News Releases

HYATT ANNOUNCES PLANS FOR HYATT PLACE SAN JOSE PINARES, THE FIRST HYATT HOTEL IN COSTA RICA
Property becomes the second Hyatt Place under development in Latin America

CHICAGO (January 12, 2010) – Hyatt Hotels Corporation (NYSE: H) announced today that a Hyatt affiliate has signed an agreement with Hotelera Pinares, S. A., a subsidiary of Strategic Hospitality Investments Corporation, to manage Hyatt Place San Jose Pinares, a Hyatt Place hotel in San Jose, Costa Rica.

The new property, the second Hyatt Place under development in Latin America, will be part of Momentum Pinares, a mixed use commercial complex being developed on the east side of Costa Rica’s capital that will include an approximately 97,000 square foot office tower, a 48,000 square foot medical building, a movie theatre, and shopping mall with 75,000 square feet of retail space.

A Hyatt affiliate will manage the 120-room Hyatt Place, which is expected to open in mid-2012. It will be the first internationally branded hotel in the vibrant east side of San Jose. 

“Hyatt is actively looking to grow its Hyatt Place brand throughout Latin America and we are excited to be working with Strategic Hospitality Investments Corporation on our first Hyatt Place project in Central America” says Pat McCudden, Hyatt Hotels & Resorts’ Senior Vice President of Development for Latin America and the Caribbean.

Hyatt Place hotels are under development in the U.S., India, and Panama.  Hyatt’s current Latin America portfolio includes hotels in Argentina, Brazil, Chile, and Mexico.

Momentum Pinares is being developed through a joint venture with Desarrolladores 506, a company with over 30 years of experience in urban design and construction in Costa Rica.

Strategic Hospitality Investments Corporation is part of the hotel division managed by GrupoCuestamoras, which is engaged in the development of a hotel portfolio in Costa Rica and other countries in Latin America. Strategic Hospitality Investments Corporation has engaged Sinergo Development Group to develop its hotel portfolio. Sinergo Development Group has over 20 years of experience in the hotel development and asset management business.

GrupoCuestamoras is a corporate asset manager in multiple sectors and a professional investment and business management company, conducting business through alliances with diligently selected partners. The company develops and undertakes ventures in which its experience, knowledge and tradition add strategic value.

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About Hyatt Hotels Corporation

Hyatt Hotels Corporation, headquartered in Chicago, is a leading global hospitality company with a proud heritage of making guests feel more than welcome. Thousands of members of the Hyatt family in 45 countries strive to make a difference in the lives of the guests they encounter every day by providing authentic hospitality. The Company’s subsidiaries manage, franchise, own and develop hotels and resorts under the Hyatt®, Park Hyatt®, Andaz®, Grand Hyatt®, Hyatt Regency®, Hyatt Place® and Hyatt Summerfield Suites® brand names and have locations under development on five continents. Hyatt Residential Group, Inc., a Hyatt Hotels Corporation subsidiary, develops and operates vacation ownership properties under the Hyatt Vacation Club® brand. As of September 30, 2010, the Company’s worldwide portfolio consisted of 447 properties. For more information, please visit www.hyatt.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

Statements in this press release, which are not historical facts, are “forward-looking” statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.  These statements include statements about our plans, strategies, financial performance, prospects or future events and involve known and unknown risks that are difficult to predict.  As a result, our actual results, performance or achievements may differ materially from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements.  In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by the use of words such as “may,” “could,” “expect,” “intend,” “plan,” “seek,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “estimate,” “predict,” “potential,” “continue,” “likely,” “will,” “would” and variations of these terms and similar expressions, or the negative of these terms or similar expressions.  Such forward-looking statements are necessarily based upon estimates and assumptions that, while considered reasonable by us and our management, are inherently uncertain.  Factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from current expectations include, among others, the depth and duration of the current economic downturn; levels of spending in the business, travel and leisure industries as well as consumer confidence; declines in occupancy and average daily rate; hostilities, including future terrorist attacks, or fear of hostilities that affect travel; travel-related accidents; changes in the tastes and preferences of our customers; relationships with associates and labor unions and changes in labor law; the financial condition of, and our relationships with, third-party property owners, franchisees and hospitality venture partners; risk associated with potential acquisitions and dispositions and the introduction of new brand concepts; changes in the competitive environment in our industry and the markets where we operate; outcomes of legal proceedings; changes in federal, state, local or foreign tax law; fluctuations in currency exchange rates; general volatility of the capital markets and our ability to access the capital markets. A more complete description of these risks and uncertainties can be found in our filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, including our Annual Report on Form 10-K.  We caution you not to place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements, which are made as of the date of this press release. We undertake no obligation to update publicly any of these forward-looking statements to reflect actual results, new information or future events, changes in assumptions or changes in other factors affecting forward-looking statements, except to the extent required by applicable laws.  If we update one or more forward-looking statements, no inference should be drawn that we will make additional updates with respect to those or other forward-looking statements.

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Laurie Cole
Hyatt Hotels Corporation
(312) 780-5935
laurie.cole@hyatt.com