Group overview: China accounts for a third of IHG’s hotel pipeline

Kimpton Budapest

British hospitality giant IHG is ramping up its presence in the People’s Republic, according to the TOPHOTELPROJECTS construction database, with 150 new schemes in the works.

Our researchers report that the company behind high-profile brands like InterContinental, Hotel Indigo and Holiday Inn is preparing to open 464 projects with 98,457 rooms in the years ahead.

IHG pivots towards APAC

In another sign of just how important the Chinese market has become, we’ve found that IHG will launch 151 hotel projects and 33,501 rooms here over the next few years – equivalent to a third of its entire development slate. This puts the People’s Republic miles ahead of its nearest challengers, the US (66 properties, 10,718 keys) and Australia (22 schemes, 4,440 rooms), on a country-by-country basis.

China also boasts the most active city, Chengdu, where no fewer than nine projects with 1,956 keys are currently being lined up. There’s no shortage of competition for the runners-up spot though, with Nanjing, New York and Riyadh all keenly awaiting the arrival of seven properties, although the former’s superior key count of 1,380 just edges out the 1,370 earmarked for the latter pair.

Plenty of new openings on the horizon

The hotel development community won’t have to wait long to see these schemes come to life either. A hugely impressive 189 projects with 39,719 rooms are due to complete this year, with another 105 properties and 22,483 keys following in 2023. There’ll be a relative lull in 2024, however, as just 39 hotels with 7,382 rooms are on the books at present, while a further 131 schemes and 28,873 have been mooted for 2025 and beyond.

And even though IHG may be best known as the home of InterContinental, the world’s largest luxury hotel brand, fully two-thirds of the active projects we’re tracking are in fact four-star affairs. Some 297 properties with 62,689 rooms are targeting the four-star market, whereas the remaining 167 hotels and 35,768 keys will meet the more demanding requirements of the five-star category.

It’s also worth taking a quick look at which IHG flags are proving to be the most prolific overall. Hotel Indigo leads the way in this regard courtesy of its striking tally of 89 schemes and 15,459 rooms, well ahead of Holiday Inn Hotels & Resorts (75 projects, 19,737 keys) and InterContinental Hotels & Resorts (68 properties, 16,112 rooms).

Exciting IHG schemes in Hungary, Malaysia and Vietnam

With such a packed pipeline, there’s no shortage of eye-catching IHG developments to keep an eye out for in the coming years, but one that we’re particularly looking forward to is Kimpton Budapest. Featuring architectural design by 3H and interiors from the inimitable Marcel Wanders, this 127-key hotel overlooking the River Danube in the heart of the Hungarian capital will offer destination dining and a stylish rooftop bar. Currently under construction, it’s scheduled to open in Q1 2025.

Another property worth adding to your watchlist is Crowne Plaza Kota Kinabalu Waterfront, a 367-room scheme that’s being built as we speak in the Malaysian state of Sabah in northern Borneo. Among the amenities being planned at this scheme – part of a wider mixed-use development – are a rooftop bar and restaurant, an outdoor pool, a spa, a 24-hour fitness centre and eight flexible meeting spaces. It’s being designed by Hasegawa & Xavier Associates and DP Architects, with a view to launching in Q3 2022.

And finally, it’s hard to overlook InterContinental Halong Bay Resort in Vietnam, which will benefit from contributions by a stellar design team that includes WATG and Wimberly Interiors – Singapore, P49 Deesign and Associates and Coopers Hill. Currently under construction and aiming to open in Q1 2023, this project will accommodate 175 guestrooms, complemented by luxury branded residences at the neighbouring InterContinental Residences Halong Bay. Both guests and residents will be able to live the high life by making the most of its varied facilities, including six meeting rooms, five restaurants and bars, four pools, a gym, a kids’ club and a spacious spa.

Many TOPHOTELNEWS articles draw on exclusive information from the TOPHOTELPROJECTS construction database. This subscription-based product includes details of thousands of hotel projects around the world, along with the key decision-makers behind them. Please note, our data may differ from records held by other organisations. Generally, the database focuses on four- and five-star schemes of significant scale; tracks projects in either the vision, pre-planning, planning, under-construction, pre-opening or newly opened phase; and covers newbuilds, extensions, refurbishments and conversions.

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IHG operates hotels in three different ways – as a franchisor, as a manager and on an owned and leased basis.

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