CEO Maalouf commits to supporting tourism growth across the country
IHG Hotels & Resorts (IHG), one of the world’s leading hotel companies, views Thailand as a land of opportunity where it remains committed to growing its world-class brand portfolio in 2026 and beyond.
Since opening its first property in the country – Holiday Inn Resort Phuket – in 1987, IHG has grown substantially, now operating 40 hotels and 39 more hotels in the pipeline. This positions the company to double its presence in the market within the next three to five years.
IHG hotels also created 500 new jobs in Thailand last year, further strengthening the team to 6,000 colleagues working across the estate.
On a recent visit, IHG’s CEO Elie Maalouf emphasised his strong commitment to the country, which, despite many macroeconomic challenges last year, remains one of the world’s leading destinations for international travellers.
“This is going to be a big year for IHG in Thailand, a land of opportunity, as the country targets 36 million international visitors, a 10% increase year-on-year, and over 205 million domestic trips. We are supporting the country’s ambition by giving travellers even more options for every stay occasion We are building on the reputation of our luxury & lifestyle portfolio, catering to a growing appetite for experience rich stays, and will expand across the premium and mainstream segments. This year, we are on track to open five hotels across our Hotel Indigo, Crowne Plaza and Holiday Inn Express brands in Bangkok,” said Maalouf.
“The robust development activity we’re seeing reflects the confidence hotel owners have in Thailand’s long-term potential and our offering. Bangkok’s hotel supply continues to grow rapidly, with more than 3,000 rooms added in 2025 within the city’s core CBD, bringing the total to over 83,000 rooms.
“Many owners are investing in renovations and rebranding programmes to enhance asset value. We’re actively pursuing strategic partnerships with local developers and investors to facilitate entry into new destinations, aligned with local priorities. We remain committed to working with government, industry partners and owners to further strengthen Thailand’s position as a world-class tourism destination.”
Maalouf see opportunities everywhere for the global business throughout the region, and highlighted IHG’s strategy to secure long-term growth.
He said: “Despite global macroeconomic challenges, Asia Pacific was the world’s fastest-growing tourism destination in 2025, fuelled by fundamental drivers such as accelerating GDP, population growth and an expanding middle class. Intra-regional travel demand continues to grow with seven of the 10 busiest international air routes last year in the region, including Bangkok to Hong Kong, which ranked seventh.
“Travel is expected to remain one of Asia Pacific’s strongest growth engines this year and beyond – and IHG intends to be at the heart of it.”
Maalouf explained that, as IHG continues to grow across its brands and enterprise, it’s exploring how best to harness AI to deliver results and elevate the guest experience at its more than 6,800 hotels worldwide.
“We’re making strong progress in developing, evolving and deploying powerful technology to address real business challenges for our guests, owners, and IHG,” he said. “Every decision we make in technology focuses on three priorities: promoting our hotels, optimising operations and engaging with guests.
“We recognise the importance of leveraging technology to enhance guest experiences and free up hotel teams to deliver exceptional service – which is the essence of hospitality – all underpinned by robust governance and security, which is an absolute priority for us.”
With 20 hotel brands spanning all market segments, IHG delivers exceptional stays tailored to a wide range of domestic and international travellers. “We’re investing across our entire portfolio, including Luxury & Lifestyle, where we have the world’s second-largest estate with more than 560 properties in 80 countries,” continued Maalouf.
“In Thailand, we have a fantastic portfolio of award-winning hotels across Six Senses, InterContinental, Kimpton, Vignette Collection and Hotel Indigo that our guests and owners love. Thailand’s luxury travel market is growing at nearly 10% year-on-year, and we are supporting that growth with 38% of our pipeline in this segment. This aligns to the government’s move to attract an increased number of high value and high spending visitors to the country.”
“The branded residences market also continues to grow. Last year, we launched two landmark projects: the first standalone InterContinental Residences globally in Bangkok – InterContinental Residences Bangkok Asoke, and The Residences at InterContinental Phuket Resort. These complement our existing InterContinental branded residences in the region, such as in Hua Hin.
“At the same time, we remain deeply committed to our mainstream brands, which account for half of our 40-strong portfolio and 41% of our pipeline in Thailand. We see significant opportunity to extend our leadership in this space across the country with Holiday Inn, Holiday Inn Express and Garner.”
