- Report: Luxury and premium assets drive 73 percent of hotel deals.
- Luxury RevPAR is expected to rise 5.4 percent in 2026.
- AI readiness and loyalty data now shape deal pricing.
"Five years ago, the physical asset was the deal. Today, the asset is half the deal,” said Jonathan Shing, PwC partner. “The other half is the data, the loyalty program and the intentionality of the consumer experience.”
The middle of the market is not struggling on performance and mid-tier RevPAR remains solid. But buyer conviction is shifting, with capital crowding into premium assets and making them pricier. New builds remain hard to justify due to high costs and long permitting timelines, so buying and upgrading existing hotels has become the more practical route for most buyers.
The report found that buyers are paying more for properties where wellness is woven into the full guest experience rather than limited to a gym or spa add-on. New tie-ups between major hotel brands and specialist wellness operators point to a growing group of buyers specifically looking for that kind of integration.
The report also found AI and customer data have become key deal factors, something they weren't even a year ago. Buyers now ask whether AI can add value to operations and whether data is clean enough to power personalization and direct bookings. Hotels that can't answer get lower bids, while those with AI-ready operations get better pricing.
Also, land-based casino revenues keep growing even as digital sportsbooks and prediction markets expand. Buyers are now looking beyond the casino floor, valuing digital gaming platforms, loyalty programs and customer relationships as part of the deal.
Travel demand is also splitting along generational lines: Gen Z and millennials are taking more, shorter trips, while Gen X is taking fewer but pricier ones. Rising airfares are pushing travelers toward drive-to destinations and assets tied to one traveler type face headwinds, while platforms serving multiple generations are drawing stronger investor interest.
Another report, by Walker & Dunlop, found that hotel investors are increasingly favoring luxury and upscale properties as performance gaps widen across the U.S. lodging sector.
