GLOBAL LEADERS: Chris Nassetta

Hilton’s President and CEO, Chris Nassetta, says the company is “well-positioned to emerge from the pandemic stronger than ever” as the desire to travel continues to boost confidence in the industry.

The popular CEO said the company had a solid 2021, opening 414 properties and adding more than 67,100 rooms to its system across the world in key locations spanning Melbourne to New York.

“After a year of recovery and growth, it has been incredible to witness the resiliency of the travel industry and our team’s ability to embrace change while serving more guests in more hotels around the world,” Nassetta said.

“We believe the desire to travel, experience new cultures and connect with others is core to the human experience.

“I can speak for all of us at Hilton when I say we’re looking forward to welcoming our guests and helping them make new memories in 2022,” he said.

Nassetta revealed Hilton ended 2021 with more than 6,800 hotels across 18 brands in six continents, with robust net unit growth of 5.6%.

The company’s development pipeline includes nearly 2,670 hotels representing approximately 408,000 rooms, nearly half of which are under construction. Nassetta’s comments were released during the 2022 Americas Lodging Investment Summit (ALIS) in Los Angeles in late January, an event that saw solid optimism from global leaders.

Key milestones for Hilton in 2021 included the debut of Hilton Nagasaki, the company’s 500th hotel in Asia Pacific, and Hilton Lanzhou City Center, the 400th hotel in the Greater China and Mongolia region for the business.

“Hilton’s development continues to be a key performance indicator of how well-positioned we are for the long-term,” said Hilton’s CFO and President Global Development, Kevin Jacobs.

“Hotel owners choose to work with us because of our premium commercial performance. With our capital light business model, we strive to maximise net unit growth, while continuing to deliver value for all our stakeholders.”

During 2021, a number of Hilton’s brands had a number of notable firsts, including the debut of Hilton Garden Inn in Australasia, DoubleTree by Hilton reaching its 50th international trading market and the phenomenal growth of Tru by Hilton, which opened its 200th hotel and adding nearly 100 hotels during the pandemic.