 PANAMA CITY-- September 24, 2009 --Starwood Hotels &
Resorts Worldwide, Inc. (NYSE:HOT) today announced the opening of Le
Méridien Panama, the European rooted hotel brand’s first
property in Central America. Set in the heart of Panama’s cosmopolitan
capital city, Le Méridien Panama, owned by developers Bern
Hotels & Resorts Panama, is a modern, contemporary building located
on the edge of the Bay of Panama, boasting spectacular views of the
Pacific Ocean and the Panama City skyline.
Surrounded by the intimate cafes and chic galleries of Panama City’s
vibrant Uruguay Street, Le Méridien Panama is within the city’s
financial district and a short distance from Panama City’s major
tourism attractions, such as the Panama Canal, considered one of the
“Eight Wonders of the Modern World.”
“We take pride in this new hotel in Panama, as the property will be a
key hotel for international travelers interested in exploring the
modern and diversified culture of Panama,” said Osvaldo Librizzi,
President of Starwood Hotels & Resorts Latin America. “The pipeline
of Le Méridien hotels in Latin America has a focus on city
centre hotels and resorts in leisure destinations to complement the
brand’s footprint worldwide.”
“We are honored to open the first Le Méridien hotel in Central
America and look forward to being part of the brand’s development into
a contemporary lifestyle brand,” said Glen Champion, VP for Bern &
Hotels and Resorts Panama.
Designed by renowned Panamanian architect Mallol Ignacio, Le
Méridien Panama features a jaw-dropping double height entry with
an overturned glass pyramid that reflects vibrant colors throughout the
sleek black granite lobby. Offering 111 guestrooms, including 29
suites, the hotel also has 4,000 square feet of function space ideal
for corporate meetings and events as well as intimate social affairs.
In addition, Le Méridien Panama features a signature restaurant,
Latitudes, by Panamanian Chef Anibal Chiari, a contemporary fusion
concept of international cuisine that can seat 75 guests, including a
communal table and private dining room. Latitudes also offers Le
Méridien signature breakfast, which includes reinvented
favourites with components developed by three-star Michelin chef
Jean-Georges Vongerichten, and Coffee Culture, a global programme
developed in partnership with illycaffè. The hotel also offers
spa treatments in the Sensory Spa by Clarins with six treatment rooms
and a fully-equipped fitness center and outdoor pool and terrace,
overlooking the Bay of Panama.
“Le Méridien Panama marks a milestone in Le Méridien’s
global re-launch and transformation into a lifestyle brand as we open
in Central America for the first time and celebrate our 15th new Le
Méridien hotel since Starwood acquired the Le Méridien
brand in November 2005,” said Eva Ziegler, Global Brand Leader, Le
Méridien and W Hotels Worldwide. “Le Méridien‘s vision is
to transform the functional and transactional driven hotel experience
into an emotional connection with our guests, delivering a new
perspective through art and cuisine, the brand’s passion points, in a
relevant way in order to attract a new, aspirational audience – the
creative mind.”
Le Méridien Panama showcases the newly introduced global Le
Méridien arrival experience, curated by international arts
provocateur Jérôme Sans, the hotel brand’s cultural
curator since 2006, and developed together with members of the LM100,
Le Méridien’s family of cultural innovators. Le Méridien
arrival experience, designed to make the first ten minutes of the
guest’s stay memorable, consists of four signature elements, including
the transitional portal, which is a visual and audio “wall” of art and
sound at the entrance of the hotel that engulfs each guest to reset
their minds, leaving the outside world behind for the world of Le
Méridien; the sensory experience, illustrated through Le
Méridien signature scent, sound and use of light, creating a
unique and distinctive atmosphere; UNLOCK ART™ programme, which
features an artist designed key card collection that not only offers
access to the guestroom but also to Le Méridien affiliated
contemporary cultural centers; and lastly, the elevated experience,
which transforms the event of riding an elevator into an “elevating
experience” through sound.
At Le Méridien Panama the hotel’s transitional portal has been
developed by artist and LM100 Member Younès Rahmoun. His role
within LM100 originated when he was engaged by Le Méridien brand
to create the art pieces, entitled “Zahara 77 Flowers,” “Nisf
Sahâba” (Half Cloud) and “Sahâba / Massar” (Cloud /
Rangelands) for various Le Méridien transitional portals around
the world. The exclusive keycards at Le Méridien Panama, part of
the UNLOCK ART programme, have been created by American artist Sam
Samore and provides guests with access to the Museum of Contemporary
Art (MAC), one of Panama’s largest cultural and design institutions.
The scent at Le Méridien Panama has been developed by LM100
members Eddie Roschi and Fabrice Penot from Le Labo, an innovative
perfume company from New York, and the 24-hour music piece of the
transitional portal and elevated experience has been created by LM100
member, musician and composer Henri Scars Struck. In addition, Le
Méridien Panama has engaged local Panamanian artist Igor Kourany
to curate artwork throughout the hotel, including a large piece at the
entrance titled “Sky Dancers” that reflects the fiery colors and
vibrant urban landscape of Panama City.
About Le Méridien
Le Méridien, the French-born hotel brand currently represented
by 104 properties in 50 countries, was acquired by Starwood Hotels
& Resorts Worldwide, Inc. (NYSE: HOT) in November 2005. Since then,
Le Méridien has gone through a brand re-launch, which included
appointing a full-time Cultural Curator – French arts-provocateur
Jérôme Sans – and transforming numerous guest touch
points, thus bringing unique and interactive experiences to its guests.
With close to 80 of its properties located in Europe, Africa, the
Middle East, and Asia-Pacific, Le Méridien brand provides a
strong international complement to Starwood’s primarily North American
holdings. Plans call for dynamic expansion of Le Méridien hotels
and resorts within the next five years, concentrating in the U.S.,
Latin America, and Asia-Pacific, including destinations such as India,
Thailand and China. Le Méridien Hotels recently opened new
hotels in Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Shimei Bay (China), Dallas
and will open in Philadelphia, Xiamen, Chongqing Nan’an, and Qingdao
(China). in the coming months, and has recently signed new hotel deals
in Taipei, For more information, please visit www.lemeridien.com.
About Starwood Hotels
& Resorts Worldwide, Inc.
Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. is one of the leading
hotel and leisure companies in the world with 966 properties in more
than 100 countries and 145,000 employees at its owned and managed
properties.
Starwood Hotels is a fully integrated owner, operator and franchisor of
hotels, resorts and residences with the following internationally
renowned brands: St. Regis®, The Luxury Collection®, W®,
Westin®, Le Méridien®, Sheraton®, Four Points®
by Sheraton, and the recently launched Aloft®, and Element SM.
Starwood Hotels also owns Starwood Vacation Ownership, Inc., one of the
premier developers and operators of high quality vacation interval
ownership resorts. For more information, please visit www.starwoodhotels.com. |
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