At a press conference held in Shanghai, the Accor Group announced plans to expand its portfolio of luxury hotels to 1,600 properties over the next five to six years.
Major Projects. At a press conference held in Shanghai, Accor outlined its roadmap for the coming years. The French group announced new luxury hotel projects and plans to strengthen its key partnerships.
This decision comes amidst growth in China’s tourism industry: the number of international guests at its properties in China has grown by 46% year-over-year since early 2026.
Indeed, as global tourism rebounds, China attracted an increasing number of visitors between 2025 and 2026, chipping away at market share from the United States, for example. As reported by RFI, travelers are no longer focusing solely on Beijing and Shanghai but are venturing into cities and regions such as Xi’an, Yunnan, Guizhou, Sichuan, and Chengdu.
In light of this trend, the Accor Group has announced plans to “refine its luxury segment, expand its mid-range segment, consolidate partnerships,” and “revitalize” its brands. Together with its partners, the international company will develop several luxury hotel projects in northern China, the Yangtze River Delta, and western China. The Fairmont Hangzhou Huagang, the Sofitel Xi’an Chanba, the MGallery Collection Hangzhou Jianghehui, the MGallery Collection Pujiang, the Swissôtel Hangzhou Westlake, and the Pullman Shanghai Qilu have been selected to strengthen this presence.
Long-standing partnerships
According to the group, the strong foothold of its hotels depends largely on its local partners such as Jin Jiang International Group, one of the leading companies in China’s hospitality sector. Accor, which has been working with this company for 10 years, has also announced the signing of “a framework cooperation agreement for a luxury hotel project in Shanghai.” The French hospitality specialist also mentioned H World Group and Sunmei Digital Intelligence, with whom it aims to strengthen its long-term strategic relationships.
According to figures released by the group, Accor “currently operates more than 830 hotels in Greater China, spread across more than 50 cities, 17 brands, and more than 140,000 rooms.” Over the next five to six years, the multinational plans to increase this number to 1,600 properties. Accor is already planning to open the Fairmont Dalian and the MGallery Chengdu Financial City in 2026.
This strategy aligns with China’s goal of accelerating growth in its tourism sector. On Wednesday, July 8, the Ministry of Culture and Tourism unveiled a five-year plan to develop this initiative. Under this strategy, the country aims to attract 190 million foreign visitors by 2030, with total spending exceeding $150 billion.
The country will also continue to make it easier to obtain visas and offer attractive prices while modernizing its infrastructure. Its goal? To become an increasingly competitive destination.
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Featured picture : @Edward HE / UNSPLASH
