JOHANNESBURG - Hotel development in Cape Town and Pretoria saw a decline in total planned rooms last year, compared to the previous year, while other regions such as Durban, Johannesburg and uMhlanga experienced substantial growth, according to the latest 2017 Pipeline Report by W Hospitality Group.
The report said that Cape Town retained the biggest share of planned hotel development in South Africa, despite showing a decrease in total planned rooms.
Compared with last year, development was slowing in Cape Town and Pretoria, with the number of planned rooms down 22percent and 28percent, respectively. In contrast, Durban, Johannesburg and uMhlanga were seeing growth of 40percent, 23percent and 113percent, respectively.
Cape Town has 25percent of the South African development pipeline, with 1063 rooms in six hotels; Durban has 16percent with 697rooms in five hotels, an increase of 40percent in terms of total rooms on last year; Pretoria has 11percent of the pipeline with 463rooms in three hotels; while Joburg has only 10percent with 432rooms in four hotels and uMhlanga has 7percent with 298rooms in two hotels.
Trevor Ward, W Hospitality's managing director, said: “Year-on-year performance for Africa as a whole in 2018 shows growth, but more muted than in recent years: 25percent growth in the number of pipeline rooms in 2015; 19percent in 2016, and 13percent in 2017, much the same as the 14percent growth in 2018.”
Ward said while Cape Town continued to offer great opportunities for hotel investment, it was exciting to see new hotel construction projects all over South Africa in places such as Addo, Ballito, Boschendal, Hermanus, Kruger Park, Malelane, Mossel Bay, Nelspruit, Paarl, Polokwane, Port Elizabeth, Rosebank, St Francis Bay, Stellenbosch, Tsitsikamma and Umfolozi.
This year’s report, now in its 10th edition, had 41 contributors reporting 418 deals over 100 brands across Africa.
W Hospitality Group is a founder member of Hotel Partners Africa.