Global hotel inventory has gone up 18 per cent over the past decade, with STR reporting close to 17 million rooms open around the world.

According to the data from STR, a global data benchmarking company, there are currently 184,299 hotels comprising 16,966,280 million rooms around the globe.

“The hotel sector and its rate of return continue to attract real-estate investors—that is evident through the substantial growth in performance metrics and development we have seen over the past decade,” said Robin Rossmann, STR’s international managing director.

What defines a 'hotel'?

STR defines a hotel on three exclusionary criteria: 1) generates revenue on a nightly per-room basis, 2) has 10 or more rooms and 3) is open to the public (excludes those properties requiring membership, affiliation or club status).

Since the launch of its international business, STR’s hotel sample has grown by almost 3 million rooms (up 49 per cent).

Based on that sample, the global hotel industry recorded an average occupancy level of 67.5 per cent for the 12 months ending with February 2018, which was a 1.6 per cent increase from the previous 12 months. Average daily rate (ADR) grew 2.6 per cent during that 12-month time period to $122.96.

“While the story is rarely the same for any two markets around the world, the industry as a whole continues to perform at robust levels, and we expect continued growth over the coming years,” Rossmann said. - TradeArabia News Service