HESPERIA TOWER HOTEL,

TECHNOLOGY AND AVANT-GARDE DESIGN

Turned into a reference of the new Barcelona’s skyline, the Hesperia Tower
hotel, designed by the prestigious architect Richard Rogers in conjunction with
Catalonian architects Alonso and Balaguer, is now part of the cityscape of
central Barcelona. The tower is 105 metres high, with 27 floors, topped by a
stunning glass dome, home to Santi Santamaría’s “Evo” restaurant.

The hotel has 280 luxury rooms, 12 duplex suites with Jacuzzi in the bedroom,
7 executive suites and 1 presidential suite. It also has a 5,000 m2 Convention
and Congress Centre, an innovative, top-class Sports and Urban Spa Centre -
Club Metropolitan -, along with the new central offices of the Hesperia Chain in
an adjacent building.

It is situated just a few minutes from the port and airport, at one of the most
important, strategic locations for communications and access to the city. It is in
the L’Hospitalet de Llobregat area of Barcelona, which has been undergoing a
major transformation since construction began there on the new Barcelona
Exhibition Centre site, Montjuïc 2.

The architecture studios of the Richard Rogers Partnership and Alonso and
Balaguer, were chosen to design this unique 5-star hotel. They are prestigious
names in architecture today and were selected for their international renown,
clear from the numerous hotel, landscaping, business and housing projects they
have carried out throughout the world.

ARCHITECTURE WITH BIOCLIMATIC TECHNOLOGY

The Hotel Hesperia Tower is a new hotel concept. Its unique character is no
coincidence. Richard Rogers, one of the world’s most prestigious architects and
recently awarded with the Pritzker Award, is the founder of a movement known
as high technology. He trained at the Architectural Association School of
Architecture in London and at Yale University. His works reflects his passion for
technology and the concept of the building as machine.
He is an enthusiastic urbanist and his projects focus on creating places for
people. Rogers’ work includes the Pompidou Centre in Paris, the Millennium
Dome in London, as well as the Lloyds, Reuters and Channel 4 buildings in
London. He also designed the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg,
the extension to Marseille’s airport and the South Bank Centre in Berlin and
London.

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He is known as the number one promoter of bioclimatic architecture, and
Rogers has used these techniques in the construction of the Hesperia Tower -
designed to reduce energy consumption and polluting emissions.

The architecture studio of Luis Alonso and Sergi Balaguer has carried out more
than 700 works and projects, for housing as well as public and privately
financed buildings.
In 1999, their company started working with Richard Rogers, and they are
currently working on 3 major projects together, such as the leisure complex at
“Les Arenes” former Bullring in Barcelona, the “Protos de Peñafiel” Winery at
Ribera del Duero in Valladolid province, and the Hesperia Tower Hotel in
Barcelona, together with its sports club Metropolitan.

Alonso and Balaguer are specialists in Bioclimatic Architecture, and they have
designed and headed projects for twelve Sports Clubs in different Spanish and
Chilean locations. They have received various national and international
awards; they have published a range of works, and are considered amongst the
best skyscraper architects in the world.

INTERIOR DESIGN

GCA Arquitectes Associats is the studio in charge of the interior design project
for the Hesperia Tower Hotel. The project has been designed by architects
Josep Juanpere and Maria Vives and developing the project a team made up of
Toni Soler, Ester Falcó, Mónica Daza and Gisela Grandes. The GCA
Arquitectes Associats Architecture Studio was founded in Barcelona in 1986 by
Josep Juanpere and Antoni Puig. It currently has a team of 8 partners and over
a 100 professionals.

GCA Arquitectes Associats design and develop architecture, town planning and
interior design. Over the years, the studio has developed projects for hotels,
offices, housing, commercial areas and buildings. Their projects are
characterised by conceptual and spatial innovation, always respecting the
character of the environment, and maintaining the balance between past and
present in refurbishment works.

Of the projects they have carried out, special mention should be made of Hotel
Arts, the Gran Marina Hotel (Barcelona World Trade Center), Hotel AC
Barcelona, Hotel Prestige, Hotel Casa Fuster, Hotel Cram; offices for Pronovias,
Cuatrecasas Abogados, Banca Mora (Andorra), the Centre of Logistic Activities
Zal; interior design for top level boutiques as well as Sergi Arola’s, Carles
Gaig’s and Drolma restaurants.

The 280 rooms and suites available at Hotel Hesperia Tower have large
windows and spectacular views over the city. The exquisite décor, together with
the warm, welcoming colours and balanced lighting, bring to our guests a sense
of relax and well-being, whether travelling for business or pleasure.
All rooms have spacious dressing rooms, hydro massage showers and wall-to-
wall, anti-mist mirrors, along with butler service, pillow menu, free Wi-Fi
connection, plasma TV, Bvlgari welcome pack, etc.

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A COMPLEX AT ONE WITH ITS SURROUNDINGS

The Hesperia Tower has been a major contribution to the urban transformation
of the L’Hospitalet de Llobregat area. The project includes the completion of
Bellvitge Park, close to the hotel, building a residence for students at the nearby
Ciutat Sanitaria, as well as a commercial and leisure area, with restaurants and
a cinema complex.

These projects will bring a better offer to users of the airport, the Barcelona
Fira Exhibition Centre, and the Zona Franca Industrial Park – some of our
complex’s potential clients.

The Hesperia Tower is now one of the top hotels in Hesperia that has recently
entered into the luxury sector with hotels in Madrid, Lanzarote, Alicante, La
Coruña and La Toja Island (Pontevedra).

With this project, Hesperia assumes a major commitment to the environment

and to the concept of quality that characterises all its locations.

The Auditorium at the Hotel Hesperia Tower is an example of the chain’s

technological investment, and is a reliable reflection of its concept of progress
and growth, embodied in this top-class establishment.

EXCLUSIVE AND PERSONALIZED ACCOMODATION

The most exclusive and personalized rooms are in the 21st, 22nd
and 23rd floor, corresponding to the Tower Club.
The Tower Club is an integral concept designed for frequent
business travellers, offering them solutions and anticipating their
needs.

This service offers early check-in and late check-out, direct access
to the Metropolitan Sport Club & Spa, and free access to the Tower
Club Lounge, where clients will find a library and a selection of CDs,
Bang & Olufsen Entertainment Center, Business Corner and private
lounges. There is a selection of food and drink (from Express
Breakfast to designer tapas by Santi Santamaría) during the day;
personal assistants for leisure and business activities.

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THE GASTRONOMY TOWER

The Hotel Hesperia Tower has also made a name for itself in gastronomy, with
the opening of the Bouquet Restaurant & Bar and the EVO Restaurant,
awarded with a Michelin Star and lead by Chef Santi SantaMaria.

Stars in the dome

The awarded EVO Restaurant is located in the glass dome

of Hotel Hesperia Tower. Its head chef is Santi Santamaría,
who received three Michelin stars at his Can Fabes
Restaurant in Sant Celoni, and two more at the Santceloni
Restaurant at Hotel Hesperia Madrid. With EVO, Santi
Santamaría continues his collaboration with the Hesperia
Group. EVO is short for “Evolution”. This word and concept
is in line with the architectural atmosphere provided by
Richard Rogers, and with Santamaría’s new gastronomic
concept, which undergoes an evolutionary process in the
content of its cuisine and in the aesthetics and workings of
the new restaurant.

The atmosphere at EVO is modern, without superfluous luxury, but offering

great personality. This atmosphere is marked by the spectacular views, in a
unique setting in Europe, born to be a Barcelona icon and a landmark in
Catalonian gastronomy. Its menu is, as defined by Santi Santamaría himself,
“an ode to produce, which opts for a mixture of amiable, Mediterranean
proximity, with the earth as essential source of inspiration, and the strength that
comes from the tastes and aromas of nature.” The restaurant team is headed
by Chef Ismael Alegría. It is dedicated to progressive cuisine, in the same vein
as the renowned Can Fabes and Sanceloni restaurants, true to foundations and
techniques with 25 years of international prestige. All this has made it into the
ideal place for group or private celebrations, and for business meals in
surroundings marked by striking architecture and top-class cuisine.

Famous Chef also runs the Bouquet Restaurant & Bar,

located on the hotel’s 2nd floor, offering us a more
traditional and homemade cuisine. Inside a modern
atmosphere full of design details, it offers a new and casual
option for daily lunches, but maintaining the quality and
tradition which characterize Santi.

The new menu of the Bouquet Restaurant combines fresh

and healthy products of the Mediterranean, which change
depending on the season, and offers a great wine selection.

The Axis Bar & Café, located in the hotel lobby, has different areas to enjoy an
aperitif, a snack, a drink or a simple cup of coffee, depending on the time of day.
It is the new, ideal place to get together and enjoy “Martini Hour”, with a major
selection of creative cocktails, accompanied by delicious tapas.

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 Finally, the Azimut Restaurant is specially designed for
previously booked groups, and offers a varied buffet with
market produce, and a different theme each day.

THE CONGRESS AND CONVENTION CENTRE

Hotel Hesperia Tower has a 5,000 m2 Congress and Conference Centre which
can be adapted to all needs, with various halls, outstanding for their multi-
functional nature. The Congress Centre offers: one grand hall measuring 1,614
m2; an auditorium with capacity for 500 people; 4 multi-function rooms (500 m2
in total) with access to outdoor terraces ideal for cocktails, coffee breaks and
social events; 6 rooms which can be configured to different sizes with
separation panels and 6 boardrooms made in fine materials, all of them with the
latest audiovisual equipment.
Furthermore, it also offers natural daylight in the majority of halls, good access,
Press and Business Centres, and free wireless Internet connection throughout,
making it an undisputable landmark in the organisation of events in Barcelona.

SPORT & HEALTH

The Metropolitan Group is the national leader in sport and health, with eleven
centres throughout Spain and six more under construction. It operates
throughout the south district of Barcelona, in places such as Hospitalet, Zona
Franca, El Prat, Cornellá, etc, which have lacked this kind of facilities and
services up until now.

With an internal connection, guests and clients of Hotel Hesperia Tower have
direct access to the Metropolitan Gran Vía installations, where they will find a
range of sport, health and beauty services and facilities that are all but unique in
the world. In this way, guests have access from their rooms to any of more than
100 weekly classes (cycling, tai-chi, yoga, step…), to the SPA area, the 25m
swimming pool, etc., with the exclusive, personal service that characterises the
Metropolitan Chain.

The philosophy of this centre is to create a place where design and technology
play a primordial role, achieving a warm, welcoming atmosphere where
attention is paid to every last detail. The “Metropolitan-wide membership”
formula means that members can use all the facilities of the entire chain, so that
you can continue your training programme or health and beauty treatments
during business trips or holidays.

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Facilities and services at Metropolitan Gran Via Centre:

Fitness Room • Activities and Indoor Cycling Room • SPA (hydromassage pools,
Turkish baths, saunas, special ice showers) • Water features in each changing
room (Turkish bath, sauna) • “Metro Zen” relaxation area (300m2) • Beauty
Centre (facial and body treatments, massages...) • Pilates • Personal training •
Swimming pools • Healthcare service • Nutrition • Solarium • Paddle Tennis •
Towel service • Executive laundry service • Car park • Restaurant
AWARDS

The Hesperia Tower Hotel is one of Condé Nast Traveller’s top 20 hotels. The
5-star hotel is number 17 on this publication’s annual hot list of the sixty best
hotels in the world, and is the top Spanish hotel featured. Its stunning views,
innovative architecture and spectacular design, are just some of the qualities
that have earned the Hesperia Tower its major distinction.

Furthermore, the hotel has received some other prizes like Alimara 2006 Award
for The Best Corporate Image Campaign; The Best Architecture gave for
Business Traveller Magazine and The Best Recommended Hotel by Actualidad
Económica Magazine.

GROWTH OF THE HESPERIA GROUP

With more than thirty years experience, the Hesperia Group has become one of
the most important national hotel chains, with establishments in the main
Spanish cities. The chain currently has 50 hotels, of which 46 are in Spain, 1 in
Andorra, 1 in London (Great Britain) and 2 on Margarita Island (Venezuela),
with more than 7,500 rooms in total.

For more press information:

Rocio Aparcero- Telf. +34 934 135 000

Hesperia Tower
rrpp@hesperia-tower.com