Lucknow

Thailand’s Prime Minister proposes a six-nation visa to enhance regional tourism, potentially extending visa validity to 90 days, with a target of 80 million foreign tourist arrivals by 2027.

Wyndham Grand debuts in Kuala Lumpur and Hilton’s Curio Collection enters India, while Hotel Indigo Sydney Potts Point launches after a significant refurbishment. Hyatt and IHCL plan extensive expansions in India, while Genting invests in Sentosa. The Westin Tokyo undergoes a major makeover, and Candeo Hotels integrates a historic temple in Osaka.

In Q2 2023, the Asia Pacific hotel construction pipeline reached a record high of 1,936 projects with 401,766 rooms. Luxury, upper upscale, and upscale projects dominated the pipeline. Countries with the largest pipelines are India, Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia, and Japan. Macau has surpassed Hong Kong as the preferred travel destination for mainland Chinese travelers in 2023, receiving nearly twice as many visitors. Around 50.9% of outbound Chinese travelers chose Macau, while Hong Kong received about 26.7%. Mainland Chinese tourists prefer destinations in East Asia and Southeast Asia. Accor is expanding its hotel offerings. They are introducing the Handwritten Collection in Thailand with the Andaman Beach Hotel Phuket, opening a Mercure hotel in Lucknow, India, and launching Lords Inn hotels in Jamnagar, Gujarat, and Kanki, West Bengal. Accor has also partnered with Reliance Industries and Renest Hotels & Resorts for new properties.

Chinese travelers’ spending on travel and tourism within China surged by 95.9% year over year in the first half of the year, with urban residents leading the increase. Jakarta’s hotel industry experienced its highest average daily rate and RevPAR levels since October 2018, with June 2023 occupancy reaching 66.7%. Bali will implement a US$10 tax per foreign holidaymaker starting in 2024, aiming to fund environmental initiatives, cultural preservation, and infrastructure development.

China hotel RevPAR showed significant year-over-year growth of 50.4% for the week ending July 1, 2023, compared to a decline in 2019 and 7.6% decline in the same period. Vietnam’s international visitor numbers reached 70% of their 2023 projection but remained below expectations due to fierce competition and an economic recession. Domestic tourism in Vietnam is also experiencing a decline. Worldwide Hotels Group made significant acquisitions in Melbourne and Singapore , representing the largest hotel transaction in Melbourne in over six years and the largest single-asset Singapore hotel transaction in Asia Pacific in 2023.

Colliers is recommending developers in the Philippines line up various hotel projects in order to capture the surge in local and foreign tourists. Alliance Global Group, Inc. will accelerate expansion plans in the Philippines as they bet on a second wave of spending with the expected opening of the Chinese economy. The Clarks Hotels & Resorts strengthened its international footprint by opening Clarks Exotica Kamadhoo Maldives .