Beijing (August 26, 2003) -- Shangri-La Hotel, Beijing will begin a $72 million renovation  and  construction  project this month. Spanning two phases, the upgrade  program  will  comprise a total refurbishment of the public areas, guestrooms  and restaurants in the existing tower and the construction of a new  luxury  tower.  The hotel's extensive Chinese landscaped garden, which features  a  koi  pond,  pavilions and a waterfall, will also be beautified during the project. The  first  phase  of  the program, which will cost US$22 million, began in August

Shangri-La Hotel, Beijing 29 Zizhuyuan Road Beijing, China

As part of the upgrade, the hotel's restaurants will undergo a major facelift. In  particular, the Coffee Garden, to be renamed Cafe Cha, will adopt a new open kitchen design concept, integrating a number of exciting cooking stations  Italian, Asian, Indian, seafood, sushi and others  into a full  performance buffet, with the stunning hotel garden as backdrop. The signature Shang Palace Chinese restaurant will be relocated to the second floor of the hotel and redesigned to take advantage of the full view of the garden.

The second phase of the hotel's upgrade program is the construction of a new  20-story tower scheduled to commence at the end of 2003 for completion in mid  2006.  The US$50 million tower, which will connect to the hotel's main building, will feature Shangri-La, Beijing's new Horizon Club executive floors. The tower will house 200 luxurious guest rooms with a minimum size of 485 square feet and a range of deluxe specialty suites, including  the presidential suites.  Other new facilities will include a 17,000-square-foot Grand Ballroom; 18 elegant multi-use function rooms with the  latest audio-visual technology; a fitness center including a 25 meter indoor  swimming pool; a luxurious spa; a Shanghainese restaurant; an Italian  restaurant;  an entertainment club; and exclusive luxury brand shopping facilities.

Commenting on the announcement of the re-imaging program, the hotel's general manager, George Wee, said: "With the luxurious and innovative designs and the  up-to-date facilities and amenities, the upgrade program will completely transform the hotel into one of the best that Beijing can offer.  One of our main aims is also to provide cutting edge IT facilities, including  wireless Internet access, to  our corporate clientele, predominantly from the neighboring Zhongguancun (Beijing's Silicon Valley) and the Financial District."

Shangri-La Hotel, Haikou will open in 2005

Shangri-La  Hotels and Resorts, continues to expand on the mainland, where it  already has 16 hotels, with the announcement of a new management agreement to operate a deluxe hotel in Haikou, Hainan Province in southern China. The 364-room Shangri-La Hotel, Haikou will open in 2005 following an agreement signed with Hainan First Investment Group.

Designed as the tallest building in Haikou, the 518-foot and 40-story high hotel is  centrally  located in the city's commercial district, 30 minutes from Haikou  International  Airport and 15 minutes from the main railway station and harbor. The Shangri-La Hotel, Haikou will have large, spacious rooms  with the standard rooms  ranging between an impressive 452 to 592 square feet in size. There will be 120 junior suites, two senior suites and four presidential suites measuring 5,382 square feet. Other facilities include a wide  range of restaurants and extensive meeting and recreation facilities including a spa and swimming pool.

Commenting on the  new  project, Giovanni Angelini, Shangri-La's chief executive  officer and managing  director,  said:  "Our aim is for the Shangri-La Hotel, Haikou to be the leading business hotel in Hainan Province. It will complement  Shangri-La's Sunny Bay Resort, Sanya near Yalong Bay, which will also open in 2005, as our first full beach resort in China."

Jiang Hui Cheng, the chairman of Hainan First Investment Group, said: "We are  delighted  to bring the award-winning Shangri-La brand to Hainan as we believe  that  the  opening  of the hotel will encourage more international visitors  to  the  island  and  contribute to Hainan's development as a key destination for both business and leisure visitors."

Haikou  is the capital city of Hainan province with a total  population  of  almost  a  million.  As the largest  city and the province's  commercial  and  business  center,  Haikou  has  one of the top international  airports in China with direct flights to and from Hong Kong, Macau,  Singapore,  Malaysia and Thailand.  Hainan province was established as  a  Special  Economic Zone in 1988 and is known as the "Hawaii of China" for  its  acres  of beaches in the south, dense vegetation and lilting palm trees.

Shangri-La  currently has 41 hotels in its portfolio in Australia, mainland China,   Fiji,   Hong  Kong,  Indonesia,  Malaysia,  Myanmar,  Philippines, Singapore,  Taiwan,  Thailand  and  the  United  Arab Emirates, with a room inventory  of  over  21,000.   In  addition,  it  has  over 20 hotels under development in China, Malaysia, the Maldives, Dubai and Oman.