Date published: 01.09.08 - not release date

Hampton on pace for record development year

Hampton, the national brand of more than 1,400 mid-priced Hampton Inn and Hampton Inn & Suites hotels, today announced that it is on pace to open a record 140 plus hotels in 2007, surpassing its previous record of 127 openings, set in 1998.

“We recently opened our 1,400th hotel and 140,000th room and expect to go well past our 1,500th hotel before the year’s end, which translates to an average rate of nearly three hotel openings per week,” said Phil Cordell, senior vice-president, Hampton Brand Management. “Developer interest remains high in the focused-service segment, and Hampton is a leading choice for developers in North America. The brand continues to target urban markets and western U.S., Canadian and Latin American destinations, where we currently have more room for growth.”

“Since the successful merger between Hilton Hotels Corp. and Hilton International, we also have experienced increased interest in international development,” added Cordell. “We plan to open our 20th hotel in Canada later this year and make a substantial push into overseas markets in the upcoming future.”

Cordell noted that in addition to increased developer interest, the brand has been receiving high marks from guests, too. Since the completion of Phase II of its “Make It Hampton” program which introduced the brand’s latest bedding product “Cloud Nine. The Hampton Bed Experience,” satisfaction scores have increased by a whopping 8 percent.

Development interest in the Hampton Inn & Suites product has been particularly strong, with this product expected to account for nearly 60 percent of new Hampton hotel openings in 2007. The mixture of room types and amenities allows developers a wide range of room pricing options, making it a very attractive alternative.

About Hampton Hotels
Hampton, which includes Hampton Inn and Hampton Inn & Suites hotels, is a mid-priced leader in the lodging segment.

Hampton is part of Hilton Hotels Corporation, a leading global hospitality company with more than 2,900 hotels and 500,000 rooms in more than 78 countries, including 105,000 team members worldwide. The company owns, manages or franchises a hotel portfolio of some of the best known and most highly regarded hotel brands, including Hilton, Conrad, Doubletree, Embassy Suites Hotels, Hampton Inn, Hampton Inn & Suites, Hilton Garden Inn, Hilton Grand Vacations, Homewood Suites by Hilton, and The Waldorf=Astoria Collection.

Note: This press release contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of federal securities law, including statements concerning business strategies and their intended results, and similar statements concerning anticipated future events and expectations that aren't historical facts.

The forward-looking statements in this press release are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties, including the effects of economic conditions; supply and demand changes for hotel rooms; competitive conditions in the lodging industry, relationships with clients and property owners; the impact of government regulations; changes in foreign currency exchange rates; acquisition and disposition of assets; and the availability of capital to finance growth, which could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in or implied by the statements herein. Although Hampton Inn believe the expectations reflected in these forward-looking statements are based upon reasonable assumptions, they can give no assurance that their expectations will be attained and caution against placing undue reliance on such statements. Hampton Inn undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements to reflect current or future events or circumstances.

Hampton PR Contact:
Monica Gaston
Hampton Brand Communications
755 Crossover Lane
Memphis
TN 38117
(901) 374-6462