IHR Interstate Hotels & Resorts,

ARLINGTON, Va., Jan. 29 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Interstate Hotels & Resorts (NYSE:IHR), one of the nation's largest independent hotel management companies, today announced that it has sold its BridgeStreet Worldwide corporate housing subsidiary to an affiliate of Sorrento Asset Management, a Dublin, Ireland-based company for net proceeds of approximately $40.5 million. The company said that proceeds will be redeployed into investments in hotel real estate through wholly owned acquisitions and joint ventures. "BridgeStreet has gone through a remarkable turnaround over the past two years," said Thomas F. Hewitt, chief executive officer. "Lee Curtis, president of Bridgestreet Worldwide, and his team have done an excellent job of managing their existing corporate apartment inventory and driving rates, resulting in significantly increased profits. At the same time, they expanded and entered key U.S. and international markets. "However, corporate housing, while related, is no longer part of our core growth strategy," he said. "Now that we have completed the turnaround, we believe the timing is right for us to exit this business and monetize the value we have created. We plan to reinvest those proceeds into our core businesses. "Sorrento already is well acquainted with BridgeStreet, which already manages corporate apartments for them. We believe this is an excellent fit and the sale represents a win-win situation for everyone," Hewitt added. BridgeStreet Worldwide is one of the world's largest corporate housing providers and offers upscale, fully equipped, furnished apartments, townhouses and condominiums as an alternative to traditional hotel rooms, primarily for business travelers and relocating corporate executives who need lodging for more than 30 days. BridgeStreet and its network of Global Partners offer approximately 10,000 corporate apartments located in more than 100 MSAs throughout the United States and internationally. For more information about BridgeStreet Worldwide, visit the company's website: http://www.bridgestreet.com/. As of December 31, Interstate Hotels & Resorts operated 223 hospitality properties with more than 50,000 rooms in 39 states, the District of Columbia, Canada, and Russia. For more information about Interstate Hotels & Resorts, visit the company's Web site: http://www.ihrco.com/. This press release contains "forward-looking statements," within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, about Interstate Hotels & Resorts, including those statements regarding future operating results and the timing and composition of revenues, among others, and statements containing words such as "expects," "believes" or "will," which indicate that those statements are forward-looking. Except for historical information, the matters discussed in this press release are forward-looking statements that are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause the actual results to differ materially, including the volatility of the national economy, economic conditions generally and the hotel and real estate markets specifically, the war in Iraq, international and geopolitical difficulties or health concerns, governmental actions, legislative and regulatory changes, availability of debt and equity capital, interest rates, competition, weather conditions or natural disasters, supply and demand for lodging facilities in our current and proposed market areas, and the company's ability to manage integration and growth. Additional risks are discussed in Interstate Hotels & Resorts' filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including Interstate Hotels & Resorts' annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2005. Contact: Jerry Daly, Carol McCune Carrie McIntyre Daly Gray Public Relations SVP, Treasurer (703) 435-6293 (703) 387-3320 DATASOURCE: Interstate Hotels & Resorts CONTACT: Jerry Daly or Carol McCune of Daly Gray Public Relations, +1-703-435-6293, for Interstate Hotels & Resorts; or Carrie McIntyre, SVP, Treasurer, of Interstate Hotels & Resorts, +1-703-387-3320 Web site: http://www.ihrco.com/ http://www.bridgestreet.com/

Copyright