Host Hotels has announced that its joint venture in the
Netherlands has entered into an agreement to purchase the Hotel
Arts Barcelona, a Ritz-Carlton hotel.The venturehas been set up with Stichting Pensioenfonds ABP, the Dutch pension fund,
and Jasmine Hotels Pte Ltd, an affiliate of GIC Real Estate Pte Ltd, the
real estate investment company of the Government of Singapore Investment
Corporation Pte Ltd.

The hotel, which is located on the
shores of the Mediterranean Sea in Barcelona, Spain, contains 483
luxuriously-appointed guestrooms, including 28 luxury duplex apartments.
The property, which recently underwent a comprehensive guestroom
renovation that was completed in June 2006, also features 24,000 square
feet of meeting space including the largest ballroom in Barcelona, five
high-quality restaurants and a full-service spa with eight treatment
rooms.

The transaction also includes the purchase of an approximate 80,000
square-foot casino that is leased to a third-party operator.
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