Adelaide now offers 10,000 CBD hotel rooms – and growing

Adelaide CBD hotels have hit a new landmark, now offering more than 10,000 rooms with hundreds more in the pipeline as demand continues to grow.

Confidence in South Australia’s tourism and business future has seen Adelaide smash through the landmark 10,000 hotel room mark as a building boom to meet rising demand shrugs off Covid blues.

The city has had an 18 per cent increase in hotel rooms since the pandemic hit with hundreds more in the pipeline.

Since 2020, Adelaide has welcomed Eos by SkyCity, Sofitel, Oval Hotel, Crowne Plaza, Hotel Indigo Adelaide Markets, Majestic M Suites, Tom’s Court and La Loft Tonsley, adding 1233 rooms for a total now of 10,276 rooms.

Vibe Hotel Adelaide and TRYP Hotel open next month, while next year will see the Ramada Hotel debut in the City of Playford, the Marriott Hotel on the GPO site and the Glenelg Hotel at Colley Terrace, for a total investment from 2020-24 of $1.25bn.

Eos by SkyCity general manager Jodi Brown. Picture: Kelly Barnes

Demand for accommodation flattened by the pandemic has recovered and the outlook is strong as the state’s events calendar fills, conventions return and international flights climb to 70 per cent of pre-pandemic levels and trend upwards.

The state’ s visitor economy hit $7.3bn for the year to September 2022 – still shy of the pre-pandemic high of $8.1bn in the year to December 2019 but a huge leap from the $4.4bn in the Covid-riddled year to March 2021. Confidence is high that a steady stream of events beyond the traditional ‘Mad March’ – including the AFL’s Gather Round, LIV Golf tournament, NRL State of Origin and five FIFA Women’s World Cup soccer games – will keep the sector booming.

Eos by SkyCity general manager Jodi Brown said as well as the growing leisure market the hotel was looking forward to international business continuing to strengthen.

“We are certainly feeling positive about the upcoming quarter as we move into festival season, and then continuing into April, which is set to be a huge month with Easter, Gather Round and LIV Golf, of which we will be a key accommodation partner,” she said.

“May is also looking favourable with a number of key corporate travel groups. We are seeing direct flights into Adelaide increasing, and the SATC continuing to spend on driving visitation to South Australia.

“We have also seen a spike in the new market trend ‘bleisure’, which is where corporate clients and guests mix business and pleasure to extend their stay.”

Tourism Minister Zoe Bettison said the pre-pandemic target of a visitor economy worth $12.8bn annually by 2030 was back on track. In SA, tourism accounts for almost 100,000 jobs directly and indirectly.

Tourism Industry Council of SA chief executive Shaun de Bruyn said the industry was confident of continued growth.

“Skills and labour are an ongoing issue, and governments are doing things like free TAFE training, improving visa processing times, and extending post-study work rights for international students, which are helping,” he said.