The next phase of India’s hospitality boom is underway. Indian and global hotel chains signed pacts to manage at least 550 new hotels across the country last calendar year.
The push spans pilgrimage towns, hill stations, industrial hubs and airport corridors, as the demand for branded rooms continues to outstrip supply. Hospitality firms are locking in inventory through asset-light deals, without owning the properties.
This year too, the number is expected to look strong, early indicators suggest. According to data collected by Mint from hotel chains and hospitality consultancies, at least three companies—including Radisson and Marriott—have already signed up with over a dozen hotels this calendar year, growing on the back of a big domestic tourism boom and a greater demand for branded experiences.
Last week, Hyatt signed two new hotels with the Brigade group in Chennai and Bengaluru, while IHG Hotels signed a hotel in Delhi’s Nehru Place while ITC Hotels signed a Storii branded hotel in Mukundgarh Fort Hotel in Rajasthan.
“In 2026 so far, we have already added nine new hotels signed across markets. Our development strategy remains focused on a balanced mix of tier-1, -2, and -3 markets,” said Nikhil Sharma, managing director and chief operating officer, South Asia, for the Radisson Hotel Group.
That is the appeal of the asset-light model that now dominates much of the branded hotel business. In such arrangements, a developer or property owner builds the hotel, while the brand, such as Sarovar, Lemon Tree, Hyatt or IHG, comes in to run it.
In return, the hotel operator typically earns management fees linked to revenue, and in some cases, profits, while also benefiting from room distribution, loyalty programmes and brand visibility. For owners, tying up with a known hotel company can improve occupancy, pricing and access to customers.
At present, per industry estimates India has only about 220,000 branded hotel rooms. This number is expected to grow to 350,400 by 2030. India’s demand for branded hotel rooms is seen growing at compounded annual growth rate of 8-10% during FY25-28 as against the 5-6% rise likely in premium hotel rooms, as per ratings firm Icra.
Many businesses told Mint that over the last decade or so, they have moved to asset-light management contracts rather than owning the properties since it is easier to scale this way. The scramble reflects a simple industry calculation: room demand is expected to stay ahead of supply for years, encouraging hotel brands to secure management contracts now in markets where travel demand is deepening well beyond the top metros.
Kiran Andicot, senior vice-president for South Asia at Marriott International, said the year 2025 was a landmark development year for the American hospitality major, with 99 contract signings taking place. “These were across gateway cities and emerging destinations, across luxury, premium, and select-service segments,” he told Mint. In the first three months of 2026, the company signed up with 13 hotels.
The data says the same. Hotel signing activity in India has expanded at a remarkable pace since the pandemic years, which shows robust sectoral growth. From 223 hotel contract signings in 2019, the number has since nearly doubled to about 550 in 2025. There were 484 signings in 2024.
In room count too, the scale-up has been significant, with annual signings rising from 20,870 keys in 2019 to over 64,000 in 2025. According to the HVS ANAROCK-Gleeds Consulting 2025 Hotel Development Cost Report, this momentum is expected to continue, with India’s cumulative hotel room supply expected to reach 350,400 keys or rooms by 2030 from around 220,000 now.
Expanding footprint
Companies are also expanding to smaller, lesser-known towns and these emerging markets forming a growing part of their pipelines. Sarovar Hotels has a pipeline of 20-odd hotel launch plans for 2026, while listed player Lemon Tree Hotels signed up with 56 hotels in FY26.
India currently has around 2,100 branded hotels open to guests, across all star categories. In addition, there are about 500 more that are planned or have been signed for development in the past year but are not yet open.
“Barring some turbulence over the past 30 days, linked to the West Asia conflict, the macro indicators for India’s hotel sector have rarely looked stronger,” said Achin Khanna, managing partner, strategic advisory at hospitality consultancy Hotelivate. “Even through shocks such as covid and the 2008 sub-prime crisis, India’s hospitality industry has demonstrated resilience and bounced back quickly,” Khanna said. “Against that backdrop, the current pace of hotel signings is hardly surprising, with room demand still expected to outpace supply for at least the next five years.”
In its third-quarter results, EIH Ltd, the parent of Oberoi Hotels, said it has added managed properties in Kabini, Hampi and Coorg during the quarter, while Indian Hotels Co Ltd (IHCL), the parent of Taj, during its February earnings call said that the first of its six clear drivers of its next growth phase is a sharper asset management focus.
In FY26, ITC Hotels Ltd signed to manage 33 hotels to be asset light and have 220 hotels by 2030. The company is continuing to expand its portfolio through its “asset-right” strategy, which has helped it rapidly expand footprint across markets, said Anil Chadha, chairperson and managing director of the hotel chain.
The faith and leisure boost
One of the clearest themes emerging from this hotel signup spree is that faith, leisure and infrastructure are converging as major hotel demand drivers.
Operators are chasing pilgrimage towns such as Ayodhya, Mathura, Vrindavan, Haridwar, Omkareshwar and Tirupati, while also adding inventory in hill and resort markets such as Kasauli, Dalhousie, Darjeeling, Kufri, Mahabaleshwar, Lonavala and Malshej Ghat.
At the same time, airport-linked and industrial growth corridors such as Greater Noida, Devanahalli, Surat, Gandhidham and Rudrapur are drawing attention, as developers look to pair hospitality with business and mixed-use demand.