Egypt once again topped Africa’s hotel chain development pipeline in 2025, with 143 hotels and nearly 34k rooms in the works — up from 109 hotels and around 26k rooms in 2024. The country now accounts for 32.5% of all rooms being developed across the continent, according to this year’s edition of W Hospitality Group’s Hotel Chain Development Pipelines in Africa report. Egypt remains well ahead of second-place Morocco, which has 58 hotels and 8.6k rooms in the pipeline.

Egypt is home to five of the 10 largest hotels in Africa’s pipeline, with the country’s average hotel project size at 237 rooms — far above the continental average of 181.

THE METHODOLOGY– The report draws comparatively on data submitted earlier this year to W Hospitality Group by 50 regional and international hotel chains — covering 145 brands with signed, legally binding transactions in Africa — from 54 African countries, including North Africa, sub-Saharan Africa, and the Indian Ocean islands. The analysis breaks down chain hotel pipeline activity by region, country, city, chain, and brand, distinguishing between projects still on paper and those under active or suspended construction.

Egypt’s urban hospitality sector was particularly singled out for its growth prospects, with demand accelerating for developments that integrate hotels with branded residences, retail, and conference facilities, Accor Chief Development Officer Maya Ziadeh said. “This growth is further propelled by leisure destinations, driven by the Coast and well-established resort destinations like Sharm El Sheikh, Hurghada and Marsa Alam, reinforcing Egypt’s position as a key player in the regional hospitality sector,” she added.

Greater Cairo boasts the largest hotel development pipeline of any African city, with nearly 17.8k rooms in the works — accounting for around 17% of the continent’s total rollout. The capital’s pipeline is being driven by global heavyweights like Accor, Marriott, Hilton, and IHG, which together have 67 projects representing 14.6k rooms.

Around 30% of these rooms are scheduled to open this year and next, with Barceló, Radisson, and Mandarin Oriental — which is taking over the historic Shepheard Hotel — expected to roll out new properties. Hilton is also set to introduce its lifestyle brands, the Curio Collection and Tapestry Collection, to Egypt as part of plans to more than triple its local presence and exceed 40 properties in the coming years, Hilton’s Carlos Khneisser said.

ICYMI- Hilton will launch the continent’s first Signia by Hilton Hotel and Signia Residence in West Cairo’s Skywalk, featuring 200 rooms, restaurants, a spa, gym, and one of Cairo’s largest meeting venues at 5k sqm. The adjoining residence will add another 200 serviced units.

Sharm El Sheikh is also punching above its weight. The Red Sea resort town ranks among the top resort destinations and has the second-largest hotel development pipeline among surveyed African cities, with 4.2k rooms in the works. Accor dominates the city’s development activity, holding eight of the nine planned projects and accounting for 96% of total rooms with brands like Rixos, Fairmont, and MGallery. Hilton is developing the only other project in the area, under its Curio Collection.

Other coastal hotspots are gaining ground, including Ain Sokhna, which has 2.0k rooms in the pipeline, followed by the North Coast with 1.5k rooms. Marsa Alam is also among the continent’s top resort development markets, with 1.4k rooms, followed by Hurghada with 820 rooms.

A lot of foreign investors have been eyeing the North Coast and the Red Sea as of late. Kuwait is reportedly planning to invest in projects across both regions, while Qatar is said to be exploring potential entries into the North Coast’s tourism sector. Leading the charge is the much anticipated USD 35 bn Ras El Hekma project, where ADQ is developing a next-gen city spanning 170 mn sqm. UAE-based Horizon Egypt Developments is also reportedly looking to snap up 180 acres on the North Coast to build an integrated tourism complex.

IN CONTEXT- Egypt aims to increase tourist footfall from 15.7 mn last year to 30 mn tourists a year by 2030 and boost hotel room capacity to 500k from 228k currently. The state has also launched a EGP 50 bn subsidized loan program for the tourism sector, providing tourism operators with extended support to expand facilities and accommodate an anticipated growth in visitor numbers — with a focus on key tourist destinations in Luxor, Aswan, Greater Cairo, the Red Sea, and South Sinai governorates.

Momentum is building — on paper, at least. The report paints a picture of a young but growing pipeline in Egypt with less than half of the rooms under development currently under construction, indicating many recent signings and long lead times to delivery. In 2024, only three hotels actually opened in Egypt out of a scheduled 12, reflecting an actualization rate of just 25% — well below the continental average of 38%. That being said, some 154 hotels are scheduled to open in Egypt this year alone.

Zooming out: Across Africa, hotel chains are developing 577 properties with over 104k rooms, a 13.3% y-o-y increase. North Africa saw the fastest growth in 2025 — up 23% y-o-y — while sub-Saharan Africa grew at a more modest 6%.

2024 was a record year for hotel openings across the continent, with 59 new hotels opening in 2024 — more than double the number opened in 2023. This marks the first year since the pandemic that delivery rates have improved, signaling improved project financing and developer confidence across the continent.

Your top infrastructure stories for the week:

  • Majid Al Futtaim Holdings’ (MAF) Majid Al Futtaim Properties is investing EGP 15 bn in a new mixed-use project called Junction, which will be located next to Mall of Egypt in West Cairo.
  • The French Development Agency and the EU inked EUR 262.3 mn worth ofloans for infrastructure projects, including for an electricity control center and a wastewater treatment plant in Alexandria, a wastewater plant in Gabel El Asfar, and the Robeiky-Tenth of Ramadan-Belbeis freight and passenger railway line.
  • The National Authority of Tunnels is looking to bring the Cairo Metro and other electric traction lines under its wing through a draft law that has reportedly received the green light from the cabinet. The proposed legislation would also let the authority exploit the assets for financial gain.
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