The new fresh, fun and affordable way to enjoy Southern California - just off US interstate 10, this hotel is ideal for road warriors!

aloha! Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc.® and its much-anticipated new lifestyle brand, aloft SM hotels, today announced the opening of the nation's first aloft hotel, the 136-room aloft Ontario-Rancho Cucamonga. Anchoring the $60 million HavenPark development and located off a legendary stretch of American highway, Interstate 10, aloft Ontario-Rancho Cucamonga offers a fresh, fun and affordable way to enjoy Southern California.

aloft Ontario-Rancho Cucamonga will appeal to Los Angeles business travelers and Joshua Tree road-trippers alike. The hotel is designed to appeal to both audiences by providing convenience, playful public spaces and varied entertainment offerings for today's road warrior.

Just minutes from the Ontario Convention Center, aloft Ontario-Rancho Cucamonga is close to world-class shopping venues including Victoria Gardens and Ontario Mills. The hotel also offers easy access to the Ontario International Airport.

In the same way that W Hotels broke through the clutter of conformity in the upscale hotel arena in 1998, aloft is shaking up the lodging industry with high design at an affordable price point, accessible technology, style and a social atmosphere.

"We are thrilled to bring our exciting new twist in travel to the ever-growing Rancho Cucamonga community," said Brian McGuinness, Global Brand Leader of aloft and element hotels worldwide. "In addition to serving our local neighbors with a great new lodging venue, we believe the hotel's signature bar w xyz SM, is destined to become Rancho Cucamonga's newest hot spot."

"We are privileged to be the first U.S. operator of this exciting new brand that introduces a whole new level of style and sophistication to both the business and leisure traveler," said Thomas F. Hewitt, Interstate Hotels' Chief Executive Officer. "We intend to set the bar high for others to follow. We will open our second aloft in suburban Nashville this fall under a strategy to develop four to six aloft hotels with our joint venture partner, The John Buck Company."

"This is the second cutting-edge hotel brand that I've had the privilege of developing and opening in my career," said Paul Novak, Managing Director-hospitality division of The John Buck Company. "The aloft brand is clearly the next great upper-tier, select-service brand targeted to a new generation of business and pleasure travelers. The aloft Ontario-Rancho Cucamonga is the first of several we have under construction or under development, and the joint venture continues to seek more opportunities to build, own and operate."

The southern California hotel is the second of 18 aloft hotels scheduled to open this year. On schedule to open later this summer are aloft hotels in Rogers, Arkansas; Lexington, Massachusetts; Chicago O'Hare Airport; Philadelphia Airport; Charleston Airport and Convention Center, North Carolina; Minneapolis, Minnesota; Portland Airport, Oregon and Beijing, China.

aloft offers atmospheric public spaces designed to draw guests from their rooms to socialize and make friends. Savvy travelers can read the paper, work on their laptops via complimentary hotel-wide wireless Internet access, play a game of pool or grab a drink with friends at re:mix SM, the communal lobby area featuring the sassy w xyz bar. The re:charge SM fitness center and splash, the outdoor pool, give travelers options to de-stress and re-energize, while re:fuel by aloft SM, a one-stop food and beverage area, offers sweet, savory and healthy food, snacks and beverages to grab & go, 24 hours a day.

Guest rooms feature urban-influenced design, while the centerpiece of each aloft room is an ultra-comfortable plush platform bed. Loft-like nine-foot ceilings and oversized windows create a bright, airy environment. Large, stylish bathrooms complement the guest experience with oversized walk-in showers and amenities created by bliss spa®. Each aloft room is also a combination high-tech office and entertainment center, featuring wireless Internet access and plug & play, a one-stop connectivity solution for multiple electronic gadgetry such as PDAs, cell phones, mp3 players and laptops - all linked to a large, flat-panel HDTV-ready television for optimal sound and viewing.

Guests of aloft can book their stay directly through www.alofthotels.com which features the best rate guarantee. Guests also may book through their local travel agents. In addition, during the year of aloft hotel's launch—2008—members of the Starwood Preferred Guest program can earn an unprecedented 8 Starpoints for every U.S. dollar spent (quadruple the base earning) when they register and then book a stay at any aloft hotel worldwide until December 31.

Members of the award-winning and industry-leading Starwood Preferred Guest program currently earn two points for every dollar spent at a participating Starwood hotel. After racking up their Starpoints, SPG members can redeem their points for free nights with no blackout dates at more than 860 hotels and resorts worldwide. The offer is designed to celebrate the opening of aloft, the eighth hotel and lifestyle brand to join the Starwood Preferred Guest loyalty program.