Starwood to Sell European Luxury Portfolio

WHITE PLAINS-Starwood Hotels & Resorts is selling off its European CIGA portfolio of high-end hotels, golf courses, marinas and several thousand acres of Sardinian coastal property. The assets are being actively marketed and the company expects to have offers in hand by mid-February.

Deutsche Bank, Jones Lang LaSalle Hotels and JP Morgan are advising Starwood on the disposition of the properties. While Starwood has previously stated its intention to market the CIGA properties, yesterday marks the first time the company has indicated that it will entertain offers for individual or groups of assets as well as offers for the entire portfolio. Starwood intends to continue managing the assets under various brands. Currently, the CIGA portfolio operates under the St Regis, Luxury Collection Westin and Sheraton brands.

“The CIGA portfolio is comprised of trophy assets that are unrivaled in the industry and we expect considerable interest and aggressive pricing,” states Starwood CFO Ron Brown. “EBITDA growth for this portfolio has been among our fastest and, consequently, this has been a very difficult decision but one that we believe will best recognize and enhance shareholder value.”