Four Seasons Hotels And Resorts Announces Seven New Properties To Expanding Global Portfolio.

Business Editors

TORONTO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Feb. 17, 2000

Four Seasons Hotels(TSE:FSH.) (ME:FSH.) (NYSE:FS) Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts today announced plans for seven additional properties scheduled to open over the next three years in strategic cities and resort destinations around the world. Included in the new properties is a ski resort, in Whistler, British Columbia, Canada, as well as resorts in the Bahamas at Great Exuma; Guanacaste, Costa Rica; Cote d'Azur, France; and San Miguel, Puerto Rico. Two urban hotels are also in the planning stages for Alexandria, Egypt; and Beirut, Lebanon. Previously announced openings include new Four Seasons hotels in Budapest, Cairo, Caracas, Dublin, Prague, San Francisco, Shanghai and Sharm El Sheikh, which are all moving forward as planned.

Commenting on the announcement, Isadore Sharp, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts said &uot;This is an exciting time for Four Seasons, as we undergo the largest expansion in our 40-year history. All these projected openings are in keeping with Four Seasons' focused growth strategy, which targets key destinations, both resort and urban, where we will operate as long-term managers of luxury hotel properties&uot;.

The focus on resort destinations presents increased long-term potential for expanding the Four Seasons brand. These projects generally include superior spa and golf facilities, and often will include a Four Seasons Residence Club, our residential interval ownership product. Also in these plans is Four Seasons' entry into traditional ski territory. President and Chief Corporate Officer Kathleen Taylor commented &uot;This expansion provides the possibility of enhanced revenue potential from a variety of sources within mixed-use developments, including the hotel, residential and golf facilities.&uot;

At the two urban locations, Four Seasons hotels will introduce a new level of quality for both business and leisure travelers, featuring renowned Four Seasons services and superb facilities. Each of these hotels will include the city's most spacious guestrooms and suites. The introduction of sophisticated business facilities and state-of-the-art meeting space will create attractive new options for corporate travelers and meeting planners. Recreational facilities at each property will include a health club and pool, ideal for the use of leisure visitors to these historic and culturally rich ancient cities. Visitors to each of these new properties will experience the elegance, and the personalized intuitive service enjoyed by Four Seasons' guests around the world.

Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts is the world's leading operator of luxury hotels and currently manages 47 properties in 19 countries, primarily under the Four Seasons and Regent brand names. December 1999 marked the opening of Four Seasons Hotel Canary Wharf, in London; Four Seasons Hotel George V, Paris; and Four Seasons Resort Scottsdale at Troon North. A vacation ownership development at the Scottsdale property will open in April 2000. These hotels join the company's other new 1999 properties: Four Seasons Resort Punta Mita, Mexico, with a vacation ownership development opening in 2001, and Four Seasons Hotel Las Vegas, the only AAA Five Diamond hotel in Nevada. Hotels poised to enter the market in 2000 include: Cairo, Egypt; Dublin, Ireland; Caracas, Venezuela; and Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt. While most hotels bear the respective names of Four Seasons or Regent, some do not, including The Ritz-Carlton in Chicago and The Pierre in New York. Four Seasons Hotels Inc. is traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol FS and the Toronto Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol FSH. Information on the company can be accessed through the Four Seasons web site at www.fourseasons.com.

New property details follow in a two-page attachment.

New Four Seasons Resorts Planned

Four Seasons Resort Great Exuma at Emerald Bay, The Bahamas, is scheduled to open in late 2001. Set within a larger, master-planned residential resort community on 470 acres, the 235-room property will be developed by Emerald Bay Resort and Co. and its affiliates. The mixed-use project will feature a Four Seasons branded championship golf course designed by Greg Norman, with accompanying clubhouse, a 60-unit Four Seasons Residence Club, a full-service spa, and multiple dining venues.

Four Seasons Resort Whistler, Canada, with a proposed opening in the fourth quarter of 2002, will be developed by Intrawest Corporation, a leading operator and developer of year-round destination resorts across North America. The new Four Seasons will be located at the base of Blackcomb Mountain within the British Columbia Coastal Mountains. The development is still subject to certain local development approvals. In 1999, the region attracted two million skier days, and offers excellent lift services. Snow-boarding and heli-skiing facilities are also offered. Summer activities include hiking, mountain-biking, white-water rafting and golf. With spectacular views of Blackcomb Mountain to the east and Whistler Mountain to the west as well as Sproat and Rainbow Mountains, the 254-room property will feature ski concierge service, a full spa with health club and outdoor pool, a restaurant/bar, meeting facilities and underground parking. Guests will enjoy convenient access to numerous championship golf courses, including Whistler Golf Club, Chateau Whistler Golf Club, Big Sky and Nicklaus North.

Four Seasons Resort Costa Rica on the Papagayo Peninsula in the province of Guanacaste is to be developed by Ecodesarrollo Papagayo and associates in conjunction with Four Seasons. With a projected opening date in late 2002, the property will be a part of a larger planned residential resort community encompassing 2,250 acres of the peninsula, including prime Pacific Ocean beachfront climbing to a 320-foot plateau overlooking Virador Bay and Banca Bay. The site is 10 miles from the new Liberia International Airport. The Hotel's 170 guest rooms and suites and 40 villa units will be designed in one- and two-story buildings forming a landscaped &uot;hillside village&uot; overlooking the ocean. The property will offer two dining venues plus poolside dining, a full-service spa and health club, four tennis courts and a tennis center, fresh-water swimming pools, water sports facilities, a Four Seasons championship golf course by a leading designer plus access to two additional courses, and a 40-unit Four Seasons Residence Club. A marina and possibly a casino are on the drawing board for the master resort project.

Four Seasons Resort Cote d'Azur, France, is expected to open in the spring of 2002, following development by Coreal Management on behalf of Golf Resort &uot;Terre Blanche&uot; S.A.R.L. Tourettes - Chateau Terre Blanche, a company controlled by Dietmar Hopp (one of the founders of SAP AG) and his sons. The Hotel will be part of a larger mixed-residential and resort community on a 658-acre site near the Provencal village of Fayence, about 15 miles north-east of Cannes. With views of Tourrettes, Fayence and the Haut-Maritime Alps, the 100-room property will have on-site a tennis center and two David Thomas-designed championship golf courses, all to be managed by Four Seasons. The development will also include a 150-unit residential villa complex.

Four Seasons Resort Puerto Rico, with a projected 2003 opening, the Company has entered into an agreement for the development of Four Seasons Resort Puerto Rico within the larger resort community proposed for the site on the northeast coast of the island known as San Miguel. The Hotel will offer 350 guest rooms and suites, multiple dining venues and 30,000 square feet of meeting space. Recreational areas will include a casino, a tennis center, beach club, and at least one Four Seasons branded championship golf course by a major designer. Future plans include a 100-unit vacation home development and Four Seasons Residence Club.

New Four Seasons City Hotels Planned

Four Seasons Hotel Alexandria, Egypt, is located within a multi-component project on the site of the former San Stefano Hotel on Shari El Corniche, overlooking the Mediterranean. Talaat Mostafa, the developer, is also responsible for two other Four Seasons properties in Egypt (Four Seasons Resort Sharm El Sheikh and Four Seasons Hotel, Cairo at Nile Plaza). The 120-room Hotel will offer spectacular views of the Mediterranean Sea, three restaurants,

a tea lounge, library bar and a cafe/bistro. A sophisticated business center is planned, plus meeting space and an independent ballroom facility. Recreational facilities will include a health club and outdoor pool. The Hotel will additionally service 120 residential units.

Four Seasons Hotel Beirut, Lebanon, is to be developed for a late 2002 opening by Kingdom-Beirut S.A.L. on one of the most prestigious sites in the city's Central Business District, which has recently undergone a major re-development program with new infrastructure. This area is a prime focus in the city's re-positioning as a leading commercial, financial and cultural center of the Middle East. Located on the Corniche, opposite a new marina and adjacent to a large park now in planning, the Hotel will offer both ocean and mountain views. Historic sites and the Souk shopping district are a short walk away. The mixed-use site will include residences, retail outlets and offices. The Hotel structure is expected to feature a seven-story podium and a 19-story tower housing 287 guest rooms and suites, with a small health club and pool on top. Two restaurants will be complemented by a tea lounge and library bar; a business center and meeting space will open up new options for corporate travelers.