London hotel industry has received a boost with the news that, as Brexit draws near, 7,995 hotel rooms across 65 new hotels will be opened next year, adding to 158,956 existing rooms and marking the largest number of openings the city of London has seen in a year, according to statistics released by the London and Partners organization.
New hotel room openings have risen from 3,222 in 2010 to 7,995 set to open by 2020, according to data from STR. This means that in ten years (2010-2020), London’s total hotel room capacity has increased by 41%. In this sense, it is expected that the London hotel market in 2019 and 2020 expands to 121 hotels with 14,840 rooms, a record in a two-year period for the increasing number of hotel rooms.
Thanks to these new openings, London continues to attract leisure and business travelers from all over the world, especially the high-class ones. Of the almost 15,000 new rooms that are expected to open this and the following year, 10% are of 5-star grade, 31% 4-star, and 26% are budget hotels.
The significant new investment in hotels and venues has also contributed to London leading the CVENT’s European Meeting Destination rankings for the fifth year in a row.
The rankings report highlights London’s wide range of hotels that the UK capital offers for meeting and event planners, with more options than any other European destination. Compared to other European cities, London leads for its infrastructure - a variety of restaurants, meeting hotels, and total convention center space.
Several American hotel brands have recently opened or announced plans for new properties in London, including The Standard, which opened its first European hotel in July, joining the recently opened Hard Rock Hotel. The W London Leicester Square of Marriott has also undergone a major renovation to catch up with the city. In addition, the recently renovated Biltmore Hotel will reopen as the first hotel to join the Hilton new Luxury Collection brand: LXR Hotels & Resorts. Japan’s Prince Hotels will also introduce The Prince Akotoki later this month, its first European hotel based in London's Marylebone and displaying Japanese minimalism.
Upcoming openings include Edwardian Hotels who will unveil the much-awaited The Londoner, the world’s first super boutique hotel in London's West End next year. This five-star hotel will have 350 rooms, two luxury cinemas and a state-of-the-art hall that can accommodate up to 864 guests. Pan Pacific Hotels Group has also announced the opening of the new Pan Pacific London in 2020, while Rosewood also intends to open a new luxury hotel in what was the former US Embassy in Grosvenor Square by 2023.