Romanian Investment Marketbeat H1 2025
Romanian hotel market experiences further performance growth in first half of 2025. The occupancy increased by around 4% in the first six months of the year compared to the same period of 2024, according to a study conducted by the Cushman & Wakefield Echinox real estate consultancy company based on the STR data, who tracks the hotel performance of a sample of properties. The average daily rate (ADR) grew by circa 8% in local currency. This resulted in a spectacular 12% increase in Revenue per Available Room (RevPAR) YTD 2025 versus 2024.
Bucharest, the capital city of Romania, registered similar trend: the occupancy increased by around 3% and the ADR by circa 7.5%, with resulting RevPAR increase of 11% (all based on STR sample) in Jan-June 2025 vs 2024.
Therefore, the room revenue evolution outpaced the inflation (six-month average of 5.28% according to Moody’s), making hotels an attractive investment opportunity.
The region saw a notable 9.3% increase in RevPAR compared to H1 2024, primarily driven by a 6.9% rise in ADR. Meanwhile, occupancy also improved by 3.4 percentage points, reaching 65% in H1 2025 (6.5 pp. behind 2019 levels). The RevPAR index for all CEE capitals exceeded 2019 levels, with Warsaw (138.9%), Sofia (128.4%), and Prague (125.5%) at the forefront. Warsaw and Sofia stand out as the only cities to have surpassed 2019 occupancy levels, reaching indices of 104.6% and 100.2%, respectively.
In H1 2025, approximately 20 hotels and serviced apartment projects were completed across the CEE-6 capitals, delivering an additional 1,600 rooms to these markets (+1.7% YoY supply growth). This was driven primarily by Warsaw (+3.8%), Prague (+1.8%) and Bucharest (+1.7%). Development activity was concentrated in the Luxury and Upscale segments, which recorded the most substantial supply growth. Notable openings included the Fairmont Golden Prague and the Corinthia Grand Hotel Bucharest.
The Bucharest market continues its positive development, getting more attention from both investors and international hotel operators. City supply is expected to grow at 3% CAGR over 2025-2027.
Alina Cazachevici Partner, Head of Valuation & Advisory, Hospitality & Alternatives, CEE/SEE Cushman & Wakefield: “Romanian hotel market continues its positive trajectory in both performance and investment attractivity. The growing interest from local capital towards the hospitality assets is supporting the segment development, as it successfully replacing the international demand, which remains cautious amid political uncertainties in the region – or along these lines”.
The capital market statistics confirm the investment sentiment, with transaction volume in the CEE-6 region reaching 682M in H1 2025, up 364% year-on-year and the highest level since 2019. Most deals involved Upper Upscale assets, with Luxury properties next in line. This positive momentum is expected to continue through the second half of 2025 and into 2026, supported by numerous transactions in the pipeline and new opportunities set to enter the market.
In Romania, the investment volume exceeding 50 mil EUR (including one transaction that is agreed upon but will officially close in September), compared to circa 35 mil EUR registered in the same period last year.
