BRICS boom: Luxury hotels sold out, suites touch Rs 5 lakh in Delhi

As per the latest business developments, Sold-out hotels and room rates Rs 5 lakh a night, the 18th BRICS Leaders' Summit has transformed New Delhi into one of India's hottest hospitality markets the current week.

At ITC Maurya, where Russian President Vladimir Putin is staying, the highest room category is commanding rates of up to Rs 2.5 lakh a night during the summit period.

The summit is on September 12 and 13 but some leaders, like Putin who arrived on September 9, may have an extended stay.

At The Lalit New Delhi, a Legacy Suite is priced at over Rs 5 lakh for September 11-12, compared with around Rs 1.1 lakh for a week later.

At the Oberoi, New Delhi, there are no rooms available between September 13 and 16, while the Taj Mahal Hotel on Mansingh Road is sold out for September 11-12.

According to travel marketplace TravClan, room rates across Delhi have risen significantly in the run-up to the summit.

"In the days leading up to the summit, agents on our platform have been paying over 40 percent more per room-night for New Delhi hotels than they were in August, while rates across the rest of India have stayed flat to slightly soft," TravClan co-founder and CEO Arun Bagaria stated.

"When we compare the same Delhi hotels across both periods, nearly all of them are costing more, with a typical climb of around 30 percent."

At Eros Hotel New Delhi, average room rates have risen 15 percent from the year-ago period.

"We have experienced a significant climb in bookings due to the BRICS Summit, with occupancy increasing around 10% over last year," stated Davinder Juj, General Manager, Eros Hotel New Delhi.

The momentum is additionally visible across larger hotel chains. Radisson Hotel Group stated September is shaping up to be a particularly firm month, with average room rates up more than 25 percent YoY.

"The BRICS Summit in New Delhi is contributing to heightened demand, particularly in the days around the event, with shorter booking windows further supporting rate expansion. Beyond the summit, demand keeps be supported by corporate travel, MICE, social events, conferences and domestic leisure travel," stated Nikhil Sharma, Managing Director and COO, South Asia, Radisson Hotel Group.

Industry executives say the summit underscores the growing importance of meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions (MICE) in driving hotel revenues.

"MICE has been one of the more reliable demand drivers for Delhi this year, and BRICS week is a clear example of that," stated Bagaria. "September is typically one of Delhi's softer months, so a rate lift of more than 40 percent in the middle of the monsoon is almost entirely event-led. For the travel ecosystem, large summits are increasingly the moments that separate a soft month from a firm one."

Aditya Sanghi, CEO of Hotelogix, stated MICE segment contributes between 15 percent and 25 percent to total hotel revenues in India. Citing an HVS report, he stated full-service hotels with convention and meeting infrastructure recorded occupancy marks of around 75 percent in February amid firm MICE demand.

With the Network of Indian MICE Association projecting annual expansion of 12-14 percent over the next three to five years, Sanghi believes the sector will stay a key expansion engine for hospitality firms.

Yet, the tariff explosion has additionally reignited concerns around Delhi's limited premium hotel inventory.

Prashant Daroch, founder of Atravelq, stated room rates the current week highlight a structural supply challenge.

"Five-star rooms that were selling for around Rs 18,000 a night just three weeks ago are now listed above Rs 80,000, while some central Delhi properties are charging upwards of Rs 2 lakh because the city effectively ran out of premium inventory as BRICS delegations started checking in," he stated.

According to Daroch, the pattern mirrors what Delhi witnessed during the AI Impact Summit earlier this year and the G20 Summit before that.

"This isn't really around BRICS alone. Delhi has roughly 21,000 branded hotel rooms in a city that keeps attract marquee global events. Every time international attention turns towards India, the hospitality sector's strengths are overshadowed by a supply gap that stays unresolved," he stated.