LE: Canada’s pipeline remains robust

In the Q3 2023 Hotel Construction Pipeline Trend Report for Canada by Lodging Econometrics (LE), analysts report that the total construction pipeline in Canada stands at 275 projects/37,780 rooms, up 5% by projects and 8% by rooms year-over-year (YOY). In the third quarter, Canada had 22 new project announcements with 2,816 rooms.

Hotel projects presently under construction in Canada at Q3 stand at 56 projects/8,228 rooms, up 4% and 18% YOY, respectively. Projects scheduled to start construction in the next 12 months stand at 101 projects/11,548 rooms at Q3, while projects in the early planning stage stand at 118 projects/18,004 rooms; a 13% YOY increase by projects and a 33% YOY increase by rooms.

Hotel renovations in Canada at Q3 stand at 40 projects/5,469 rooms, and brand conversions ended the quarter at 58 projects/6,025 rooms.

Ontario continues to lead Canada’s hotel construction pipeline with 160 projects and a record high of 22,294 rooms, accounting for 58% of the projects and 59% of the rooms in the country’s total pipeline. British Columbia follows with 51 projects/8,500 rooms, then Quebec with 19 projects/2,231 rooms, Alberta with 18 projects/1,832 rooms, and Saskatchewan with seven projects/674 rooms.

The cities with the largest number of projects in the hotel construction pipeline in Canada at Q3 are led by Toronto, with 61 projects/9,049 rooms, claiming 22% of all the projects and 24% of all rooms in the country’s total pipeline. Following is Vancouver with 22 projects and a record-high count of 3,890 rooms, then Montreal with 14 projects/1,735 rooms, Niagara Falls with 13 projects/4,712 rooms, and Ottawa-Hull with nine projects/1,453 rooms. These five cities alone account for 43% of the projects and 55% of the rooms in Canada’s total pipeline.

In the first three quarters of 2023, Canada had 16 new hotel openings. LE’s forecast for new hotel openings predicts another six hotels will open in the last quarter of 2023, bringing the total to 22 hotels/2,917 rooms for a 0.8% room supply increase. LE analysts forecast a 1.2% increase in room supply growth for 2024, with 35 hotels/4,200 rooms expected to open, and in 2025, LE anticipates that 40 hotels/4,877 rooms will open for a 1.3% room supply increase.