The Middle East’s hotel construction pipeline hit an all-time high at the close of Q4 2025, setting the stage for 187 new hotel openings by the end of 2027, according to the latest data from Lodging Econometrics (LE).
Saudi Arabia is out in front, accounting for more than half of all projects in the region’s record pipeline.
In total, the Middle East now has 710 hotel projects with 176,402 rooms in development, marking a 13% rise in rooms versus Q4 2024. Of these, 36 hotels with 10,104 rooms opened in 2025, with a further 93 hotels (18,511 rooms) expected to open in 2026 and 94 hotels (19,654 rooms) in 2027, signalling a steady uplift in regional room supply over the next two years.
Saudi leads the region by a significant margin, accounting for more than half of the Middle East’s total pipeline, with a record 394 projects and 106,521 rooms, up 25% and 28% year-on-year, respectively. This development is concentrated in key destinations, with Riyadh, Jeddah and Makkah all posting record or near-record pipelines fuelled by large-scale tourism initiatives.
Riyadh has the largest city pipeline in the Middle East, with 107 projects and 20,936 rooms in development. Jeddah follows with 63 projects (14,358 rooms), while Makkah has 35 projects (22,829 rooms), underscoring strong religious tourism and long-stay demand.
by Kate Birch, CT
