Country Special: China – the Asian Superpower
2017.05.05
It’s a common thing to see: A new or established hotel chain or brand is expanding, and the bulk of its projects are located in the Asia Pacific region, specifically within the borders of China. In fact, by nearly any metric, China is among the fastest growing countries in the global hospitality industry and if recent information is to be believe, that trend will likely not reverse any time soon.
According to information from TOPHOTELPROJECTS’ comprehensive global database, there are presently 700 hotel development projects underway in China right now. Most projects are within the metropolitan areas of Shanghai (52 projects) and Chengdu (30 projects). The rest of the 700 developing projects are evenly spread throughout the country, with no more than two dozen landing in any specific region. The next fastest developing market in the country is Sanya, where there are presently 28 hotel construction or renovation projects underway.
The projects underway run the gamut, in terms of size, with the smallest facility clocking in at 24 rooms, and the largest ranking at a sizeable 1,500. Although the larger hotel is something of an exception: The Pacific Dream Plaza Hotel will be located in the city of Qingdao, in the state of Shandong. Of the 500 hotel construction or renovation projects currently underway in China, only two others have more than 1,000 rooms, those being Atlantis Sanya Hainan with 1,300 rooms in Sanya, and NH Haikou Meilan International Airport Hotel, which will have 1,001 rooms and will be located in the city of Haikou, in the state of Hainan. Of the three, NH Haikou Meilan International Airport Hotel is closest to being finished and in the pre-opening phase.
Smaller hotels are a bit more prevalent, with six projects clocking in with less than 50 rooms. Many of these hotels are located in less well-known cities. These properties include Aman Resort Fuzhou, Urbn Boutique Wuhan, Banyan Tree Leishan, Maison Albar Fuzhou, Ahn Luh Yanqi Beijing, and Maison Albar Guiyang.
With all that in mind, is China the fastest and most prolifically growing hotel market in the world? Maybe, though the United Arab Emirates, which include Dubai would not agree. China, for sheer size and space alone, is likely to top the list.
Let’s take a look at some interesting projects that are currently
