BridgeStreet Worldwide First to Offer Concierge Services to Corporate Housing Guests Through Agreement With VIPdesk.

Business Editors/Travel Writers

WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 21, 2002

BridgeStreet Corporate Housing Worldwide, the leading international provider of corporate housing to business travelers, today announced that it has signed an agreement with VIPdesk, the world's leading Internet provider of concierge services.

Beginning December 1, VIPdesk will offer a full array of concierge services to BridgeStreet's corporate housing guests throughout North America, London and Paris. The new service, called BridgeStreet Concierge, will be available through multiple access points, including the Internet, via a toll-free number and through Web-enabled telephones and PDAs. BridgeStreet is the first corporate housing provider to offer global, 24/7 concierge services to its guests.

"VIPdesk is a natural fit with BridgeStreet's corporate housing product," said Thomas Vincent, president, BridgeStreet Corporate Housing Worldwide. "Our core customer is the business traveler who is accustomed to a high level of service and routinely travels to new cities where he or she has no previous experience. Now business travelers can get the same specialized services at their corporate apartment as those offered at the most upscale hotels in the world, and on a 24/7 basis.

"This agreement is part of BridgeStreet's ongoing strategy to expand the scope of value-added services available to our guests," he said. "The typical business traveler views concierge services as a necessity rather than a privilege. VIPdesk takes the traditional concept to a new, 'virtual' level. We view the addition of concierge services in a non-hotel setting as a unique and significant competitive advantage for us."

VIPdesk offers a full complement of concierge services, including fulfilling such traditional requests as obtaining hard-to-find show tickets, sports and recreation, travel research, weather reports, auto rental, entertainment suggestions. "These are highly trained professionals, mostly former hotel concierges, who provide the kind and level of service our guests need or are accustomed to getting."

VIPdesk's national network of local concierges also can provide virtual personal assistance when the guest returns home, including help with household tasks, like housekeeping, grocery delivery, errand running and personal shopping, as well as event-planning. "Guests pay a nominal, one-time charge for the BridgeStreet Concierge, which is available for the length of their visit and for up to one year on a personal basis after their first stay with us," Vincent said.

Guests will be able to make requests of the BridgeStreet Concierge either by phone by calling a toll-free number, by e-mail or via Web-enabled phones and PDAs. Guests may access local information for 52 major cities on the Internet by clicking on "BridgeStreet Concierge" on the BridgeStreet Web site, www.bridgestreet.com.

Privately held VIPdesk is based in Alexandria, Va. Its nationwide network of local concierge specialists serves more than 10.5 million users worldwide. For more information, visit www.vipdesk.com.

BridgeStreet, a wholly owned subsidiary of Interstate Hotels & Resorts (NYSE: IHR), is the industry's leading provider of worldwide corporate housing accommodations to business travelers. Together with Global Home Network, they offer corporate apartments throughout the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, France, and 40 other countries around the world. BridgeStreet properties meet uncompromising standards of quality, comfort and service. BridgeStreet is headquartered in Washington, D.C. For more information, visit www.bridgestreet.com.

This press release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 about MeriStar Hotels & Resorts, including those statements regarding future operating results and the timing and composition of revenues, among others. Except for historical information, the matters discussed in this press release are forward-looking statements that are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause the actual results to differ materially, including the following: the ability of the company to cope with the economic disruption resulting from the terrorist attacks that occurred on September 11, 2001; the ability of the company to successfully implement its acquisition strategy and operating strategy; the company's ability to manage rapid expansion; changes in economic cycles; competition from other hospitality companies; and changes in the laws and government regulations applicable to the company. For a more detailed description of some of those risks and uncertainties, please read the sections titled "Risk Factors" and "Special Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements" in the annual report on Form 10-K of MeriStar Hospitality Corporation for the year ended December 31, 2001

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    CONTACT: Thom Vincent, 202/295-2334
             or
             Daly Gray (Media)
             Jerry Daly or Carol McCune, 703/435-6293

    KEYWORD: DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA
    INDUSTRY KEYWORD: TRAVEL TRANSPORTATION PRODUCT
    SOURCE: BRIDGESTREET CORPORATE HOUSING WORLDWIDE