Construction
starts and renovations/conversions grew in Q1, with London and the U.K. leading
the way, according to Lodging Econometrics.
INTERNATIONAL
REPORT — Through the end of the first quarter, Europe’s total pipeline stood
at 1,683 projects and 247,472 rooms, with 46% of the hotel projects in the
under-construction stage, according to Lodging
Econometrics data.
Another 386
projects and 57,992 rooms are scheduled to start construction in the next 12
months, while 531 projects and 74,253 rooms are in the early planning stage.
During Q1, 41 new hotels and 5,450 rooms opened throughout Europe, with an additional 314 new hotels and 42,099 rooms forecasted for the rest of the year. LE analysts forecasted that new openings in Europe will continue to rise, with 371 new hotels and 50,255 rooms anticipated to open in 2026.
Hotel renovations and brand conversions grew in the quarter, with 718 projects and 93,305 rooms, representing a 32% increase in projects and a 26% increase in rooms YOY.
Construction
starts in the first quarter showed healthy activity with 90 projects and 11,184
rooms, a 14% increase in projects year-over-year, while new project
announcements totaled 94 projects and 13,576 rooms. Hotel renovations and brand
conversions grew in the quarter, with 718 projects and 93,305 rooms,
representing a 32% increase in projects and a 26% increase in rooms YOY.
Through Q1,
the luxury chain scale reached a record high of 132 projects and 17,124 rooms,
while the upper-upscale chain scale also hit a record high with 281 projects
and 45,091 rooms. The upscale chain scale stood at 358 projects and 55,297
rooms, while the upper-midscale chain scale closed Q1 with 325 projects and
47,738 rooms.
The U.K. led
the country totals in Europe with 288 projects and 41,338 rooms, followed by
Germany with 153 projects and 25,971 rooms, then Turkey with a record-high 133
projects and 19,350 rooms, France was fourth with 119 projects and 12,078 rooms
and Portugal was fifth with 115 projects and 14,199 rooms. The five countries
accounted for 48% of the projects and 46% of the region’s total pipeline rooms.
Spain also reached a new record-high project total with 92 projects and 13,509
rooms.
London led
the city rankings with 81 projects and 15,459 rooms. Istanbul was second with
49 projects and 7,743 rooms, followed by Lisbon (36 projects and 4,230 rooms),
Dublin (26 projects and 4,696 rooms) and Tashkent, Uzbekistan (25 projects and
4,261 rooms). Other European cities with notable pipeline changes at the Q1
close included Edinburgh (new record-high room total with 18 projects and 3,028
rooms) and Madrid (new record-high project total of 17 projects/2,410 rooms).