Experience Newport Marriott Hotel's Giant Gingerbread House with a Vacation Getaway Package

NEWPORT, RI – November 27, 2009 – Few destinations are as beloved at the holidays as Newport, Rhode Island. Visitors come from all over to enjoy holiday getaways in this famous "City by the Sea," with its bedecked historic mansions, and cobbled downtown streets that twinkle with holiday charm. Over the past few years, Newport has become known for another delightful holiday attraction: Newport's giant gingerbread house with a working lighthouse that shines its beacon over the atrium lobby of the Newport Marriott hotel.

The Newport hotel's culinary team devotes over 100 hours to baking, building and decorating this confection compound, which features a seven-foot keeper's house and a 16-foot working lighthouse, making it one of the largest gingerbread houses in New England. More than 450 pounds of organic gingerbread, 4,000 cookies and giant lollipops, and nearly 50 gallons of royal icing are used during construction! The gingerbread house presides over a festooned hotel lobby, where the grand piano plays a merry measure, and Newport holiday vacation guests are encouraged to share the bounty of the season by placing a non-perishable food item in one of the sleighs filled for local food banks. Last year, $50,000 worth of food was donated to brighten the tables of area residents in need.

Guests may celebrate the season, while enjoying a Yankee value, with the Newport Marriott's Escape Holiday Package. Available December 7 through January 4, the holiday vacation package includes:

- Deluxe guest room
- Complimentary breakfast, lunch and dinner for up to four children (12 and under) in Fathoms Restaurant (children may choose from a holiday menu, when adult orders an entrée from the regular menu)
- Warm apple cider and holiday cookies at check-in
- Unlimited viewing of the Newport hotel's spectacular gingerbread lighthouse and keepers house

Rates start at $129 plus tax, per night, per room, and are based on availability at the time of reservation. This holiday package is not available on December 26 and 27, and is not valid for groups; certain other restrictions may apply. To book your holiday getaway to Newport Marriott, please visit www.newportmarriott.com, or call 1-800-228-9290 and refer to promotional code ZJ6.

ABOUT THE NEWPORT MARRIOTT
The Newport Marriott is located at 25 America's Cup Avenue, in the heart of the historic downtown district, just five minutes from the famous Gilded Age mansions, charming shops on Ocean Drive, numerous beaches and golf courses, and the International Tennis Hall of Fame. The newly renovated hotel offers 24,800 square feet of flexible meeting space, as well as 317 beautiful guest rooms, 7 suites and a Concierge Level. All guest rooms feature Marriott's luxurious Revive® bedding with plush 300 thread count linens and the high-tech Plug-in-Panel 32-inch LCD TV. Guests enjoy the new 4,500 square-foot Spa at Newport Marriott, as well as the hotel's state-of-the-art health club (with saline pool, whirlpool, fitness room and racquetball courts), restaurant, lounge, gift shop, business center and concierge services. For more information, please call
(401) 849-1000 or visit www.newportmarriott.com.