China’s total hotel pipeline saw a marginal decline in the second quarter from the record high of 3,711 projects/704,101 rooms recorded in Q2 2022.
According to the recent construction pipeline trend report for China from Lodging Econometrics (LE), projects in the under-construction stage saw a slight increase YOY to close the second quarter at 2,566 projects/478,703 rooms. Projects expected to start construction in the next 12 months stood at 357 projects/64,174 rooms. Projects in the early planning stage saw a record of 654 projects/136,088 rooms.
By the end of the second quarter, construction projects and new project announcements had increased YOY to 160 projects/28,256 rooms and 236 projects/38,163 rooms, respectively.
The mid-level chain scales saw the highest level of development activity in the second quarter, while upscale and upper midscale projects touched record-high project counts of 813 projects/192,891 rooms and 1,137 projects/182,478 rooms, respectively. Conversions and big-scale renovations, together, saw new highs and ended the quarter at 156 projects/28,633 rooms.
In the first half of the year, new openings across the country stood at 258 hotels/43,486 rooms.
LE forecasts that 591 new hotels/85,824 rooms will open across the country in the second half of the year, bringing the total number of anticipated new hotel openings to 849 hotels/129,310 rooms by the end of the year.
In 2024, 915 new hotels with 150,729 rooms will open, while 901 new hotels/174,454 rooms are expected to open in 2025, LE predicted.
Top five cities with the highest construction pipeline:
- Chengdu — 40 projects/27,890 rooms
- Shanghai — 117 projects/22,887 rooms
- Guangzhou — 106 projects/21,869 rooms
- Hangzhou — 92 projects/18,927 rooms
- Xi’an — 91 projects/16,603 rooms
Top five franchise companies with the biggest construction pipeline:
- Hilton — 716 projects/127,106 rooms
- IHG — 466 projects/97,468 rooms
- Marriott — 369 projects/95,665 rooms
- Accor — 236 projects/39,367 rooms
- JinJiang Holding — 154 projects/15,355 rooms
Together, these five companies accounted for 53% of projects and 55% of rooms in the country’s hotel construction pipeline.
Top three brands with the highest construction pipeline:
- Hilton’s Hampton by Hilton — 371 projects/53,446 rooms
- IHG’s Holiday Inn Express — 184 projects/29,887 rooms
- Hilton Garden Inn — 112 projects/20,558 rooms