Hospitality major Hilton Hotels sees growth across all segments in India

Hilton Hotels is witnessing exponential growth across all its segments in India — from luxury to upper upscale and mid-scale, prompting the company to see the country as one of its top priority markets for growth.

 

“We have seen high-velocity growth happening across the luxury, upper upscale, upscale, and mid-market premium economy segments in India,” Zubin Saxena, senior vice-president and regional head, South Asia, Hilton, told Business Standard.

 

He added, “We are sitting at the cusp of exponential growth. All our 250 hotel projects that we have planned in the last year will begin to unfold. And, we will have one of the newest portfolios in the Indian market in two-three years.”

 

 

Currently, Hilton Hotels has 35 operational hotels in India and 31 are in the pipeline.

 

In 2020, it had 20 operational hotels and 12 under development. Saxena added that a few years ago, Hilton had five hotel brands in India, now it is expected to operate hotels under 10 of its global brands.

 

Of 24 global brands, the hotel company currently has Conrad Hotels and Resorts, Hilton Hotels and Resorts, DoubleTree by Hilton, Hampton by Hilton and Hilton Garden Inn, with hotels under brands like Waldorf Astoria, LXR Hotels and Resorts, Signia By Hilton, Spark By Hilton, and Curio Collection under development.

 

“India has one branded hotel room for every 3,000 people, which is far behind other major markets. This undersupply is consequently driving hotel demand and also makes India a very interesting market from a business point of view,” he said.

 

In comparison, China has 881 operational hotels and 832 in the pipeline, where Hilton Hotels has a dominant market presence. 

 

Under its plan for targeting 10 times growth in 10 years, Hilton Hotels had earlier announced the signing of 75 Hampton by Hilton (an upper midscale hotel) with NILE Hospitality. It also has a strategic licensing agreement (SLA) with Olive by Embassy to open 150 Spark by Hilton hotels across India.

 

He added that the company is open to collaborate with other hotel asset management firms at the right time.

 

“We have an asset-light play in India, but beyond the management of hotels, we are also very keen on the franchising side of the business. If we get a high-quality franchising opportunity that would help us grow our upscale and mid-market segments, we would be open to it,” he said.

 

For the first six months of 2025, Hilton Hotels has recorded a double-digit growth in its revenue per available room (RevPAR) on a year-on-year (Y-o-Y) basis.

 

In the South Asian region, including Nepal, Bhutan and Bangladesh, it has 71 operational hotels, which is two years ahead of its 2027 target of having 75 hotels, Saxena added.