Newport Marriott Hotel in Rhode Island Spreads Cheer with Giant Gingerbread House & Holiday Package

NEWPORT, RI (December 8, 2010) – Few destinations are as beloved at the holidays as Newport, Rhode Island. Visitors come from all over to enjoy Yuletide in this famous "City by the Sea," with its bedecked gilded mansions, and cobbled downtown streets that twinkle with charm. During the annual Christmas in Newport Celebration, now in its 40th year www.ChristmasinNewport.org, Newport, Rhode Island is also known for another delightful (and delicious) holiday attraction: the 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 gingerbread holiday 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 Rhode Island. More than 450 pounds of organic gingerbread, 4,000 cookies and giant lollipops, and nearly 50 gallons of royal icing are used during construction! Completed and on view starting December 6 in our Newport, RI hotel, the gingerbread lighthouse presides over a festooned lobby, where guests are encouraged to place a non-perishable food item in one of the sleighs filled for local residents in need. The hotel then passes along these bountiful donations to a local food pantry, which last year fed over 10,000 people in the Newport area.

Hotel guests may celebrate the season, while enjoying a Yankee value, with the Newport Marriott's Escape Holiday Package. Available December 5 through January 1, this Rhode Island hotel holiday 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 children's menu, when adult orders an entrée from the regular menu)
- Warm apple cider and holiday cookies at check-in
- Unlimited viewing of the Rhode Island hotel's spectacular gingerbread lighthouse and keepers house

Rates start at $119 plus tax, per night, per room, and are based on availability at the time of reservation. This Newport, RI holiday hotel package is not available on December 27 and 28, and is not valid for groups; certain other restrictions may apply. To book your reservation, 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 of Newport, just five minutes from the famous Gilded Age mansions, charming shops along the waterfront, numerous beaches and golf courses, and the International Tennis Hall of Fame. The newly renovated Rhode Island hotel offers 24,800 square feet of flexible meeting space, 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.

ABOUT NEWPORT, RHODE ISLAND
Home to spectacular coastal scenery, awe-inspiring architecture, a thriving waterfront downtown, and welcoming hospitality, Newport, Rhode Island is considered by many to be a shining gem in the coastal crown of New England. Newport is conveniently located within driving distance of Boston (60 miles), Hartford (70 miles), and New York (150 miles).