| VAIL, Colo., June 27, 2005 - Vail Resorts, Inc. announced today that
it closed its transaction to sell the Vail Marriott Mountain Resort &
Spa for $62 million to DiamondRock Hospitality Limited Partnership ("DiamondRock").
The hotel will retain its current name and will remain branded as a full-service
Marriott resort. Vail Resorts, through its Vail Resorts Lodging Company
subsidiary, will continue to manage the resort for 15 years, through 2020,
under a management contract with DiamondRock that is co-terminus with the
Marriott franchise agreement for the hotel.
Adam Aron, Vail Resorts chairman and chief executive officer, commented,
"We are excited by the sale of the Vail Marriott, as Vail Resorts has benefited
significantly from our acquisition of this hotel just 3 and 1/2 years ago.
First, our substantial renovation of the property has given Vail guests
a much more attractive lodging option. Second, we believe we received an
attractive price in the now consummated sale. Third, our retention of a
long-term management agreement for the hotel is financially beneficial
for us, as it gives us a stream of management fees for 15 years. Additionally,
our managing the hotel will allow us to have greater participation in the
Vail lodging community going forward. And fourth, we have retained two
key real estate development parcels, much of which land came to us with
the purchase of the hotel in 2001. We currently anticipate that Gore Creek
Place and the Ritz-Carlton Residences, Vail will be built on these two
parcels, both of which could be quite lucrative if developed as planned."
Vail Resorts, Inc. is the leading mountain resort operator in the United
States. The Company's subsidiaries operate the mountain resorts of Vail,
Beaver Creek, Breckenridge and Keystone in Colorado, Heavenly in California
and Nevada, and the Grand Teton Lodge Company in Jackson Hole, Wyo. The
Company's subsidiary, RockResorts, a luxury resort hotel company, manages
casually elegant properties across the United States. Vail Resorts Development
Company is the real estate planning, development, and construction subsidiary
of Vail Resorts, Inc. Vail Resorts is a publicly held company traded on
the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: MTN - News). The Vail Resorts company
website is www.vailresorts.com and consumer website is www.snow.com.
Statements in this press release, other than statements of historical
information, are forward looking statements that are made pursuant to the
safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act
of 1995.
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