Marriott to manage 218-room Courtyard by Marriott London Gatwick Airport

Marriott International's moderately priced Courtyard by Marriott hotel portfolio in the United Kingdom will get a “new look” with the 2008 opening of the 218-room Courtyard by Marriott London Gatwick Airport under a franchise agreement with Kew Green Hotels.

The move follows Kew Green’s decision to re-brand the 11 Courtyards currently in its UK hotel system and Marriott’s recent unveiling in Paris of its new prototype for Courtyard hotels in Europe.

“With our partners, we are taking a new direction with our Courtyard brand in the United Kingdom and the rest of Europe to keep the brand fresh and relevant to today’s travelers,” said Ed Fuller, president and managing director of international lodging for Marriott International.

“European business travelers, including those in the United Kingdom, are looking for quality, innovation, functionality, service and style at a fair price. We are confident that this newly designed, stylish, contemporary Courtyard with its distinctive European flair will be an immediate hit with the traveling public. It will offer the right price-value balance while delivering the consistency of product and service for which Courtyard is world-renowned,” Mr. Fuller added.

“Because traveler expectations for Courtyard vary geographically, we have gone to great lengths to design a hotel product especially for the upper-moderate European travel market,” Mr. Fuller said. “We expect to open approximately 50 of these hotels in Europe over the next five years.”

Marriott has identified in excess of 20 cities in urban, suburban and airport locations in the United Kingdom and Ireland where its Courtyard brand would be desirable and successful in servicing the needs of the business traveler. Specific sites will include stand-alone locations or mixed-use developments in city centers and close-in suburban areas.

The Courtyard by Marriott London Gatwick Airport will be located within easy reach of the airport’s South Terminal. Guest transportation will be provided to the South Terminal and complimentary monorail transit will transport travelers to the North Terminal. Trains run frequently from Gatwick International Airport to Victoria Station in London and the hotel will have direct access to the M23 and surrounding motorway network.

Courtyard by Marriott London Gatwick Airport guest rooms will be equipped with high-speed Internet access, a large work desk with conveniently placed lighting, ergonomic chair for comfort, flat screen TVs offering cable/satellite programming, luxury bedding and coffee maker/tea service.

The new Courtyard by Marriott London Gatwick Airport will boast a contemporary signature open lobby which couples an informal ambience with comfortable seating, a lobby lounge and bar and a colorful three-meal restaurant called Oleo Pazzo Mediterranean Bistro.

Other amenities will include a health and leisure club, a business center, room service and on-site parking.

For conferences and social events, the Courtyard by Marriott London Gatwick Airport will provide 122-square meters of space comprised of two meeting rooms, one of which will be divisible into three sections and the second of which can be divided into two sections.

Marriott introduced Courtyard in 1983. Since then, it has grown to be Marriott’s largest brand with 700 hotels in 24 countries and territories.

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