60 Minutes of Darkness for a Bright Future Sets New Environmental Standard for Hyderabad Hotels

HYDERABAD, INDIA--(Marketwire - Apr 13, 2012) - Hyderabad Marriott Hotel & Convention Centre, one of the premier Hyderabad luxury hotels, celebrated 'Earth Hour 2012' by turning off all non essential lights and hosting an exclusive evening for city socialites and in-house guests on 31^st March 2012.

Earth Hour is a global campaign by the World Wide Federation to inspire governments, businesses, communities and individuals to take a stand against climate change and global warming. The initiative encourages communities to turn off all non essential electrical appliances for 60 minutes, contributing to a brighter future for the planet.

The hotel's participation in 'Earth Hour 2012' demonstrates that in addition to offering enticing Hyderabad hotel packages, the hotel is also committed to raising awareness for important global issues. The hotel ran a promotional campaign on the radio channel 92.7 Big FM; announcing its participation for 'Earth Hour 2012.' This campaign encouraged city denizens to share their views on topics such as 'depletion of planet Earth, global warming and role of technology in climatic variations.' The 5 lucky winners of the campaign were awarded free entry to the exclusive evening hosted by Hyderabad Marriott on the occasion of 'Earth Hour.'

The hotel management with the help of guest room letters also requested in-house guests to turn off their room lights and join the hotel team at the Amethyst Garden area of the Hyderabad 5 star hotel.

On the evening of 31^st March 2012 all non essential lights were turned off at the hotel; and a play named 'I Will If You Will' by Octopus Theatre Group was featured in the dark. The play, originally in Gibberish, showed two people stuck in the darkness of an elevator who end up revealing a lot about how technology and power have affected their life. An acoustic duo by a local band, Winnie & Tibo, entertained guests to the rhythms of classic, retro and hip hop music.

A specially crafted 'Organic Menu' was served during the event. This menu was created by the renowned chefs of Okra, one of our in-house restaurants. If one is looking for superb restaurants, Hyderabad offers many unique options, but the restaurants and lounges at Hyderabad Marriott Hotel & Convention Center are among the best in the area.

Ms. Nishanti, Renowned Tollywood actress, and other socialites, graced the evening with their support towards the initiative.

Giving an insight to the initiative, Mr. Ramesh Jackson, General Manager, Hyderabad Marriott Hotel & Convention Centre stated, "Marriott as a company always believes in Spirit to Serve the community. With this initiative we have made an effort to compensate our role in giving back to community we live in."

About Marriott International Inc. (NYSE: MAR): Marriott International operates and franchises hotels under the Marriott, JW Marriott, The Ritz-Carlton, Renaissance, Residence Inn, Courtyard, TownePlace Suites, Fairfield Inn, SpringHill Suites and Bulgari brand names; develops and operates vacation ownership resorts under the Marriott Vacation Club, Horizons by Marriott Vacation Club, The Ritz-Carlton Club and Grand Residences by Marriott brands; operates Marriott Executive Apartments; provides furnished corporate housing through its Marriott ExecuStay division; and operates conference centers. The company is headquartered in Bethesda, Md., and had approximately 151,000 employees at 2007 year-end. It is ranked as the lodging industry's most admired company and one of the best companies to work for by FORTUNE®, and has been recognized by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) with the 2007 Sustained Excellence Award and Partner of the Year since 2004. In fiscal year 2007, Marriott International reported sales from continuing operations of $13 billion. For more information or reservations, please visit our web site at www.marriott.com.