New Delhi, Feb. 26 -- India's hotel expansion is gathering pace, but the next wave will not be led by luxury towers reshaping metro skylines. The largest growth will be in the midscale hotel category, in a wider set of cities, even as construction costs climb.

According to a new report by hospitality consultancy HVS Anarock and Gleeds Consulting, about 60,220 keys were signed in 2025, the strongest calendar year of hotel signings. The figure stood at 47,249 keys in 2024.

Signed hotels refer to projects where developers and operators have formalised management or franchise agreements.

The report '2025 Hotel Development Cost in India', launched at the HVS Anarock HOPE 2026 conference currently underway in Goa, said India had around 209,2...