Marriott Belfast open in 2010

Monday, 25th February 2008：A 169-Room Courtyard will establish brand presence in Northern Ireland.

Marriott International, Inc. in Belfast, is under a management agreement with Culzean Holdings Ltd. When opened in 2010, it will be the third Courtyard hotel to open in the United Kingdom.

The Courtyard by Marriott Belfast will be located on Cromac Place and will form a core part of a high-quality, mixed-use commercial development that is the Gasworks.

Within a five-minute walk of the hotel will be Belfasts central business district, the soon-to-open Victoria Square retail mall, the Grand Opera House and the various cinemas, restaurants and pubs of Greater Victoria Street, Dublin Road and Bradbury Place. Belfasts main conference, meeting and event venues of the Waterfront Hall, Odyssey Arena, Kings Hall, Ulster Hall and Queens University are all accessible either by foot or public transport.

We are excited to have our largest lodging brand represented in Belfast at the vibrant Gasworks development project, said Ed Fuller, president and managing director for international lodging for Marriott International. This project is largely the result of recent political stability and resulting upswing in commercial activity in the city and we are confident that the Courtyard by Marriott Belfast will play an important role in the future growth of Belfasts commercial and leisure travel business.

Speaking for Culzean Holdings Ltd, Chairman Shamus Jennings said, Our agreement with Marriott underlines our commitment to bring innovative and new hotel products and brands to Northern Ireland. Marriott is a world leader in hotel provision and we are delighted that they have decided to partner with Culzean for their inaugural project in the province. We are confident that the four-star Courtyard by Marriott planned for the Gasworks site will be an excellent driver for growth in Belfasts business, leisure and tourism markets.

He also predicted that with its distinctive and fresh European flair, the Courtyard by Marriott Belfast will be an immediate hit with the traveling public. It will offer the right price-value balance while delivering the consistency of product and service for which Courtyard is world-renowned, he said.

The innovative and stylish bedrooms at the Courtyard by Marriott Belfast will boast Marriotts new, highly-acclaimed, plush bedding and bath linens; and will be equipped with internet access, large well-lit work desks, ergonomic chairs for comfort, flat screen televisions, in-room safes and refrigerators and coffee/tea making facilities.

For dining and entertainment, the hotel will have a contemporary and open plan lobby lounge and bar together with a casual restaurant serving three meals daily.

For conferences and social events of various sizes, the hotel will offer 152 square meters of function space comprised of four meeting rooms in varying configurations.

Marriott introduced Courtyard in 1983. Since then, the brand has grown into the companys largest brand with nearly 800 hotels and the worlds 13th largest lodging chain.