Fundamentals Hospitable to Growth

We believe that the hospitality industry in India offers opportunities for strong and steady growth. The fundamentals that drive growth in the industry are strong and these continue to propel the sector. Some key drivers are continued growth of the Indian economy, steady investment in infrastructure, growing numbers of international and domestic travellers, and a burgeoning middle class with increasing disposable income. Additionally, the government's stimuli, such as extending the Tourist Visa on Arrival Scheme from 11 to 180 countries, and the recent introduction of the e-visa facility for 43 countries, will provide an additional boost to tourism-related activities in the country. Hilton Worldwide is a leading global hospitality company that offers a powerful portfolio of 12 brands catering to all customer segments, from luxury and full-service to mid-market. Four of our brands have a presence in India. These include our upscale, full-service brands (Hilton Hotels & Resorts and DoubleTree by Hilton) and our mid-market, focused-service brands (Hilton Garden Inn and Hampton by Hilton). Presently, we operate 14 hotels and resorts in India and we have a presence in seven of the top ten hospitality markets in the country (in terms of number of branded hotel rooms). Our footprint now extends from New Delhi, Gurgaon, Jaipur and Agra to Mumbai, Chennai, Bangalore, Thiruvananthapuram, Goa, Vadodara, Pune and Shillim in the Western Ghats. Over the last 12 months, we have entered four new markets -- Bangalore, Thiruvananthapuram, Jaipur and Agra -- and opened five new hotels: Hilton Garden Inn Thiruvananthapuram, Hilton Embassy Golf Links and DoubleTree Suites by Hilton in Bangalore, Hilton Jaipur and DoubleTree by Hilton Agra. With our entry into Agra, we now have a presence across the Golden Triangle. We are committed to India, one of our key strategic growth markets, and continue to explore opportunities to extend our network in the country through a multi-brand and multiple-partner strategy. We now have a robust pipeline of 17 hotels with 2,899 rooms, which has given us the confidence to launch our luxury brand, Conrad Hotels & Resorts, in India. With over 4,250 hotels in 93 countries, at Hilton Worldwide we realise we are in a position to be able to effect positive change for our community and planet. Hilton Worldwide was the first major multi-brand hospitality company in the world to make sustainability measurement a brand standard, and a critical performance measure, just as quality, service and revenue. Our continued effort in this regard is resulting in the enhanced efficiency of our operations and a mitigation of their environmental impact. Earlier this year, we announced a global commitment to impact the lives at least one million young people by 2019. Our endeavour is to enable young people by exposing them to new cultures, preparing them for success in the workplace through mentorships, apprenticeships and our global career showcase, Careers@HiltonLive: Youth in Hospitality Month, which was our largest ever in May this year with more than 600 events reaching 73,000 young people across the globe. Daniel Welk is the Vice President (Operations-India), Hilton Worldwide