Sale of Heritage Hotels

Compass Group PLC
4 April 2001



                                                                  4 April 2001





                     COMPASS GROUP PLC ('COMPASS GROUP')

                           SALE OF HERITAGE HOTELS



The Board of Compass Group is pleased to announce the sale of Heritage Hotels
for a consideration of £235 million in cash to a newly-formed company,
jointly-owned by Macdonald Hotels plc and the Bank of Scotland.  Of the
consideration, £200 million will be paid on completion with a further £35
million, which is guaranteed by the Bank of Scotland, to be paid eighteen
months thereafter.  The disposal is conditional on the approval of the
shareholders of Macdonald Hotels plc; commitments to vote in favour of the
necessary resolution have been received from shareholders holding in aggregate
56% of Macdonald's issued share capital.  Together with the previously
announced sales of Posthouse Hotels and the London Signature hotels, Compass
Group has generated total consideration of £1.360 billion from hotel disposals
to date.  The net proceeds of the sale will be used to strengthen Compass
Group's balance sheet.



The Heritage Hotels chain is a collection of unique properties with 3,110
rooms in 48 hotels set in historic cities, towns and villages in England and
Scotland.



Michael J. Bailey, Chief Executive, Compass Group, said: 'We are delighted to
be able to announce the sale of these two major UK hotel brands. With the sale
of Posthouse Hotels and Heritage, following the earlier sale of London
Signature, the auction process is allowing us to maximise the proceeds from
the disposal of the Forte Hotels division which will provide significant
resources for the future growth and development of Compass Group as a focused
foodservice business.'

Compass Group is the world's largest foodservice company with proforma annual
revenues in excess of £8 billion, employing in excess of 265,000 people
worldwide in over 80 countries.  The Group's strategy continues to be one of
achieving strong revenue growth in the £200 billion per annum foodservice
market through the development of its sector-focused businesses and the use of
its unique portfolio of foodservice brands, growing both organically and
through strategic in-fill acquisitions.



A further announcement as to the sale process for the Le Meridien brand will
be made in due course.

Enquiries



Compass Group PLC
                       01932 573 000

Andrew Lynch, Group Finance Director

Cathi Lawrence, Corporate Communications Director



Hudson Sandler
                             020 7796 4133

Nick Lyon / Wendy Baker



Website: www.compass-group.com