Starwood Hotels is a subsidiary of Marriott International, an American multinational hospitality company that manages and franchises a broad portfolio of hotels and related lodging facilities. Starwood was founded in 1969 and became one of the largest companies that owned, operated, franchised and managed hotels, resorts, spas, residences, and vacation ownership properties in the world before it was acquired by Marriott in September 2016.[3][4][5][6]