Rapid Global Expansion Supported by Strategic Staff Appointments and Positioning as Portfolio Strengthens and Advances into New Regions

February 2, 2010 Spurred by a marked increase in membership, Preferred Hotel Group added 83 hotels and resorts to its global portfolio over the past six months and is approaching the new year from an outlook of strength (see addendum for complete listing). The industry-leading company has positioned itself for continued success in 2010, bolstering areas of growth through strategic staff appointments and the realignment of sales regions. Several other strategies for growth have been announced in recent months. A new GDS provider, Sabre Hospitality Solutions, will greatly enhance Preferred Hotel Groups distribution marketing and technology capabilities this year. In addition, the company introduced Sterling Design, a new designation within its Sterling Hotels brand to identify chic, design-led hotels and resorts that are accessible to travelers seeking smart value. Preferred Hotel Groups recent increases continue a record, consistent over the past 40 months, of strong retention (approximately 94%) combined with a constant net growth of 12%. This has brought total membership to more than 700 independent hotels and resorts in over 75 countries across Preferred Hotel Groups five distinctive brands: Preferred Hotels® & Resorts, Preferred Boutique, Summit Hotels & Resorts, Sterling Hotels, and Historic Hotels of America®. Realigned Sales Regions To support areas of growth, which are particularly significant in Africa and India, Preferred Hotel Group has redefined several of its sales regions. From the former EMEA, two separate regions have been created: Europe, the U.K., and Ireland as one; India, the Middle East, and Africa as the other (with India shifting from Asia Pacific). The companys two remaining sales regions The Americas and Asia Pacific have also seen tremendous increases.

Strategic Corporate Appointments Preferred Hotel Group has announced several senior-level appointments to its corporate management team. Ken Mastrandrea has been appointed Executive Managing Director Corporate Operations and Vice President, Business Development, working from Preferred Hotel Groups corporate office in Chicago. In an expansion of her existing role, New Yorkbased Nichole L. DiBenedetto has been promoted from Director of Public Relations for Historic Hotels of America, a position she had held since September 2008, to Director, Global Public Relations. In addition, Michael Osgood joins the company as Managing Director, Global Sales for Preferred Golf, a new position created to help the company further develop its highly successful golf membership program. Osgood is based in Newport Beach, California. The Americas Joining the Americas team as Miami-based Regional Director Florida and Caribbean is Peter Kressaty, a 17-year hospitality industry veteran most recently with Carino Hotels & Resorts Worldwide. From July to December 2009, Preferred Hotel Group accepted 37 members in strategic resort and city locations throughout the United States, Canada, South America, Mexico, and the Caribbean. Prestigious new additions to the U.S. portfolio span from coast to coast and include The Allison Inn & Spa (Preferred Boutique) near Portland, Oregon; Post Ranch Inn (Preferred Boutique) in Big Sur, California; Hotel Urbano (Sterling Hotels/Sterling Design) in Miami, Florida; The Seagate Hotel & Spa (Preferred Hotels & Resorts) in Delray Beach, Florida; and The Wort Hotel (Preferred Boutique/Historic Hotels of America) in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. Also notable in The Americas are Anandá Hotel Boutique (Preferred Boutique) in Cartagena De Indias, Colombia, and Natal Ocean Club (Preferred Hotels & Resorts) in Rio Grand Do Norte, Brazil. India, the Middle East and Africa (IMEA) Escalating growth in IMEA over the past six months welcomes 13 new members to this region. Most new India members are newly opened properties, located in growing resort destinations such as Goa and Kerala, and in increasingly important business hubs such as Bangalore and Hyderabad. These new members range from The Zuri-Kumarakom, Kerala Resort & Spa (Preferred Hotels & Resorts) in Kerala; Dream Cochin (Summit Hotels & Resorts) in Cochin and The Leela Palace Kempinski (Preferred Hotels & Resorts) in Udaipur. New Africa members in this region include Diani Reef Beach Resort & Spa (Preferred Hotels & Resorts) in Mombasa, Kenya, The Cape Royale Luxury Hotel & Residences (Preferred Hotels & Resorts) in Cape Town, South Africa, and Kenzi Tower Hotel, (Preferred Hotels & Resorts) in Casablanca, Morocco.

Europe, the U.K., and Ireland Earlier this Fall, Preferred announced the appointment of industry professional Shannon Reid as Director, Marketing EMEA. Shannon takes over the role from Chris Fradin, who has moved into the Regional Director position for U.K. and Ireland. Fradins strategic appointment will build on his strong member relations and drive further growth in the region. Nineteen new hotels and resorts have joined Preferred Hotel Groups European portfolio, strengthening the organizations presence, particularly in the Mediterranean region. Of note are three in Italy: Grand Hotel Tremezzo (Preferred Hotels & Resorts) in Tremezzo, Grand Hotel di Como (Summit Hotels & Resorts) in Como, and Palazzo Vecchietti (Preferred Boutique) in Florence. Other new European members include Mon Hotel (Sterling Hotels/Sterling Design) in Paris, France, and the NJV Athens Plaza (Preferred Hotels & Resorts) in Athens, Greece. Asia Pacific Expanding its geographic reach to more exclusive resort destinations within the region, Asia Pacific has added 14 new properties. The collection now includes new members such as Legends Resort (Preferred Boutique) in Moorea, French Polynesia; Sheridan Beach Resort & Convention Center (Sterling Hotels) in Palawan, Philippines; Bunga Raya Island Resort & Spa (Preferred Boutique) in Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia; and La Flora Resort & Spa (Summit Hotels & Resorts) in Khao Lak, Thailand. With the recent addition of the brand new Andara Resort and Villas (Preferred Boutique) in Phuket, Thailand, Preferred Hotel Groups resort collection now represents some of the regions most unique and upscale properties. The last six months also featured a significant strategic partnership with Dusit International, marking a new business strategy for Preferred Hotel Group to work with non independent hotels. New appointments in this region include Peggy Yip, who joined Preferred Hotel Groups Hong Kong sales team as Director, Marketing Asia Pacific, and Kaori Yamaguchi, the companys new Director, Global Sales Japan, based in Tokyo. Each brings to her position years of expertise in hospitality sales and marketing in the Asia Pacific region. About Preferred Hotel Group Celebrating 42 years of excellence, Preferred Hotel Group is a leading global provider of high-performance sales, marketing and technology support to individually owned and operated hotels and resorts, with over 700 members in over 75 countries. Established in 1968, Preferred Hotel Group today comprises of five distinct brands Preferred Hotels® & Resorts (www.PreferredHotels.com), Preferred Boutique (www.PreferredBoutique.com), Summit Hotels & Resorts(www.SummitHotels.com), Sterling Hotels (www.SterlingHotels.com) and Historic Hotels of Americas®(www.HistoricHotels.org); the fastest-growing guest benefits program in the world, I Prefer (www.iprefer.com); and a membership program with entrée to the worlds most spectacular luxury golf resorts, Preferred Golf Club (www.preferredgolf.com). For more information, visit www.PreferredHotelGroup.com. In Fall 2007, the company entered the luxury real estate market with the launch of Preferred Residences a membership and exchange program for luxury shared ownership resorts that provide an exceptional level of service and amenities. Properties are held to exacting standards derived from the same Preferred Global Standards of Excellence on which the company has built its 41-year heritage in the hospitality industry. For more information, please visit www.PreferredResidences.com.

MEDIA CONTACT: Meghan Patel / Kelly Brewer N. AMERICA Laura Davidson Public Relations Tel: +1 (212) 696 0660 / +1 (212) 696 9804 meghan@ldpr.com / kelly@ldpr.com

MEDIA CONTACT: Nicola Parker EMEA Lucre Communications Tel: +44 (0)20 8332 9690 / Fax: +44 (0)20 8948 7601 preferredhotels@lucrecommunications.com

MEDIA CONTACT: Christine Cheong ASIA PACIFIC Manager, Communications Asia Pacific Tel: +852 3111 1898│ Fax: +852 3115 7770 ccheong@preferredhotelgroup.com

For high resolution imagery of our properties, please visit the Preferred Hotel Group Image Library at www.preferredhotelgroup.com/press.htm

# # # NEW MEMBERS OF PREFERRED HOTEL GROUP

THE AMERICAS Preferred Hotels & Resorts Carlton Savannah, Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago Dreams Riviera Cancun Resort & Spa, Cancun/Riviera Maya, Mexico Emerald Monkey Eco-Luxe Resort, Bocas del Toro, Panama Grande Rockies Resort, Canmore, Alberta, Canada Hotel Jerome, a RockResort, Aspen, Colorado, USA (Dual Member: Historic Hotels of America) Hotel ZaZa Houston, Houston, Texas, USA The Inn at Harbour Town at The Sea Pines Resort, Hilton Head Island, South Carolina, USA Natal Ocean Club, Natal, Brazil Pan Pacific Hotel Seattle, Seattle, Washington, USA The Seagate Hotel & Spa, Delray Beach, Florida, USA Trump International Hotel & Tower, Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, USA

Preferred Boutique Anandá Hotel Boutique, Cartagena de Indias, Colombia The Allison Inn & Spa, Newberg/Willamette Valley, Oregon, USA Bohemian Hotel Savannah Riverfront, Savannah, Georgia, USA The Capital Hotel, Little Rock, Arkansas, USA (Dual Member: Historic Hotels of America) Dolphin Bay Resort and Spa, Shell Beach, California, USA Hotel Hana Maui & Honua Spa, Hana/Maui, Hawaii, USA The Martha Washington Hotel & Spa, Abingdon, Virginia, USA (Dual Member: Historic Hotels of America) Ocean House, Watch Hill, Rhode Island, USA Post Ranch Inn, Big Sur, California, USA Woodlands Inn, Summerville, South Carolina, USA (Dual Member: Historic Hotels of America) The Wort Hotel, Jackson Hole, Wyoming, USA (Dual Member: Historic Hotels of America)

Summit Hotels & Resorts The Glen Club, Chicago/Glenview, Illinois, USA The Hotel at Terminal City Club, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada Hotel Albuquerque at Old Town, Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA Hotel St. Francis, Santa Fe, New Mexico, USA (Dual Member: Historic Hotels of America) The Mayo Hotel and Residences, Tulsa, Oklahoma, USA (Dual Member: Historic Hotels of America) The Partridge Inn, Augusta, Georgia, USA (Dual Member: Historic Hotels of America) Seven Stars Resort, Grace Bay, Turks & Caicos Islands The Wynfrey Hotel at Riverchase Galleria, Birmingham, Alabama, USA Verdanza Hotel, San Juan, San Juan, Puerto Rico Seventh Mountain Resort, Bend, Oregon, USA Chattanooga Choo Choo, Chattanooga, Tennessee, USA (Dual Member: Historic Hotels of America)

Sterling Hotels Hotel Urbano, Miami, Florida, USA (Sterling Design)

Historic Hotels of America The Ashton Hotel, Fort Worth, Texas, USA The Columbia Club, Indianapolis, Indiana, USA

EUROPE, THE U.K. AND IRELAND

Preferred Hotels & Resorts Cameron House on Loch Lomond, Loch Lomond, Scotland, U.K. Grand Hotel Tremezzo, Tremezzo, Italy Hotel Kings Court, Prague, Czech Republic Hotel La Manga Club Principe Felipe, Murcia, Spain NJV Athens Plaza, Athens, Greece

Preferred Boutique Capri Tiberio Palace Hotel & Spa, Capri, Italy Casanova by Rafael Hotels, Barcelona, Spain ICONS, Santorini, Greece Hotel Miramar, Barcelona, Spain Hotel de Vigny, Paris, France Palazzo Vecchietti, Florence, Italy Relais Bella Rosina, Fiano (Turin), Italy Schloss Hubertushöhe, Storkow, Germany Town House 8, Milan, Italy

Summit Hotels & Resorts Hotel Gate One, Bratislava, Slovakia Grand Hotel di Como, Como, Italy 9 Muses Santorini Resort, Santorini, Greece

Sterling Hotels The Liner Hotel, Liverpool, England, U.K. Mon Hotel, Paris, France (Sterling Design)

INDIA, THE MIDDLE EAST AND AFRICA

Preferred Hotels & Resorts The Cape Royale Luxury Hotel and Residences, Cape Town, South Africa Diani Reef Beach Resort & Spa, Mombasa, Kenya Kenzi Tower Hotel, Casablanca, Morocco The Leela Palace Kempinski, Udaipur, India The Regency Kuwait, Kuwait, Kuwait The Zuri-Kumarakom Kerala Resort & Spa, Kerala, India Preferred Boutique Jnane Tamsna, Marrakech, Morocco, Africa

Summit Hotels & Resorts The Devon Valley Hotel, Cape Town, South Africa Dream Cochin, Cochin, India Erinvale Estate Hotel & Spa, Cape Town, South Africa The Zuri White Sands Resort & Casino, Goa, India

Sterling Hotels Ellaa Suites, Hyderabad, India The Pride Hotel, Bangalore, India The Retreat by Zuri, Goa, India

ASIA PACIFIC Preferred Hotels & Resorts The Upper House, Hong Kong Zendai Art Hotel, Shanghai, China

Preferred Boutique Bunga Raya Island Resort & Spa, Kota Kinabalu, Malaysia Legends Resort, Moorea, French Polynesia The Lyall Hotel and Spa, Melbourne, Australia The Richardson Hotel & Spa, Perth, Australia Andara Resort & Villas, Phuket, Thailand

Summit Hotels & Resorts Harbour Grand Hong Kong, Hong Kong La Flora Resort & Spa Khao Lak, Khao Lak, Thailand The Mira Hong Kong, Hong Kong EAST, Hong Kong Regal Master Hotel, Chengdu, China

Sterling Hotels Sheridan Beach Resort & Convention Center, Palawan, Philippines Regal Jinfeng Hotel, Shanghai, China