"Seoul is such a vibrant city and the location of the hotel inthe exclusive resort area of Walker Hill is an ideal fit for the Wbrand," says Barry S. Sternlicht, Chairman and CEO of StarwoodHotels & Resorts. "Travelers from Asia-Pacific to the UnitedStates have responded especially enthusiastically to W hotels, andwe hope to develop many more Ws throughout the region, and inworld-class cities around the globe." The branding campaign willtarget upscale leisure travelers and position the Hotel as thekeystone of redevelopment in the Walker Resort area.

Additional locations include Atlanta, Chicago, Honolulu, LosAngeles, New Orleans, San Francisco, Seattle and Sydney. Alsoscheduled to open by the end of 2002 are W Hotels in Mexico City,Miami, San Diego. A new New York property, the Times Square W Hotelwill hold its soft opening on Dec 27, with the official openingplanned for early February 2003. Designed by Toronto-based YabuPushelberg, W Times Square will feature a glass-encased waterfallin the lobby, guest rooms with high-speed Internet access viainfrared keyboards, secure e-mail, VHS and DVD players.