Hong Kong adds 2,000 new hotel rooms in the first nine months of 2023

In Q3 alone, 251 new rooms were completed.

In the third quarter of 2023, JLL said 251 new hotel rooms entered the Hong Kong market with the reopening of Ying ‘n Flow Wesley Admiralty, formerly known as OZO Wesley. A total of 2,113 rooms were added since January 2023.

“Despite some challenges, including high construction costs, several projects are in the pipeline for the remainder of 2023 and 2024, with new lifestyle brands expected to enter the Hong Kong market, such as Andaz, Motto by Hilton, and Kimpton, underpinning Hong Kong’s appeal to both operators and investors alike in the long term,” JLL added.

Here’s more from JLL:

As of YTD September 2023, luxury hotels’ revenue per available room (RevPAR) reached HKD 2,219, representing a 136.5% growth y-o-y. Midscale & economy hotels, which are more reliant on tour groups, still struggle to fill their rooms due to lower discretionary spending amongst China’s middle class.

Since January 2023, only three hotel have transacted in Hong Kong for a total of USD 748 million. Notable transactions include the sale of The Kimberley Hotel for USD 433 million and the Pentahotel Kowloon for USD 255 million. While the latter is expected to be another conversion, we anticipate the number of transactions fuelled by conversion to decrease as the hotel market reboots and normalises.

Outlook: Navigating the road to recovery with steady progress

Hong Kong’s recovery has only just begun, with the number of visitor arrivals and hotel performance continuously improving. As such, investors’ appetite for Hong Kong remains cautious in the short term.

While Hong Kong still has a long way to go before reaching pre-pandemic and social unrest levels, the market is resilient, and we expect full recovery by the end of 2024.  

Note: Hong Kong Hotels refers to Hong Kong's luxury hotel market.