Nearly 126,000 new hotel rooms are due to open across the GCC by 2030, lifting total regional supply from close to 490,000 today to around 616,000, according to research from real estate consultancy Cavendish Maxwell released at Future Hospitality Summit World.
Saudi Arabia leads the pipeline with almost 94,500 rooms, taking its inventory to nearly 275,300, while the UAE follows with more than 23,000, including 11,180 in Dubai. The UAE currently holds about 43% of Gulf stock, with 212,135 rooms as of August 2026.
The expansion comes against softer demand, with occupancy declining in every GCC market over the first eight months of 2026. Saudi Arabia and the UAE both averaged 59%, though the UAE figure fell by almost a quarter, while Bahrain posted the steepest drop, down 31% to under 37%. Room rates proved more resilient, with the UAE's average daily rate easing 7% to USD 165.
Gulf Economist Staff Writer