“Top of the Heap”:

BUCKINGHAM HOTEL RANKED

TOP PEFORMING HOTEL IN NEW YORK CITY

BY LODGING HOSPITALITY

NEW YORK, September 29^th, 2004 – Midtown Manhattan’s boutique Buckingham Hotel, located at 101 West 57^th Street, has been included in Lodging Hospitality’s 2004 “Top Performers” list of the industry’s most successful hotels and was ranked as the top-rated property for Manhattan.

“We are thrilled to top the list this year,” said Stephen Shapiro, Managing Partner for the Buckingham Hotel.  “It is quite an achievement to be the Top Performer in Manhattan in a year when many properties here have hit some lows.” 

Notes Lodging Hospitality Editor Ed Watkins, “The most successful lodging properties come in all sizes, are in all markets, fly many different flags or none at all, and serve a wide spectrum of guests.”

Lodging Hospitality, an authoritative hotel trade magazine, included the Buckingham among its Top Performers in the “Center City” category.  Every year, the editors of Lodging Hospitality work nearly six months to compile the Top Performers study, which ranks hotels with the highest sales per-room figures (total property sales divided by total number of rooms).  Questionnaires were sent to more than 10,000 properties.

The Buckingham Hotel was one of only two Manhattan hotels making the list this year and was ranked 37^th nationwide out of the center city hotels.

About the Buckingham

Now celebrating its 75^th Anniversary, the Buckingham is perfectly located on 57th Street and 6^th Avenue in Manhattan.  With décor that echoes the red velvet and dark wood of the famed concert hall, the Buckingham has been host to the world’s top classical musicians and other celebrities for generations. 

Amenities at the Buckingham include a complete pre-arrival concierge service, full-service business center, in-room high-speed anywhere-Internet connection, wired meeting space and a 24-hour state-of-the-art fitness center with private shower and sauna.

The Patrons’ Lounge offers a flat-panel television that screens CNBC by day and Carnegie Hall-themed movies by night.  The Buckingham also offers a lending library of live Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center music and performance on CD and DVD.  

The property is just seconds from Central Park, David Letterman’s Ed Sullivan Theatre, Steinway’s piano gallery, the Museum of Modern Art, the renowned 57^th Street art galleries as well as shopping destinations like Tiffany’s, Prada, Gucci, Bergdorf Goodman’s and Barney’s.

Stylish and smart, the public spaces of the Buckingham are filled with music and commissioned artwork from the property’s own permanent collection – starting right at the front door with the Buckingham’s signature stained glass “Dancing King” and eleven unique installations of deconstructed musical instruments (“Bounce Fugue”) that line the entrance way.

For more information visit the Buckingham Hotel Web site at http://www.buckinghamhotel.com/

Contact:  Neil Alumkal / Meredith Kish

                 212-999-5585 x. 209 / 212-999-5585 x. 205

                 nalumkal@5wpr.com / mkish@5wpr.com

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