfax, Va.–based company has been responsible for such mixed-use projects as Fair Lakes, Washingtonian, Fairfax Corner, Downtown Silver Spring, Virginia Gateway, National Harbor and Tysons McLean Office Park, as well as the residential communities of Burke Centre, Franklin Farm, Centre Ridge, Virginia Oaks, Greenhill Crossing/Somerset, Fox Mill, Crosspointe, and Union Mill.

The Chartres Lodging Group, LLC, is an advisory and investment firm focused on the property management, asset management, renovation and development of lodging assets. Chartres Lodging's principals have been responsible for over $8 billion of lodging investments and have asset managed over 100 upscale and luxury hotels, resorts and conference centers. The firm is currently responsible for a $6 billion, 20,000-room portfolio of luxury and upscale hotels, conference centers and resorts in the United States and Japan. Chartres Lodging's principals and employees are direct investors in 80 percent of this portfolio.

The John Hardy Group provides independent strategic advisory and development services globally to joint venture partners, investors, asset managers and major Brands in the hospitality real estate sector. JHG is the recognized leader in creative solutions to complex challenges in renovation, redevelopment and new development projects. The company has successfully managed over $5.5 billion in development related assignments and completed projects with more than $1.4 billion in development value encompassing 739 projects in 29 countries. JHG is headquartered in Atlanta with an additional office located in Paris, France.

Vann Avedisian is the co-founder of Oxford Capital Partners, a private equity, real estate investment and asset management firm headquartered in Chicago. Oxford has sponsored primarily real estate principal investments with an aggregate value in excess of $1.5 billion, resulting in total profits in excess of $600 million.

About Kokua Hospitality, LLC Kokua Hospitality is a property management firm affiliated with The Chartres Lodging Group, LLC. Purposely created by lodging management and operational experts as a management company with an investors’ sensibility, Kokua Hospitality blends the attention to detail of a customer service entity with the rigors of a real estate investment concern. Based in San Francisco, Kokua Hospitality manages a growing portfolio of hotels and resorts nationwide. For more information on Kokua Hospitality, please visit www.kokuahospitality.com.

(Note: This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of federal securities regulations. Forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance or events and involve risks and uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results or events to differ materially from those anticipated at the time the forward-looking statements are made. These risks and uncertainties are presented in detail in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Although we believe the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are based upon reasonable assumptions, we can give no assurance that our expectations will be attained or that results and events will not materially differ. We undertake no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.)