BEIJING, April 22 (Xinhua) -- China's chain hotel market sustained robust expansion in 2025, with chain hotel room inventory growing by 760,000 units, or 10.74 percent year on year, an industry report said on Wednesday.

Tourists visit the Fuzi (Confucius) Temple scenic area in Nanjing, east China's Jiangsu Province, Feb. 14, 2024. (Photo: Xinhua)

By the end of 2025, the country was running approximately 106,300 chain hotels, offering a combined 7.83 million rooms, according to the report from the China Hospitality Association.

Over the same period, the total number of operating rooms across the top 50 hotel groups increased by roughly 550,000, up 10.23 percent from the previous year, while mid-scale hotel brands saw room inventory expand by 10.91 percent.

The findings underscore a broader industry pivot from scale-focused expansion to quality and efficiency gains, driven by rising consumer demand for upgraded experiences. Brand differentiation and market segmentation are becoming increasingly pronounced, the report noted.

Digitalization and artificial intelligence have evolved from auxiliary tools into core production factors, with the technologies now deeply embedded across operations, service delivery and marketing to reshape efficiency and customer experience.

Chen Xinhua, president of the association, said the association would step up efforts to set industry standards for hotels and restaurants while expanding its showcase platform for new business models in order to promote the sector's high-quality development.