Starwood is to manage a new hotel in China, the Sheraton Changsha Hotel. This newly built 327-room Sheraton Changsha Hotel is scheduled to open July 2007. The Sheraton Changsha Hotel is located in Changsha’s central business district and is part of a mixed-use complex that houses the hotel in one tower and condominiums in the next, plus a retail podium. The hotel will feature 327 rooms and over 19,900 square feet of meeting and function space for medium to large sized meetings or group activities. The hotel facilities will include four dining outlets, sports and recreational facilities, a health club and spa, an indoor swimming pool and retail center.

“We are firm believers in the importance of China in the world travel market for decades to come. In addition to our new Sheraton Changsha Hotel project, we have 27 hotels currently open or under construction in China under our St. Regis, Westin, Sheraton, W and Four Points by Sheraton brands,” stated Miguel Ko, President, Asia-Pacific, Starwood Hotels & Resorts. “We are honored to partner with Hunan Yunda Real Estate Development Co. Ltd. to establish the Sheraton Changsha Hotel. Starwood is well-positioned with deluxe properties in major and secondary cities in China that caters to the growing number of international and domestic travelers traveling on business and leisure,” added Ko.

Changsha, a city in southern China and the capital of Hunan province, is a busy port on the Xiang River, and also the industrial, transportation and cultural center of a region that is becoming China’s most important grain producing region. Changsha is associated with, and has many monuments to, the early career of Mao Zedong, founder of the People’s Republic of China, who was also born in Hunan province. The city is also famous for its scenic parkland including Mt. Hengshan and Zhangjiajie National Park, also known as China’s Yellowstone Park. As the city with the highest disposable per capita income in Hunan, Changsha’s gross domestic product is expected to grow at an annual rate of 12% over the next 3 to 4 years. Changsha is also ranked among the top 20 most attractive foreign investment regions in China.
——-