Wingate Inns International today announced plans to build the first franchised Wingate Inn hotel outside of North America, a 100-room hotel to be located on a 125-acre tract in Belmopan, the new capital of Belize.

The hotel, to be completed by mid-2004, will feature a restaurant and nightclub as well as an 18-hole golf course.

The hotel will be marketed to both leisure and business travelers, according to Gil Belisle, who owns the property along with investors Cecilia and John Faber, Ezekiel Velasquez, Lois Highsmith and Egbert Higinio. “We are very interested in marketing Belize`s rain forests and ancient ruins to the traveling public and providing city officials and visiting business people with an excellent place to stay,” Belisle said.

Wingate Inn president Keith Pierce said Belize offers many opportunities for development. “We are very proud to be opening our first hotel in Belmopan, a thriving business environment ideal for the Wingate Inn brand, and look forward to additional opportunities for expansion in this beautiful region,” he said. “As a popular destination for scuba diving and fishing, Belize is also a hot spot for tourists and therefore an ideal location for development.”

There currently are 121 Wingate Inn hotels representing 11,368 guest rooms open in the United States and Canada.

Wingate Inns International is an all-new construction hotel chain that opened its first franchised hotel in July 1996. Its focused service, upper mid-market franchised hotels feature sophisticated, consumer-based technology and comfortable, oversized rooms that were created in response to business travelers` needs. All Wingate Inn hotels are independently owned and operated under franchise agreements with Wingate Inns International. Reservations can be made by calling the Wingate Inn toll-free reservation center at (800) 228-1000 or through the company`s Web site at www.wingateinns.com. Wingate Inns International is a subsidiary of Cendant Corporation (NYSE: CD).

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