The Canadian hotel industry is witnessing robust growth, as evidenced by the latest findings from the Canada Construction Pipeline Trend Report published by Lodging Econometrics (LE).
As of the end of Q2, there is a 5% year-over-year (YOY) uptick in both projects and rooms in the construction pipeline, totaling 275 projects encompassing 37,359 rooms.
A detailed breakdown showcases:
- Currently under construction: 52 projects/7,021 rooms.
- Scheduled to kick off in the next 12 months: 88 projects/10,086 rooms.
- Early planning stages showing the most significant YOY surge: 135 projects/20,252 rooms, marking a 30% hike by projects and a whopping 42% increase by rooms.
This surge in preliminary planning is typical of late-cycle activity.
Provincial and city-wise data pegs Ontario as the leader with a record-breaking 159 projects accounting for 22,027 rooms. British Columbia and Quebec follow with 52 and 22 projects respectively. These top three provinces cover 85% of all projects and 88% of rooms in the pipeline. Alberta and Saskatchewan trail, accounting for a fraction of the overall pipeline.
Among cities, Toronto leads the charge with 62 projects, a quarter of the country’s total rooms in the pipeline. Vancouver, Montreal, Niagara Falls, and Ottawa-Hull also make the top five list.
Zooming into hotel chains, Marriott International tops the leaderboard with 75 projects, trailed closely by Hilton Worldwide and IHG Hotels & Resorts. Together, these giants encompass 65% of the projects and 59% of the rooms in the pipeline. Standout brands from these companies include the Hampton by Hilton, Marriott’s TownePlace Suites, and IHG’s Holiday Inn Express.
Looking ahead, the rest of 2023 is poised to witness the opening of 16 new hotels. Predictions for 2024 and 2025 indicate the inauguration of 33 and 43 new establishments respectively.
