Marriott International recently announced that it recorded strong growth in 2024 with 123,000 gross rooms openings, net rooms growth of 6.8 pc for the full year 2024, and over 577,000 rooms in the company’s development pipeline at year-end. Marriott also continued to expand its product offerings across travel purposes and segments from affordable midscale to luxury.

In a press statement, the hotel group says that in 2024, the company signed a record of over 1,200 deals with owners, franchisees and developers, an average of over three deals a day, representing about 162,000 rooms globally.

Anthony Capuano

“2024 was a year of incredible growth for Marriott, as we celebrated regional milestones, segment entries, brand expansions, market debuts, and more. As we maintain our focus on the company’s purpose of connecting people through the power of travel, I couldn’t be more excited about the work our global teams are doing to drive growth and innovation, create best-in-class experiences for our guests, and deliver strong results for our owners and franchisees,” says Anthony Capuano, President and CEO, Marriott International.

According to the statement, presently, Marriott’s luxury portfolio of seven brands now comprises 658 hotels, resorts and branded residential properties, spanning 74 countries and territories. In 2024, the company signed a record number of 61 deals for luxury hotels and resorts, closing the year with 266 in the pipeline.

W Hotels expanded its global footprint with the opening of W Prague, and the unveiling of the reimagined W Hollywood and W Union Square in New York. The Luxury Collection also announced the opening of Koenigshof in Munich, marking the brand’s entry in Germany. Edition debuted in Saudi Arabia with Jeddah Edition, amongst other milestones.

The statement adds that following its entry into the segment, Marriott strengthened its presence in affordable midscale in 2024. City Express by Marriott is now anticipated to expand into Nicaragua, Bolivia, Argentina, and Peru, with plans to also expand into Brazil. The brand currently has 153 open properties with 17,777 rooms, with 53 in the pipeline with 5,673 rooms. StudioRes, an extended stay midscale brand in the United States and Canada, celebrated its first ground-breaking last January and closed 2024 with 35 properties, with a total of 4,037 rooms in the pipeline, anticipating its first opening later this year.

Four Points Flex by Sheraton, a conversion-friendly midscale brand in Marriott’s Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) and Asia Pacific excluding China (APEC) regions, celebrated numerous additions and signings, closing the year with 28 open properties, collectively 5,037 rooms, and 33 in the pipeline with 4,003 rooms.

According to the statement, Marriott has grown its residential portfolio by over 50 pc since year-end 2019, closing 2024 with 142 open residential locations and a pipeline of 138 locations, 28 pc of which are standalone projects, across 16 distinct brands. In 2024, the Marriott Branded Residences portfolio generated USD 2.1 billion in residential sales revenue for third-party developers, nearly double the previous year’s total.

In December 2024, Marriott announced the expansion of its outdoor-focused lodging offerings through two founding deals with key players in the outdoor lodging segment. The deals include the acquisition of the Postcard Cabins brand, formerly known as Getaway Outposts, and the execution of a long-term agreement with Trailborn, adds the statement.

Separately, as owner and consumer interest in apartment-style accommodations continues to grow, Marriott announced a long-term licensing agreement with Sonder Holdings in August 2024. Adding over 9,000 rooms to Marriott’s open portfolio and approximately 1,700 rooms to its development pipeline at year-end, this agreement underscores the company’s growing presence in this high-demand segment.

The hotel group adds that in the United States and Canada, Marriott’s portfolio at year-end 2024 totalled over 1 million open rooms across 6,307 properties, with nearly 263,000 rooms, representing 2,161 properties, in the pipeline. The company also signed a record 608 deals in the region in 2024. In June 2024, the company announced three signed agreements for iconic properties to join brands within the company’s luxury portfolio, the Resort at Pelican Hill under the St Regis brand, Ritz-Carlton O‘ahu, Turtle Bay, and Luxury Collection Midtown Manhattan.

In Asia Pacific, Marriott signed a record-breaking 109 deals representing 21,439 rooms, 19 pc of which are luxury projects, in the Asia Pacific Excluding China (APEC) region, growing the company’s pipeline in the region to 363 properties and 77,532 rooms, a 12 pc increase from 2023.

According to the statement, Marriott saw exciting growth in Greater China, with 463 properties representing 104,539 rooms in the region’s pipeline at year-end. In 2024, the company signed a record 161 deals representing nearly 31,000 rooms in China.

Marriott closed the year with 183 properties representing 27,817 rooms in the pipeline in the Caribbean and Latin America (CALA) region, registering a 15 pc increase from the previous year, with a record 67 deal signings in 2024. In 2024, Marriott opened its  500th property in CALA, with the opening of Almare, a Luxury Collection Resort, Isla Mujeres, Adult All-Inclusive.

The statement adds that Marriott continued to strengthen its footprint across the Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) region in 2024, growing its pipeline to 596 properties representing 104,731 rooms at year-end, a 10 pc increase from the previous year, following a record-breaking number of annual signings in the region of 291 deals representing over 34,000 rooms.