US braces for hotel boom as over 2k projects set to commence in 2024

Figure represents an impressive 8% rise in the number of projects year-over-year

By Eamonn Crowe

A hotel development boom is predicted in the US this year, with more than 2,000 hotel projects set to commence construction in 2024.

New figures from hotel intelligence company Lodging Econometrics (LE) show that work is scheduled to begin this year on 2,234 projects, representing 257,729 rooms.

The number signifies an impressive 8% and 9% rise in projects and rooms respectively year-over-year.

This trend follows on from Q3 2023, when 1,063 projects, encompassing 140,331 rooms, were in progress, equating to an 8% growth in projects and a 4% uptick in rooms year-over-year.

By the close of 2023’s third quarter, the U.S. was home to 59,569 operational hotels, offering more than five million rooms.

2023 saw the launch of 345 new US hotels, equivalent to 41,114 rooms.

LE had anticipated the introduction of 182 new hotels and 24,790 rooms in the fourth quarter of 2023, although it did not specify whether that number had been reached by year-end.   

If the predicted numbers were correct, the US would now boast 59,751 hotels and 5,672,136 rooms, marking a 1.2% year-over-year increase.

This year, LE projects a steady incremental growth with 664 new hotels and 79,286 rooms, reflecting a 1.4% rise year-over-year.

The data shows that the US hotel industry is close to hitting an all-time high in terms of projects in their early planning stages. Those currently number 2,407, with 274,616 rooms, representing a 7% growth year-over-year.

These figures come very close to breaking previous records, falling short by just 27 projects and 5,296 rooms.

The LE data also revealed that hotel renovations and conversions experienced a boom last year, with an unprecedented 1,100 projects undergoing refurbishments or transformations as of Q3 2023.

Original article by Eamonn Crowe can be found here: https://usa.boutiquehotelier.com/hotel-development-boom-usa-projects/#:~:text=A%20hotel%20development%20boom%20is,2%2C234%20projects%2C%20representing%20257%2C729%20rooms.