Dubai Has 15,067 Hotel Rooms in Development as Middle East Pipeline Hits a Record

Al Bayan reported the figures from the firm's latest report. They show the UAE as a whole with 26,800 rooms in 111 projects, or 14.2% of the region's rooms in the pipeline and 14.4% of its projects. Dubai accounts for 56.2% of the UAE's rooms in development and 58.6% of its projects. The other emirates share the rest.

The counts suggest developers and hotel brands are still committing to the Gulf even as the Iran war weighs on travel and property. The regional pipeline reached a record 771 projects at the end of September, up 17% from a year earlier, while the number of rooms rose 15%.

Of those, 329 projects with 82,594 rooms were already under construction, 43% of all projects. Another 184 projects with 53,675 rooms are scheduled to start within the next 12 months, up 14% by project count and 11% by rooms. The fastest growth is at the earliest stage: projects in early planning rose 55% to 258, and their room count rose 84% to 52,691.

Luxury hotels lead the pipeline with 213 projects and 47,150 rooms, 28% of projects and 25% of rooms. Upscale hotels follow with 197 projects and 55,307 rooms, and upper upscale with 191 projects and 45,677 rooms.

On openings, the report counted 36 hotels with 6,319 rooms opened in the first nine months of the year. Another 28 hotels with 4,091 rooms are expected in the fourth quarter, which would bring 2026 to 64 openings and 10,410 rooms.

Lodging Econometrics expects openings to speed up. It forecasts 94 new hotels with 14,716 rooms in 2027 and 96 hotels with 22,101 rooms in 2028.