MARRIOTT INTERNATIONAL TO OPEN FOUR HOTELS IN THE MIDDLE EAST AND AFRICA THIS YEAR

DUBAI ­ May 1, 2000 ­ Marriott International, Inc. (NYSE:MAR) will open four

hotels in the Middle East and Africa this year, announced Paul Cerula,

senior vice president, international sales, today at a pre-Arabian Travel

Market media briefing.

The four hotels are located in Egypt, Jordan and Tunisia and include the

following:

310-room Taba Marriott Hotel & Beach Resort on the Red Sea in Egypt (Autumn)

216-room Jordan Valley Marriott Resort at the Dead Sea in Jordan (Summer)

178-room Renaissance Tunis Hotel in Tunisia (July)

100-room Petra Plaza Hotel in Jordan, which today joins the Marriott

International lodging portfolio and will be converted to the Petra Courtyard

by Marriott later this year following an extensive refurbishment program.

When rebranded, it will be the first moderate-priced Courtyard by Marriott

hotel in the Middle East.

In addition, three other hotels are currently under construction in the

region and are scheduled to open in 2001. They are the 347-room JW Marriott

Mirage City Resort Cairo in Egypt, 160-room Courtyard by Marriott Beirut

Galaxy in Lebanon and the 150-room Madinah Marriott in Saudi Arabia.

When all seven hotels are opened, the Marriott International lodging

portfolio in the Middle East and Africa will grow to 27 hotels, offering

8,117 rooms across four lodging brands in 10 countries. These figures

represent a 29 percent increase in hotels, a 20 percent increase in rooms

and the addition of one country (Tunisia) over current levels. Additional

properties are in active negotiation.

Mr. Cerula indicated that Marriott International sees tremendous opportunity

for further expansion in the region of its quality and luxury tier brands

and is very confident that its moderately-priced Courtyard brand will be

popular with regional and international travelers.

³We have been operating in the region for 20 years since the opening in 1980

of the Riyadh Marriott and have taken the time to establish deep

relationships in the various communities we serve and to become comfortable

with the nuances of the various cultures represented in the region,² he

said, attributing Marriott International¹s success here to its customer

focus, employees-first culture, operational excellence, technological

leadership and organizational leverage.

³Virtually everything we do is a direct result of listening to our guests

and delivering products and services they tell us they want and need,² Mr.

Cerula added. ³We are committed to giving our associates the training and

advancement opportunities they need to reach their peak potential. Each of

our brands has a set of operating procedures, which we continually update

and refine. We have invested millions of dollars in systems and technology

to provide better service and develop closer relationships with our

customers. Finally, our brands have a loyal constituency of customers and

owners, and supported by our organization, they become powerhouse brands

with significantly enhanced profitability and growth prospects.²

Mr. Cerula said that the strategic objective of Marriott International¹s

development team in the region is to be represented in major gateway cities,

commercial centers and established resort destinations and then to expand

into secondary markets.

³We have made a lot of progress over the past 20 years and are very excited,

for example, by our growing presence along the Red Sea in Egypt,² he said.

³When the Taba Marriott opens later this year after an expansion project

that will double its size, it will be our third resort on the Red Sea, along

with our Hurghada and Sharm el Sheikh resorts.²

He also cited Marriott International¹s portfolio expansion in Jordan. ³We

have been represented in Amman for 18 years and have had a shared vision

with Mr. Nadim Muasher, owner of the Amman Marriott, for the future of

Jordanian tourism,² he said. ³This vision is now coming to life with the

opening this year of the Petra Courtyard and the Jordan Valley Resort.²

Currently, the Marriott International lodging portfolio in the Middle East

and Africa consists of 21 hotels in nine countries offering 6,756 rooms and

spanning three lodging brands: Marriott Hotels, Resorts & Suites and

Renaissance Hotels, Resorts & Suites in the quality tier and Ramada

International Hotels & Resorts.