Hotel construction across Asia‑Pacific is hitting record highs, according to a pipeline trend report by Lodging Econometrics. By late 2025, the region’s pipeline (excluding China) had grown to more than 2,200 projects and over 430,000 rooms, a year‑on‑year increase of around 9% in projects and 6% in rooms, with Vietnam, Thailand and Indonesia among the most active markets.
People, not concrete or capital, are becoming the biggest constraint to growth. Across Asia‑Pacific, hotel operators report persistent talent scarcity, with high turnover and higher salaries in other industries making it hardest to recruit for guest‑facing roles. In Singapore alone, recent analysis suggests that labour shortfalls could still shave around 1.4 percentage points off hotel sector growth, eroding gains from a projected 6% annual expansion if staffing gaps persist.
For hospitality firms in Southeast Asia, the real race over the next decade won’t be how fast they build hotels, but whether they can staff them.
When every industry wants the same workers
Hospitality brands lead the first-ever Fortune 100 Best Companies to Work For Southeast Asia, with Hilton, Capella Hotels and Resorts, and Marriott International all landing in the top ten.
