TOP200 Global Hotel Brands (Greater China) in May 2026

The latest "Top 200 Global Hotel Brands (Greater China) Ranking for May 2026"has been released by Meadin Academy.Holiday Inn Express,Hampton by Hilton, Holiday Inn, Crowne Plaza, Hilton Garden Inn, Sheraton, InterContinental,Hilton Hotels & Resorts, Mercure,and Four Points by Sheraton have strongly secured positions in the Top 10 of the list. 

Key Data Interpretation:

1、Brand Dimension Analysis:The data shows that the average index of the top 10 is 500.08, while the average for the Top 100 stands at 270.83 and for the Top 200 at 216.38. Average indices across all tiers show a slight downward trend. Among them, brands with an index of 500 or above account for 2.5%, those between 400-500 make up 4%, 300-400 accounts for 8.5%, 200-300 for 20.5%, and 100-200 for 64.5%. Among the top ten, Sheraton showed significant month-on-month growth in its index, driven by the Southeast Asian Food Festival hosted at Sheraton Grand Hangzhou Wetland Park Resort , the signing of Sheraton Kunshan, and the opening of Sheraton Tengzhou,which boosted both media and investment indices.

2、Group Dimension Analysis:Number of Groups Brands ——Marriott International, Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, Accor, InterContinental Hotels Group, Hyatt Hotels Corporation, Hilton Hotels & Resorts, Jin Jiang & Radisson Hotel Group, Langham Hotels International, Agoda Hotels Group, and Banyan Tree Hotels & Resorts have the top 10 number of brands,maintaining stable rankings. This month, Marriott International added one more brand (+1), while Hilton Hotels & Resorts lost one (-1). Notably, Design Hotels by Marriott International saw particularly strong month-on-month index growth this month, driven by continuous momentum in media and investment indices. The addition of Yangshuo Sugar House and Jinmao Purelax Mountain Hotel Lijiang in May marks accelerated expansion of Marriott’s footprint in China.

Groups Brand Index——Overall hotel group indices showed slight growth this month, though gains were nearly balanced by declines. Groups with month-on-month index increases accounted for 52.3%, while those with decreases made up 47.7%. The most notable gains were recorded by Peninsula Hotels Group (14.36%), Four Seasons Hotels & Resorts (12.82%), and Rosewood Hotels & Resorts (10.16%). Meanwhile, Kempinski Hotels Group (-15.59%), Fosun Tourism & Culture Group (-13.41%), and Langham Hospitality Group (-10.8%) experienced significant declines. Both the highest-growth and -decline groups are positioned in the premium segment, indicating sustained demand for high-end travel despite individual variations. Four Seasons Hotels achieved strong month-on-month index growth due to advantages such as strategic location efficiency, exceptional privacy, and flexible security services, hosting high-profile international political and business guests during the month, which increased media exposure and drove overall group index growth.

3、Key Market Trend Insights:1)County-level tourism is surging in popularity. During the May Day holiday in 2026, the county tourism market experienced explosive growth. According to Tongcheng Travel data, bookings for high-end hotels in cities at or below the fourth-tier level increased by over 34% year-on-year during the holiday period. Ctrip's data shows that high-star hotel spending accounted for 51% of total consumption in counties—surpassing for the first time the 49% share in first-tier cities. High-speed rail coverage, continuous expansion of county scenic areas, and accelerated penetration of hotel chains into lower-tier markets have laid a solid foundation for sustained growth in county tourism. Travelers' preferences are shifting from "visiting big cities" to "discovering stories in small towns," with consumption moving toward more local settings while maintaining, rather than declining, spending levels.

2)Inbound Tourism Dividends Accelerate.Inbound travel demand continued its upward climb throughout the Labor Day holiday. Data from the National Immigration Administration shows that foreign arrivals and departures grew 12.5% year-on-year during the holiday, with visa-free entries up 14.7% over the same period. Jin Jiang Hotels (China Region) reported that foreign guest arrivals at its properties increased by more than 17% year-on-year. These figures reflect an accelerating release of visa-free policy dividends: inbound visitor sources are diversifying, and per-capita spending is upgrading in tandem.

3) "Events and performances" boost accommodation spending in surrounding areas.Data from Qunar shows that during the May Day holiday, concerts, music festivals, sports events, and theme park fairs were held in large numbers, driving up hotel bookings locally. In particular, hotel reservations in Beijing's Bird's Nest/Olympic Sports Center area surged 49% year-on-year due to multiple concerts; hotel bookings around Zhengzhou Olympic Sports Center rose 214% thanks to several concerts; and the Song Dynasty Of Kungfu City in Kaifeng, Henan, drove a 205% increase in nearby hotel reservations. Clearly, sporting events, performances, and theme parks have become key drivers of accommodation consumption.

The Top 200 Global Hotel Brands in Greater China ranking for May 2026 is as follows——

MEADIN Brand Index(MBI) - Brand Value Inquiring Platform

MEADIN Brand Index (MBI) mainly analyzes the brand's communication power in the Internet from three dimensions: media index, comment index and investment index. This is a free data analysis service provided by the Meadin Brand Index Monitoring System (MBIMS), which is independently developed by MEADIN ACADEMY.

Calculation formula: MBI=a * MI+b * CI+c * II

Note: MBI refers to the MEADIN Brand Index (MBI data of a certain brand); a, b and c refer to the weighted coefficients in the system; MI (Media Index) refers to the media index; CI (Comment Index) refers to the comment index; II (Investment Index) refers to the investment index.

Note: Enterprises or individuals can refer to brand index data to monitor and predict brand development, but the MEADIN Brand Index cannot be completely equivalent to its brand development.

(1)Media Index (MI): The number of positive news related to brands’ keywords reported by major media, mass media, industry media, and self media over a period of time.

(2) Comment Index (CI): The accumulation relates to user reviews towards a certain brand’s opening hotels on various OTA (Online Travel Agency) websites over a period of time.

(3) Investment Index (II): Over a period of time, the franchise and development status of a certain brand in the Greater China market, including accumulative opening status, new opening status, accumulative signing status, new signing status, urban coverage density, investment owner attention, etc.

MEADIN ACADEMY – Culture and Tourism Industry Data Center

MEADIN ACADEMY has been engaging in buliding a Culture and Tourism Industry big data analysis platform, utilizing "data productivity" to change cognition and improve enterprise efficiency. It provides diversified big data solutions based on intelligence, data, and services for enterprises and public institutions which are looking forward to entering and expanding culture and tourism and rental real estate businesses. Transforming numbers into facts, the platform assists enterprises in making important decisions and identifying investment risks.