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 The 577-room Hilton Sydney Reopens After
a Three-year $200 million Reconstruction
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the Largest Single Site Investment Made
by Hilton International in its History

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SYDNEY, Australia - July 15, 2005 -- The Hilton Sydney will re-open for business today in the heart of the city, with a spectacular and ambitious new design, contemporary dining, exclusive bars, and state-of-the-art conference and events facilities.

Revitalizing the iconic 1970s building and 1980s interior into a contemporary, modern space has been a 30-month and a $200 million undertaking. The 577-room hotel has undergone a dramatic rooftop-to-basement reconstruction to produce a complete re-think on hotel form and function. Combined with the initial purchase cost, the hotel is the largest single site investment made by Hilton International in the group's history.

"After five years of hard work and dedication, we're thrilled to announce that the Hilton Sydney is complete and that this exceptional building is ready to make its mark on Sydney," said Koos Klein, President, Hilton International Middle East and Asia Pacific. "Situated on an entire city block between George and Pitt streets in the heart of the CBD, Hilton Sydney will be the leading upscale hotel in the city, offering corporate and leisure travellers a true Sydney experience."

Designed by Johnson Pilton Walker, the architects behind landmark projects such as the Sydney Opera House makeover, the Art Gallery of NSW, and Governor Phillip and Governor Macquarie Towers, Hilton Sydney has been redefined to become a contemporary hotel of this time.

The new-look hotel adds an abundance of space, natural light and capacity to the existing structure and was developed in sympathy with the grain, texture, scale and materials of the Town Hall and Queen Victoria Building heritage precinct.

From material choice to furnishing styles, Hilton Sydney's aesthetics will please guests with an eye for quality. Limestone lobby floors and walls create feelings of space and light, while extensive use of timber combined with plush fabrics provide a luxurious feel. State-of-the-art digital lighting has also been installed to create an ambient mood.

Features of the new Hilton Sydney include the removal of the original blank box five-story podium building to create a dramatic, sun-filled 20-meter lobby in the heart of the site that proudly displays Australian sculptor Bronwyn Oliver's aluminum masterpiece. Oliver's coiling spiral design is suspended from the lobby ceiling and twists down four levels into the spacious atrium. The breathtaking sculpture, featuring thousands of tiny aluminum pieces, took Oliver, an engineer, and a meticulous team of welders almost nine months to assemble.

Hilton Sydney is also home to a restaurant and bar designed by New York-based designer Tony Chi. Glass brasserie will be run by highly awarded local chef Luke Mangan, while renowned Sydney bartenders Grant Collins and Mike Enright will manage exclusive Zeta bar.

EVENTS & CONFERENCING

Located in the very heart of Sydney with immediate access to the city's vibrant attractions, the new-look Hilton Sydney offers the largest hotel conference space in Australia. Purposely designed and built for the conference, events and exhibition industry, the hotel offers four dedicated levels of space totaling 4,000 square meters and with a combined capacity for 3,000 delegates.

Hilton Sydney now features 23 events and conferencing spaces, including seven meetings rooms, two boardrooms, six specialty function rooms, a grand ballroom, a business center, and conference secretariat offices. The ballroom is the most sophisticated and technologically advanced in the Australian hotel market. With capacity for 1,200 theater-style delegates, it features animated lighting, concert-level sound systems and WiFi networking. Motorized trusses enable unprecedented event turnover to save you time and money, while our glass walls open to allow vehicle entry into the ballroom, three floors up.

An exhibition hall adjoins the ballroom offering space for over 100 exhibition booths and allows immediate access between events, while plasma-screen directional signage guides delegates to their meeting spaces. Multiple doors, expansive breakout space and numerous escalators are designed to transfer delegates smoothly and efficiently between all areas. Guest check-in and check-out facilities are located on two of the conference levels and in the spacious ground floor entrance lobby. Ample facilities can be found on every level with excellent access for those with special needs.

FOOD & BEVERAGE

At Hilton Sydney, food and beverage facilities include the Tony Chi-designed glass brasserie and Zeta bar, the heritage-listed Marble Bar, a street side casual eatery called Cafe Cino, and the contemporary George Adams Bar overlooking the streetscape.

An Australian first in hotel food and beverage, glass brasserie combines the internationally acclaimed interior design of New York designer Tony Chi, the exceptional culinary expertise of highly awarded local restaurateur Luke Mangan and the inspirational palette of Master of Wine Dr. Ron Georgiou to create an Australian evocation of the classic French brasserie.

Master of Wine Dr. Ron Georgiou has been appointed to create a three-dimensional "wine experience" at Hilton Sydney that reflects the best of Australian and international blue chip and boutique wines. One of only 14 Masters of Wine in Australia and 247 in the world, Dr. Georgiou has assembled a selection of over 10,000 expertly chosen bottles.

Zeta Bar is set to become a Sydney icon, both distinctively cosmopolitan and characteristically Australian. Zeta Sydney is a sister to the award-winning Zeta London, located at Hilton Park Lane, which is hailed as one of the Top 10 bars in London. Grant Collins and Mike Enright, two of Sydney's foremost bartenders, have been appointed to run the Hilton Sydney's Zeta Bar.

Staff will be dressed by internationally acclaimed Australian fashion designer, Tina Kalivas, who is most noted for her work in London during the 1990s at Alexander McQueen.

While the overall design of the Hilton Sydney offers a cool and contemporary re-think of hotel form and function, there is one place where visitors can relive the memories: the landmark Marble Bar. Hermetically sealed throughout the extensive three years of renovations, Marble Bar is a haven of Victorian excess and a stylish place to enjoy Aussie ale, fine wine or a cocktail.

Built in 1893, and now a designated national monument, the 112-year-old Heritage listed watering hole is home to artistic beauty and architectural magnificence. The bar was relocated from Tattersall's in 1973 and Hilton Sydney's original architect J.H. Bryant has assumed the role of Marble Bar historian, having published several journal articles on the history of the bar.

LIVING WELL

Hilton Sydney is home to the biggest hotel-based health club in Australia and the largest and most luxurious health club in the Sydney city center: a fully-equipped Living Well Premier Health Club.

Spanning the entire footprint of the building, the club includes a 25-meter indoor pool, cardiovascular gymnasium equipped with the latest interactive equipment, and a free weights area. In addition, there are two group fitness studios, which run classes including the full range of Les Mills body training classes (Body Pump, Body Combat, Body Attack, Body Step and Body Balance), spinning, Tai Chi, pilates and yoga.

There are also four saunas, steam rooms, a large spa pool and pampering treatments from The Sensory, Living Well's beauty concept. The Living Well Premier Health Club is free to hotel guests and open to club membership for busy city types who need a little time out.

About Hilton International: Hilton International (HI), an operating division of the UK based Hilton Group plc, owns the rights to the Hilton brand name throughout the world, with the exception of the USA, where the Hilton brand is owned and managed by Hilton Hotels Corporation (HHC). Hilton International operates 403 hotels, with 261 branded Hilton and 142 under the mid-market Scandic brand. Under a joint venture agreement, Hilton International and the North American based Hilton Hotels Corporation (HHC) share responsibility for the Conrad brand, which includes 17 hotels in 12 countries. A global marketing alliance between Hilton International and Hilton Hotels Corporation extends the number of hotels operated by both companies worldwide to over 2,700 -- over 500 of which are branded Hilton. Hilton International employs over 71,000 staff in 80 countries.

About Hilton Hotels Corporation: Hilton Hotels Corporation is recognized internationally as a preeminent hospitality company. The company develops, owns, manages or franchises more than 2,300 hotels, resorts and vacation ownership properties. Its properties include many of the world's best known and most highly regarded hotel brands including Hilton(R), Conrad(R), Doubletree(R), Embassy Suites Hotels(R), Hampton Inn(R), Hampton Inn & Suites(R), Hilton Garden Inn(R), Hilton Grand Vacations Club(R) and Homewood Suites by Hilton(R). For more information, visit www.hilton.com.
 

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Contact:

Hilton International
www.hilton.com

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Also See: The Hilton Sydney, Hilton International�s Australian Flagship Hotel Receiving A$400 million Makeover / Sept 2002
Hilton Worldwide Resorts Expanding with 14 New Resorts to Open In the Next Two Years / February 2005


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