Nearly half of Europe’s pipeline under construction

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.

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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).