Before exploring the various hotel brands that exist in the world, it is important to first define exactly what is meant by the hotel industry.
Simply put, it is a term used to describe that part of the service industry that focuses on the accommodation of guests, and this can include hotels, motels, vacation cottages, bed and breakfasts, and others.
Is The Hospitality Industry Lucerative?
The hospitality industry is one of the most important sources of income for the country and generates revenues in the trillions. It covers various sectors such as hotels, resorts, rentals and restaurants and is an integral part of the tourism industry.
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Difference Between American And European Hotel Brands
For those accustomed to American hotel brands, there are some notable differences to be aware of when researching the various European hotel brands and groups.
For example, while many popular American hotel chains do have hotels in Europe, many European hotels are smaller brands with more niche appeal.
Hotel rooms in European countries are often smaller than in the US, and the unique cultural and architectural features of one country will always influence another.
Workers in Europe also tend to rely less on tips for their earnings, so customer service has more of a collective focus.
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Top Luxurious Hotel Brands
Rosewood Hotels & Resorts
What started as just another random hotel in Texas quickly turned into a brand that literally took the world by storm in less than 40 years. During that period, the Rosewood achieved what many would call the pinnacle of all American hotels, literally bringing luxury wherever they went.
Because of this, the brand has now spread across the planet and with a team of experts in the field, they have also shown no signs of stopping or slowing down.
The atmosphere here is simply extraordinary, and to top it all off, they tend to truly reflect the best that the culture they inhabit has to offer, making them a great choice for those who want to truly experience the life of royalty in this particular part of the world.
Belmond Hotels
Belmond, or as many call it, the Orient Express, is one of those companies that, despite having no hotels around the world, has managed to make a name for itself around the world thanks to its incredible service and aspect quality over quantity.
In total, they have about 49 hotels in 24 countries, and each of them literally controls the market wherever they are located.
Whether you want to spend one night here or want to live like royalty for an entire week, Belmond hotels have you covered.
Six Senses Resorts
Six Senses is an award-winning hotel brand that truly deserves all the accolades they have received over the years.
They are known for literally changing the very appearance of the places they inhabit, transforming them from relatively normal places to incredibly harmonious and luxurious tourist attractions, where people travel from all over the world.
They have some of the best spas in the world, their chefs are world-class, and they even offer paragliding for the super-adventurous who can’t get their adrenaline rush without jumping several hundred feet.
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Aman Resorts
The wonderful thing about Aman hotels is that they are only known for being built in the most amazing locations around the world, literally transforming their already incredible architecture into works of art that poets could write symphonies about just seeing them time.
There are 31 hotels worldwide that bear the Aman name, and they are all known as some of the most luxurious hotels in the world for good reason.
They are impressive on the outside, and in terms of service, there is only one other brand that can compete with it to this day. Aman has committed to changing the world one hotel at a time, and they’ve certainly delivered on their promise as far as we’re concerned.
Soneva Resorts
Although there are currently only three Soneva hotels in the world, they are all exquisite enough to deserve the top spot on our list. Their latest was built in the Maldives and is owned by Sonev Jana.
If you don’t know about it, we highly recommend checking out some photos, because trust us, you’ll see in no time why it deserves our number one spot.
They’ve offered the best in terms of service and comfort, they’re second to none when it comes to location choices, they’ve literally made a name for themselves as the best in the business, and it’s hard to argue against that when all you can do is hold onto your wallet so you don’t book for the tenth time in a month at their resort.
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Choice Hotel Brands
Choice Hotels International, often referred to as Choice Hotels, is one of the largest hotel companies in the world. Choice Hotels is one of the biggest competitors of such major hotel chains as Hilton, Marriott and IHG.
Choice Hotels is headquartered in Rockville, Maryland. Choice Hotels has a portfolio of more than 7,000 hotels in more than 40 countries.
While the parent company may not be well-known, its constituent properties enjoy an unexpectedly high level of brand recognition, offering names such as Comfort Inn, Sleep Inn and Rodeway Inn.
Although Choice Hotels has always focused on mid-range/economy travelers, it is possible to stay in high-end hotels.
Wyndham Hotel Brands
In a world with thousands of hotel brands available, guests turn to names they trust, like Wyndham, which they know means a quality experience and exceptional service.
Wyndham is the largest hotel chain in the world by number of properties, thanks to its focus on smaller hotels. It has more than 9,000 properties in more than 80 countries, making Wyndham a world-renowned hospitality company.
While Wyndham has always focused on targeting the budget or vacation rental crowd, there are still many different brands to keep an eye on. In fact, with over 25 Wyndham brands, choosing your next Wyndham property can be daunting.
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Hotel Brands In The World
Marriott International
Of course, Marriott International, an American multinational company in the hotel industry, leads the list of the TOP 10 largest hotel companies in the world for 2021.
Marriott is the largest hotel chain in the world by the number of available rooms. It has 30 brands with 7,642 hotels, including 1,423,044 rooms in 131 countries and territories.
From 2020 to 2021, the number of Marriott International rooms increased from 1,358,400 to 1,400,289 rooms, registering a growth of 3.1%.
Jin Jiang
Jin Jiang has more hotels than Marriott International, but fewer rooms, and is the second largest hotel chain in the world by number of rooms.
In 2021, according to the latest data, the Chinese company operates more than 10,000 hotels with almost 1,100,000 rooms, registering a growth of 6.7% compared to last year.
Hilton Hotels
Hilton Hotels is the third largest hotel chain in the world. From 2020 to 2021, more than 600 hotels were added to the company’s portfolio. The growth of this group remains significant, mainly in the United States. In 2021, Hilton Hotels manages 1,010,257 rooms.
Compared to last year, this figure increased by 4.9%. According to financial results, net income for the third quarter of 2021 was $240 million. Hilton added 14,700 rooms in the third quarter, contributing 11,200 net additional rooms during the period and approximately 6.6% annualized net unit growth as of September 30, 2020.
InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG)
Today InterContinental Hotels Group is #4 in the world. The group recorded “weak” growth of just 0.3% between 2020 and 2021.
It is worth noting that in 2020 for IHG, a 52.5% decrease in RevPAR led to a 75% drop in operating profit of the reporting segments. InterContinental Hotels Group has almost 6,000 hotels and 886,036 rooms in its portfolio.
Wyndham Hotels and Resorts, Inc
Wyndham Hotels and Resorts is the fifth largest hotel in the world. The American hotel group saw a 4.2% drop in room supply, making it the only Western hotel group in the top 10 with the fewest rooms compared to last year.
Wyndham Hotels and Resorts currently owns 8,941 hotels with 795,909 rooms. The hospitality company is based in Parsippana, New Jersey, and had revenue of $1.3 billion for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2020.
Accor Group
This French hotel chain has more than 5,000 hotels worldwide. Accor Group has more than 750,000 rooms with an annual increase in room supply of 3.1%.
Growth has remained steady over the years, with the Accor group growing by around 3% between 2019 and 2020. It was recently announced that Accor has become an official partner of the 2024 Paris Olympic and Paralympic Games.
Huazhu Hotels Group
Huazhu Hotels Group is another Chinese hotel group with a large number of hotels and rooms in its portfolio. The headquarters is located in Changning District, Shanghai.
It was founded in 2005. The chain manages almost 7,000 hotels and has 607,137 rooms. The growth compared to 2020 was extremely high, with a 23.2% increase in room supply between 2020 and 2021.
Choice Hotels
Having recorded a global increase in room supply by 1.2%, the American franchisor Choice Hotels did not move from the 8th place in the rating. As of 2021, the hotel chain has 7,147 hotels with a total offer of 597,977 rooms.
Choice Hotels operates in more than 40 countries around the world. In the third quarter of 2021, domestic RevPAR beat forecasts and grew 11.4% compared to 2019 levels, with 89 new domestic franchise deals in the quarter, up 10% from the same period in 2020.
OYO Hotels & Homes
This is an Indian hotel chain that has gone through a lot of problems in the past year. Thus, its number offer decreased by 54.3% compared to last year.
The company, which was founded in 2013, had serious problems in China and Europe that caused a huge loss of room supply. Compared to the ranking of the top 10 hotel chains in 2020, OYO lost 7 positions and now ranks 9th. OYO still operates over 20,000 hotels with 449,000 rooms.
Conclusion
In the last two decades, luxurious five-star (and even six- and seven-star) hotels and resorts have appeared like mushrooms in all corners of the world. While this is great news for discerning travelers, not all new expensive and glitzy hotels live up to the standards of a truly refined and memorable experience.
Only a few hotel chains manage to provide the consistency of unsurpassed excellence that luxury travelers expect. These brands stand out and surpass the competition through impeccable service, unusual locations (on the beach, in the city or in the remote desert), world-class wellness facilities, excellent gastronomy, impressive accommodation and – last but not least – an environmental policy.
References
- revfine.com – List of the 10 Biggest European Hotel Brands to Work For
- ceoworld.biz – Top 10 major hotel companies in the world for 2022
- theluxurytravelexpert.com – Top 10 best luxury hotel brands in the world
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