Upscale Hotel Construction Leads Europe’s Growing Pipeline – Focus on Travel News

Nearly half of Europe’s hotel construction pipeline is actively underway, with 45% of projects and 47% of rooms already under construction as of Q3 2024, according to Lodging Econometrics’ latest report.

With 1,645 projects and over 244,000 rooms in the total pipeline, Europe’s hotel industry is on a steady growth trajectory, primarily driven by the upscale segment.

At the end of the third quarter, upscale hotel construction led the pipeline with 339 projects and more than 52,700 rooms. The upper midscale segment followed with 315 projects and 47,565 rooms, marking a 9% increase in projects year-over-year.

Notably, the upper upscale segment reached new highs, with 281 projects and 45,358 rooms, showing an 11% growth in projects and an 8% rise in rooms year-over-year. Together, these top three segments comprise 57% of all hotel projects and 60% of the rooms in Europe’s active pipeline.

Conversion projects also gained traction, totaling 497 projects and 60,403 rooms by the end of Q3, a 33% year-over-year rise in projects and a 21% increase in rooms. Combined with hotel renovations, conversions reached 637 projects and over 81,500 rooms, reinforcing the trend toward updating and rebranding properties across Europe.

The countries leading Europe’s hotel construction pipeline include the United Kingdom with 293 projects and over 42,000 rooms, followed by Germany, Turkey, Portugal, and France. Together, these five countries account for almost half of Europe’s hotel projects and rooms. London, Istanbul, Lisbon, Dublin, and Manchester rank as the top cities, each showcasing significant construction activity.

In Q3 2024 alone, Europe saw the opening of 83 new hotels, bringing the total to 220 new hotels and nearly 30,000 rooms this year.

Projections indicate an additional 107 new hotels will open in Q4, which would bring the 2024 year-end total to 327 hotels and over 43,000 rooms.

The growth trend is expected to continue into 2025, with 353 new hotels set to open, increasing further to 426 new openings in 2026.