Twenty years of dedicated work in the hotel industry, Huazhu Group illuminates a new vision of inclusive accommodation with quality.

Ask AI · How does Huazhu grow from an economy hotel to the fourth largest globally?

Text / Wang Jun

Source / Node Finance

The hotel industry is a thermometer of the economy and a weather vane of people’s livelihoods.

When “expanding domestic demand” becomes a long-term strategy for high-quality development, cultural tourism and business travel consumption are the most direct focus points. In this landscape, Huazhu Group’s identity has long gone beyond just a “hotel company” — it is a core hub for domestic demand release.

To “expand domestic demand” and achieve “high-quality development,” cultural tourism and business travel are key drivers of national travel. As a leading global hotel group, Huazhu is no longer just an ordinary company providing accommodation services but has become a pioneer in leading quality supply.

Recently, Huazhu Group released its latest financial report. The annual hotel revenue reached 108.1 billion yuan, up 16.4%; revenue was 25.3 billion yuan, up 5.9%; adjusted net profit was 4.9 billion yuan, up 32.9%. By the end of 2025, there are 12,858 hotels worldwide, with over 1.26 million rooms.

Through these numbers, we see not just growth but a substantial achievement that Huazhu has delivered after 20 years of effort.

20 Years of Steady Hotel Building

Today, Huazhu ranks fourth globally (according to “HOTELS” magazine’s “2024 Top 205 Hotel Groups”), gaining deep market recognition: over 2 billion guests served cumulatively, driving nearly 300 billion yuan in industry chain investments; in 2025 alone, member bookings exceeded 245 million room nights, a 21.5% increase.

Caption: Huazhu Group ranks fourth on “HOTELS” magazine’s “2024 Top 205 Hotel Groups” list.

Twenty years ago, the first “Hanting Hotel” opened next to Kunshan Railway Station. At that time, China’s economy hotel market was just beginning, filled with inns and small hostels, but clean, standardized, and affordable accommodations were hard to find. Huazhu Group’s founder and chairman, Ji Qi, had a simple idea: allow ordinary people on business trips to stay in clean, comfortable rooms, sleep peacefully, and enjoy good showers, good food, and good internet.

He led his team to conduct in-depth research, discovering that consumers cared most about comfort, hygiene, and price. With the positioning of “good but affordable,” Hanting quickly gained market share and became the first choice for countless business travelers and families.

In 2013, the first Jiudian 3.0 opened in Shanghai, bringing Eastern beauty into hotels for the first time and breaking the aesthetic monopoly of Western hotels. In 2019, Jiudian 4.0 debuted, with “Keting” transforming the lobby into a third space in the city where guests could sit down to read a book or enjoy a cup of tea. The latest version, 5.0 “Xiaoshanqing,” elevates the cultural aesthetic of mid-range hotels. These product iterations not only meet the rising quality demands of middle-class consumers but also allow them to enjoy lifestyles aligned with Chinese habits—embodying the Eastern hospitality tradition.

Caption: Jiudian 5.0 “Xiaoshanqing” lobby tea space

By 2025, Hanting and Jiudian have respectively become the world’s number one and number four hotel brands (according to “HOTELS” 2024 “Global Top 50 Hotel Brands” list). Through continuous product innovation over 20 years—from meeting basic accommodation needs to leading industry trends—Huazhu’s clear logic is: no matter who you are or why you travel, you can enjoy a good but affordable stay.

After Thousands of Cities and Tens of Thousands of Hotels, Huazhu Sets Out Again

As times evolve, new market patterns bring new challenges: on one hand, consumers’ demand for higher quality travel and accommodation; on the other, a large supply of “high price, low quality” or “low price, even lower quality” lodging options still exists.

Huazhu has clearly perceived the huge potential in the “market supply-demand gap.”

At the 2025 Huazhu Partner Conference, founder and chairman Ji Qi shared his view: the biggest opportunity in China’s hotel industry in the future lies in supply-side reform!

Caption: 2025 Huazhu Group Partner Conference

Huazhu says so, and does so.

In 2025, Huazhu increased its number of stores in lower-tier markets by 30% year-over-year, and room nights by 36.3%, filling the gap of less than 20% chain penetration in county markets and significantly improving lodging experiences there.

For example, Hanting Hotels have opened in Gengzi County, Tibet at an altitude of 4,700 meters (the world’s highest national hotel), in Mêdog County, Tibet—the last Tibetan county accessible by road—and in Mohe, Heilongjiang—the northernmost point of China. Wherever people go, Hanting is there to support their stay. Huazhu has become a “new infrastructure” ensuring the travel needs of hundreds of millions of people.

Caption: Hanting Hotel in Gengzi County, Tibet

Meanwhile, in the mid-to-high-end segment once dominated by foreign brands, Huazhu is also actively expanding. By the end of last year, mid-to-high-end stores grew by 17.6% year-over-year, with over 500 new mid-to-high-end hotels planned to open. Additionally, the “Intercity Hotels” project aims to surpass 100 stores in three years, breaking the traditional perception of mid-to-high-end hotels. From service to systems, from space to mindset, Intercity Hotels has brought significant disruption to this segment. The Crystal Hotels, with over 300 locations, are a testament to investor confidence—using the same properties and investments, Huazhu creates higher-end, better-selling products.

Caption: Intercity Hotels

This clearly outlines another path of Huazhu’s development: starting from consumer upgrade demands, leading Chinese brands upward.

Over 20 years, from the first Hanting to more than 12,000 stores, from economy to mid-high end, from first- and second-tier cities to county markets, every step Huazhu has taken has gradually turned its vision into reality—making hotels important and beautiful spaces for people.

Expanding Employment and Boosting Consumption, Supporting Livelihoods

By 2025, Huazhu became the first in the industry to be rated A-level in MSCI ESG. From planning to operation, from corporate management to social practice, Huazhu has adhered to sustainable development for 20 years.

Latest financial data show that Huazhu has 12,858 stores worldwide, providing over 246,000 jobs, a 120% increase since 2020.

Taking the China National Highway 318 (Sichuan-Tibet route) as an example, Huazhu has woven a “Golden Triangle” of Hanting, Jiudian, and Jüzi brands. Among its 600+ employees, more than half are ethnic minorities. Huazhu’s county-level hotels enable more young people to find stable careers locally instead of moving far away. Managers, housekeepers, receptionists, maintenance staff—each role supports a family’s livelihood. Wherever hotels are located, employment follows.

Huazhu also transforms hotels into “micro-hubs” connecting rural and urban areas. “Tea” symbolizes Eastern culture and tradition, and is also Huazhu’s hospitality ethos. In Zhenghe, Fujian, Jiudian runs the “Zhenghe White Tea Industry Support” project, purchasing over 60,000 jin of high-quality local tea annually, providing stable sales channels for local tea farmers.

Caption: Jiudian Zhenghe Eco Farm

Additionally, Jiudian has signed a strategic cooperation agreement with Xinli Village, Xinglong Township, Wuchang City, Heilongjiang Province, to jointly develop the “Jiudian Eco Farm.” By sourcing local rice, Huazhu helps increase farmers’ income and promotes young labor returning home. “High-quality agricultural products in hotels” reflects the sincere human touch behind a cup of tea or a bowl of porridge.

Conclusion

Huazhu is a shorthand for “Chinese accommodation,” embodying a grand vision—to elevate China’s hotel industry onto the world stage.

At the start of the “14th Five-Year Plan,” with strategies like “accelerating comprehensive green transformation of economic and social development,” “rural revitalization,” and “enhancing the dissemination and influence of Chinese civilization,” the goals are broad, but the focus must be on the details.

Over 20 years, Huazhu has turned the vision of a “wonderful journey” into tangible warmth—

It’s hundreds of thousands of jobs, stable sales channels for tea and rice farmers, and that “good but affordable” bed at 4,700 meters altitude.

Stabilizing the foundation and honing internal strength are key to Huazhu’s cycle-crossing and the confidence to start anew after 20 years.