Hotel Development Trends & Projections
Record Early Planning and Upscale Growth Drive Asia Pacific, excluding China, Pipeline in Q3 2026
The hotel development pipeline across the Asia-Pacific, excluding China, region (APEC) continues its strong growth trajectory through the third quarter of 2026, according to the latest Hotel Construction Pipeline Trend Report from Lodging Econometrics (LE). At the close of Q3, the total APEC hotel construction pipeline reaches record highs of 2,684 projects and 473,560 rooms, representing year-over-year (YOY) increases of 19% and 9% respectively.
Hotel projects currently under construction reach a record-high project count, standing at 1,007 projects/197,715 rooms, up 12% by projects YOY. Projects scheduled to start in the next 12 months stand at 434 projects/73,905 rooms, up 16% by projects YOY. Projects in the early planning stage reach record highs across both projects and rooms, climbing to 1,243 projects/201,940 rooms, up 26% by projects.
The upper upscale and upscale chain scales — the region’s top two chain scales by project count — together account for 45% of projects and 48% of rooms in the pipeline, with a combined total of 1,208 projects/226,302 rooms. The upscale chain scale reaches record highs in both projects and rooms, closing the quarter at 722 projects/130,958 rooms. The upper upscale chain scale reaches a record high in rooms, at 486 projects/95,344 rooms. The luxury chain scale also reaches record highs, standing at 454 projects/83,990 rooms, while the upper midscale chain scale reaches a record-high project count, standing at 442 projects/78,108 rooms.
New project announcements (NPAs) reached 325 projects/43,482 rooms in the third quarter, a 44% increase by project count over Q3 2025’s 226 NPAs. The unusually high project count is driven largely by India, where a significant share of announcements are smaller projects.
Hotel renovations and brand conversions combined reach record highs in both projects and rooms, totaling 387 projects/62,965 rooms, up 35% by projects and 19% by rooms YOY.
Through the first three quarters of 2026, 261 new hotels with 32,299 rooms open across the APEC region. For the remainder of the year, LE analysts forecast another 137 new hotels/24,706 rooms to open, for a year-end forecasted total of 398 new hotels/57,005 rooms.
Looking ahead, the LE forecast for new hotel openings expects 401 new hotels with 72,178 rooms to open in 2027, followed by 382 new hotels with 59,819 rooms in 2028.
India Continues to Lead the Region with Record Highs
India continues to lead the region with record highs across both projects and rooms, climbing to 1,165 projects and 153,801 rooms, up 39% by projects and 41% by rooms YOY, and accounting for 43% of total projects and 32% of rooms in the APEC’s overall pipeline. Other top countries include Vietnam with 279 projects/86,192 rooms, Japan with 225 projects/30,708 rooms, Indonesia with 197 projects/33,314 rooms, and Thailand with 171 projects/40,963 rooms. Together, the top five countries account for 2,037 projects/344,978 rooms, representing 76% of projects and 73% of rooms in the region’s total pipeline.
At the close of the third quarter, cities with the largest pipelines in the APEC region include Bangkok, Thailand, with 71 projects/16,750 rooms, Bengaluru, India, with 59 projects/11,879 rooms, Mumbai, India, with 53 projects/10,832 rooms, Jakarta, Indonesia, with 49 projects/10,500 rooms, and Jaipur, India, with 45 projects/7,794 rooms.
Brand Conversions Reach a Record-High Project Total in China’s Hotel Construction Pipeline at Q3 2026
In the Q3 2026 China Construction Pipeline Trend Report by Lodging Econometrics (LE), at the close of the quarter, China’s total hotel construction pipeline stands at 3,507 projects with 621,201 rooms.
There are 2,482 projects/433,183 rooms under construction in China. Projects scheduled to start construction in the next 12 months total 348 projects/59,386 rooms and projects in early planning stand at 677 projects/128,632 rooms.
The upper midscale chain scale leads China’s pipeline with 1,264 projects/185,074 rooms, accounting for 36% of projects and 30% of rooms in the total pipeline. The upscale chain scale follows with 1,070 projects/216,301 rooms, representing 31% of projects and 35% of rooms. These two chain scales combined account for 67% of projects and 65% of rooms in China’s hotel construction pipeline, with 2,334 projects/401,375 rooms. The upper upscale chain scale has 360 projects/95,003 rooms, the midscale chain scale has 276 projects/28,196 rooms, and the luxury chain scale has 257 projects/53,249 rooms.
Brand conversions reach record-high project and room totals, with 253 projects/41,623 rooms. New project announcements (NPAs) total 178 projects/27,212 rooms, and construction starts stand at 153 projects/23,333 rooms.
Through the third quarter of 2026, 685 new hotels, accounting for 96,036 rooms, have opened in China. The LE forecast for new hotel openings expects another 327 hotels with 44,257 rooms to open in the fourth quarter, bringing the forecasted new hotel openings to 1,012 new hotels with 140,293 rooms by year-end 2026.
LE analysts forecast 939 new hotels with 156,858 rooms to open in 2027. In 2028, analysts expect 710 new hotel openings with 123,434 rooms to open.
Guangzhou with 123 Projects/25,231 Rooms Has the Largest Pipeline in China
Cities in China with the largest pipelines, at the Q3 close, are Guangzhou, with 123 projects/25,231 rooms, Chengdu with 121 projects/21,950 rooms, Shanghai with 113 projects/20,873 rooms, Hangzhou with 95 projects/17,662 rooms, and Xi’an with 78 projects/14,011 rooms.