BETHESDA, Md. /QUEBEC CITY, Quebec, July 17, 2003 � Urgo Hotels, a major developer, owner and operator of upscale hotels, today announced the opening of the 111-room Quebec City Courtyard by Marriott.  It is the first Marriott-branded hotel in the province�s capital city.  The property is strategically located in the heart of the downtown commercial district, directly across the street from the Quebec Convention Center, and within easy walking distance to the city�s primary business centers and tourist attractions.  It is the third new hotel opened by the company in the province in the past two years.  The company also has opened four hotels in the U.S. in the past two years.

�We built and furnished the Quebec City Courtyard with the goal of making it one of the city�s finest properties,� said Kevin Urgo, senior vice president.  �We took advantage of the charm and style of an existing historic building and added all of the modern conveniences to meet the needs of today�s business, government and leisure travelers.�

Urgo said the company continues to seek other development opportunities in Quebec City and the province.  �We believe market conditions in the province are highly favorable for the addition of internationally branded hotels, and are seeing more opportunities in the U.S.  We currently are looking at a number of options in Quebec City and are in the final development stages for two upscale, internationally franchised hotels near the Montreal airport,� he said.  �We plan to develop these hotels either in joint ventures or for our own account.�

The hotel was created by converting an historic, eight-story, Art Deco style-former bank and office building opened in 1932 and integrating it with an adjacent, newly constructed eight-story addition. The main entrance is located on Place D�Youville at the Saint Jean Gate, one of the main entrances to the historic Old City of Quebec.  The property is within easy walking distance of the city�s historic Old City, Old Port of Quebec, the Provincial Parliament, City Hall and the G Building.  A secondary entrance on Boulevard Dufferin is directly across from the Quebec Convention Center. 

The immediate area around the Quebec City Courtyard features restaurants, theatres, boutiques, banks and a major indoor parking facility.  Place D�Youville is one of the city�s most popular open air entertainment plazas and provides many of the city�s cultural and tourism events, including the internationally recognized Quebec Winter Carnival and Quebec Summer Festival. The property also is near the underground Place Quebec Shopping Mall.  The hotel enjoys unobstructed views of the Old City of Quebec and the Saint Lawrence River.

�Quebec City is experiencing a renaissance of new growth and development, both economically and socially,� said Dany Thibault, hotel general manager.  �We are well positioned to quickly become the market leader in this thriving area.�

The hotel�s two-story grand lobby features vaulted ceilings and a magnificent, stone fireplace originally from a French chateau and a spectacular, large stained glass picture portraying a significant event in the French colonization of Quebec, as well as Que Sera Sera, a French bistro and lounge which seats 100 people and incorporates the lobby�s iron balustrade mezzanine.  A library, business center, sundry shop and 2,000 square feet of meeting space also are part of the ground floor public space.  The hotel also provides a health club with a Jacuzzi/spa and exercise room/fitness center.

Urgo Hotels is a Bethesda, Md.-based hotel company that develops, owns and operates distinctive and unique hotels under Marriott and Hilton flags in major markets in the United States and Canada.  The company�s other Quebec province properties include the Marriott Residence Inn and Homewood Suites by Hilton in Mont-Tremblant and the Marriott Springhill Suites in Old Montreal, the historic district in downtown Montreal.  The company also owns and/or operates 10 upscale hotels in the United States, has two properties under construction and eight properties under development.