�We have so many projects under way right now that our technical services managers are finding themselves constantly traveling from site to site throughout Brazil,� said Paul J. Sistare, founder, president & CEO of Atlantica Hotels International. �Plus, we expect 2003 will be much like this year, with a flurry of travel from groundbreakings to grand openings.� 

Most of the new hotels are located in the northern and western part of Brazil, areas the São Paulo-based company targeted at this time last year. According to Sistare, Atlantica added 20 new projects to its inventory, making 2002 the second best year in terms of development.  The previous best year occurred in 1999 when the Brazilian currency was devalued by 25 percent as investors sought additional financial refuge in income-producing alternatives. 

Atlantica has opened a new property approximately every 20 days through 2002. Sistare said he expected the expansion to continue with 17 hotels scheduled to open in 2003 and another 38 hotels slated to open in 2004 and 2005. 

Even as the global economic uncertainty continues, Sistare predicted Atlantica will continue its high-growth pace. In addition to the properties already under construction, Atlantica will break ground on at least 15 more new hotels in 2003, says Sistare. �Added to those operating hotels and those under construction, Atlantica�s inventory will exceed 100 hotels sometime next year.� Sistare adds that these hotels will continue to be in the solid mid-market products but hints at a few upscale projects to be announced in major Brazilian secondary cities. 

Atlantica-managed hotels have also continued to outperform the global hotel market as well as the Brazilian market as indicated by the company-wide 8.7 percent increase in year-on-year RevPar. The growth was fueled by especially strong third and fourth quarter results as the Brazilian economy began to stabilize and interregional business strengthened. Atlantica resort properties did especially well as Brazilians �rediscovered� the beauty of their own country and were forced to reality as the local currency traded at almost 4 to 1 to the US dollar, said Sistare

�We believe our continued double digit expansion in hotel growth has come from our strong portfolio of brands in the market, but more from the fact our hotels consistently deliver higher returns to our owners than our competition,� emphasizes Sistare. �Over the years, we have invested a great deal in our infrastructure to include features not normally offered by traditional management companies, such as a centralized reservations center, strong centralized sales and the training of our people to aggressively deliver results.� 

Sistare pointed out that Atlantica alone delivers more than 20 percent of the systemwide revenue through its consolidated sales systems � including a centralized reservations center � outside of its brand partners. He also credited Atlantica�s aggressive recruitment of marketing alliances with airlines, rental cars, credit card companies and banks. �Given our size and distribution, our marketing partners are delighted to participate with us since we all benefit,� said Sistare.  �In the next few months, we will be launching some aggressive and creative programs that we believe will change the way hotels are perceived in South America.� 

By the numbers

Below are some of the key events and benchmarks that marked 2002:

• The company presently operates 30 hotels with a total of 5,043 rooms. These hotels represent US $328 million in assets. The company opened approximately one hotel every 20 days throughout the year.

• The company will open 17 hotels with 2,979 rooms in 2003.

• The total number of properties under contract and either open or under construction with Atlantica represent 13,450 rooms blanketing Brazil from the north to the south and far west. 

• All hotels are debt free as Atlantica and its partners have raised more than US $875 million in equity. 

• Atlantica experienced significant gains of 8.7 percent in RevPar and saw a net gain of 10 occupancy percentage points, while the occupancy and rates in Brazil as a whole are projected to fall below the prior year�s levels.  Some hotels � like the newly opened Quality Suites Vila Olympia and Quality Suites Bela Cintra (Atlantica�s unique extended stay concept) � experienced occupancy of more than 70 percent just 30 days after opening and have sustained those levels.

• One of the company�s most ambitious projects for next year is the opening in June of the 520-room Quality Hotel and Suites Congonhas Airport in São Paulo. The US $34 million hotel and apartment complex is located next to the busiest airport in South America.

Atlantica Hotels International is South America�s first and only traditional hotel-management company and the largest operator of multiple hotel brands in South America today. The company operates selected brands from Choice, Radisson and Starwood hotels. The company�s primary development efforts are focused in Brazil targeted at the mid market business traveler hotel. 

The company is a full-service hospitality entity that provides hotel, residential and office  management, design, site analysis, construction and other services to hotel and resort and multi-use owners and developers.