Active GCC hotel development pipeline now equal to 40% of existing room supply, compared with 11% globally

Active GCC hotel development pipeline now equal to 40% of existing room supply, compared with 11% globally

- KSA & UAE lead the GCC with 39,070 & 32,272 rooms respectively under construction

- Arabian Travel Market expecting major increase in GCC participation at 2023 event as GCC governments continue to invest heavily in tourism

According to new research commissioned by Arabian Travel Market (ATM), and conducted at the end of September 2022 by hotel market intelligence and global benchmarking company STR, the GCC region now has over 170,000 hotel rooms under active development (planning, final planning & under construction).

This is equivalent to 40% of the GCC’s existing hotel room inventory, a figure almost four times greater than the rest of the world which currently lags behind at an average of 11% under active development compared with existing supply.

Danielle Curtis, Exhibition Director, Arabian Travel Market, said: “Between EXPO 2020, the 2022 FIFA World Cup, and Saudi Arabia’s ambitious Vision2030 strategy, the GCC’s hospitality sector development pipeline remains robust in contrast to global hotel development, which is slowing, due to weak economic growth forecasts.

“While the hospitality sector’s growth does highlight the region’s increasing popularity on the global stage, it is also indicative of regional government strategy, to diversify GDP growth away from hydrocarbons into tourism, that will help to drive demand