IHG Hotels & Resorts Reports Accelerating RevPAR Growth and Strong Global Development in Q3 2026 Trading Update

IHG Hotels & Resorts has released its trading update for the third quarter of 2026, highlighting accelerated revenue metrics, robust regional performances, and continued momentum in global system expansion. The major hospitality company reported that its worldwide revenue per available room (RevPAR) grew by 5.3 percent during the quarter, buoyed by diversified geographic positioning, a varied brand portfolio, and sustained travel demand across multiple stay occasions.

The latest figures underscore a resilient global travel market entering the latter half of 2026, driven by strong operational execution and strategic brand expansion. Leadership at IHG pointed to a combination of favorable domestic markets, a resurgence in international inbound travel, and an aggressive development pipeline as the core pillars supporting the company’s financial health.

According to the update, IHG’s performance in the United States was notably robust, demonstrating comprehensive growth across all brands within the portfolio. This domestic strength was complemented by positive momentum in the EMEAA region—comprising Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and Asia—where standout performances were recorded in Continental Europe and the East Asia and Pacific markets. Notably, these regions benefited from an influx of inbound travel originating from China.

However, the international landscape presented mixed regional dynamics. The strong gains in Europe and parts of Asia helped offset a broadly flat performance across the Middle East. Furthermore, Greater China experienced an easing of RevPAR growth during the third quarter. Regional executives attributed this slowdown primarily to temporary external factors, including adverse weather events and shifts in the timing of public holidays that disrupted normal travel patterns and consumer demand.

Alongside its top-line financial metrics, IHG underscored a high level of activity in property development and brand expansion. The company anticipates closing out another record year for development activity, which is on track to mark its fifth consecutive year of accelerating net system growth. During the third quarter alone, IHG opened 92 new hotels. Demonstrating robust developer confidence in its enterprise platform, the company signed almost twice that number, adding 164 properties to its global pipeline.

This development engine continues to be driven by a balanced split between ground-up new builds and property conversions. IHG’s collection of conversion-focused and boutique brands—including voco, Vignette, Garner, and Noted—have maintained rapid expansion trajectories across international markets, capturing the interest of owners looking for quicker pathways to integration and operational support.

Reflecting on these results and the broader business outlook, Elie Maalouf, Chief Executive Officer of IHG Hotels & Resorts, provided a comprehensive assessment of the quarter and the path ahead.

"RevPAR growth accelerated in the third quarter to 5.3 percent as IHG’s breadth by geography, brands and stay occasions captured increasing guest demand around the world," Maalouf said. "Our U.S. performance was very strong, with growth across all brands. There was very good growth in EMEAA, most notably in Continental Europe and East Asia & Pacific, which included an increase in inbound travel from China. This growth more than offset a broadly flat performance in the Middle East and an easing of RevPAR in Greater China, where adverse weather and changes to public holiday timings impacted demand."

Addressing the company’s development pipeline and strategic growth initiatives, Maalouf emphasized the ongoing momentum in hotel signings and openings. "We expect another year of record development activity, and for 2026 to be our fifth straight year of accelerating net system growth," he noted. "In Q3, we opened 92 hotels and signed almost twice as many, with 164 properties added to our pipeline. Development remains split broadly evenly between new builds and conversions, with each of our collection and conversion-focused brands—voco, Vignette, Garner and Noted—continuing their rapid expansion around the world."

Looking toward the remainder of the fiscal year, Maalouf expressed strong confidence in the company’s financial projections and its overarching long-term strategy. The consistent execution of IHG’s business model has positioned the organization to meet market expectations heading into the final stretch of 2026.

"Our strong performance to date and continued positive outlook for demand gives us confidence in achieving consensus expectations for 2026," Maalouf concluded. "This would mark the third consecutive year of delivering adjusted EPS growth around the top end of our growth algorithm target of 12-15 percent annually on average over the medium to long term. This is driven by the power of IHG’s enterprise platform and the ability to capitalize further on our scale, leading positions, and the attractive long-term demand drivers for travel and hospitality globally."