The global hotel construction pipeline reached an all-time high in the second quarter of 2025, climbing to 15,871 projects with 2.4 million rooms, according to Lodging Econometrics’ latest Hotel Construction Pipeline Trend Report.
Grand Lisboa and Hotel Lisboa at the Roundabout in the Macau Peninsula. Photo by Pixel Professional/iStock.
The report, released August 18, shows a three per cent year-over-year increase in project count and a two per cent increase in rooms.
Construction activity steady, early planning surges
At the end of Q2, 6,257 projects representing more than 1.08 million rooms were under construction worldwide, a figure unchanged by projects but down three per cent by rooms compared to the same period last year.
Projects scheduled to break ground in the next 12 months fell three per cent year-over-year to 3,870, though room count edged up one per cent to 551,188.
Early planning continues to drive growth, reaching a record-high 5,744 projects and nearly 799,000 rooms, marking double-digit increases from last year.
Upscale and luxury projects set records
Upper midscale and upscale hotels continue to dominate the pipeline, together representing more than half of projects globally.
Upper midscale projects stood at 4,463 with 567,396 rooms, holding steady on a project basis but dipping one per cent in rooms. Upscale developments set new records with 3,852 projects and 655,674 rooms, up 5 percent and 3 percent year-over-year, respectively.
Upper upscale and luxury hotels also reported record highs. Upper upscale reached 1,807 projects with 385,396 rooms, while luxury climbed to 1,267 projects with 245,665 rooms — increases of 11 per cent in projects and nine per cent in rooms compared with last year.
United States and China lead global activity
The United States remains the global leader with 6,280 projects and 737,036 rooms, representing 40 per cent of the worldwide pipeline. China follows with 3,733 projects and 672,224 rooms, or 24 per cent of the total. Together, the two countries account for nearly two-thirds of all global hotel projects.
India reached a record-high 761 projects with 99,195 rooms, placing third. Saudi Arabia followed with 342 projects and 92,187 rooms, and Canada ranked fifth with 333 projects and 44,764 rooms.
Development hotspots by city
Dallas leads global cities with 199 projects and a record-high 24,497 rooms. Atlanta follows with 165 projects and 19,027 rooms, while Chengdu, China, holds 143 projects with 25,331 rooms.
Nashville ranks next with 128 projects and 17,025 rooms, followed by Austin, which reached record-highs of 125 projects and 14,598 rooms.
Openings on pace to rise through 2027
During the first half of 2025, 970 new hotels with 138,168 rooms opened worldwide. An additional 1,884 hotels with 280,079 rooms are expected to open by year-end, bringing the total to 2,854 hotels and 418,247 rooms.
Looking ahead, Lodging Econometrics forecasts 2,531 hotel openings with nearly 383,000 rooms in 2026, and 2,554 hotels with 382,282 rooms in 2027—its first outlook for that year.
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