For the third consecutive year, Spain has once again been ranked as Europe’s most attractive destination for hotel investment in terms of market fundamentals, ahead of Italy and the United Kingdom. Portugal ranks fourth, consolidating the Iberian market’s importance on the European investment map, according to CBRE’s 2026 European Hotel Investor Intentions Survey.
The report highlights robust tourism demand and the sector’s operational performance as the main factors driving investment, despite the context of geopolitical and macroeconomic uncertainty. Iberia and Italy together account for over 40% of hotel investment intentions in Europe for 2026. In the case of Spain, the market represented around 18% of European hotel investment volume in 2025, second only to the UK.
“Spain and Portugal continue to demonstrate the strength of their tourism fundamentals, placing the Iberian market in the spotlight for international capital. In a more challenging environment, investors are becoming more selective, prioritising markets, assets and strategies capable of delivering long-term value. Spain’s leadership and the positioning of cities such as Barcelona, Madrid and Lisbon highlight the region’s appeal, both as urban and holiday destinations,” said Jorge Ruiz, Executive Director and Head of Hotels in Iberia at CBRE.
In the city rankings, Barcelona climbs from fifth to first place and shares the top spot with London as the leading destination for hotel investment in Europe. Madrid ranks third, while Lisbon comes in sixth.
Barcelona’s appeal is underpinned by tourism and business demand, its status as a MICE destination and a context of limited supply due to restrictions on the growth of tourist accommodation and new hotel developments. In 2025, the hotel sector accounted for €934 million of property investment in Catalonia, 27% of the regional total, compared with the 23% share this segment represented across Spain as a whole. The figure marked the highest level on record and represented a 51% increase compared with 2024.
Xavier Güell, Executive Director and Head of Barcelona at CBRE, explained that “Barcelona has taken the top spot as the leading destination for hotel investment in Europe. This is yet another example of the extraordinary strength the city has demonstrated across all property sectors for more than five years, with the exception of residential investment, which is in decline due to regulations. In the hotel sector, investment pressure is the highest in Europe due to the sector’s fundamentals in Barcelona, with extremely high international demand from both tourists and business travellers and a limited supply caused by the moratorium, which makes any hotel in the city a scarce asset and a safe haven”.
At a European level, over 90% of investors expect to maintain or increase their capital allocation to the hotel sector by 2026. Some 31% anticipate significant increases, compared to 26% the previous year. The prospects for total return, together with price and valuation levels, remain the main factors driving interest in this asset class.
Value-add strategies continue to dominate, although the report notes a greater balance as opportunistic strategies gain ground. By location, assets in major cities, central business districts (CBDs) and gateway destinations, as well as established tourist destinations, are seeing the highest demand. This trend favours Spain and Portugal, where both market profiles coexist.
By segment, luxury hotels remain the most attractive assets for investors, accounting for 53% of preferences. Interest is also growing in products with greater operational resilience, such as extended-stay and all-inclusive models.
Rising operating and capital costs are among investors’ main concerns, particularly regarding capital expenditure (Capex) requirements, refurbishment costs and operating expenses. Geopolitical uncertainty remains another significant factor. Conversely, financing conditions are becoming less of a primary concern, suggesting a degree of stabilisation in debt markets.
The start of 2026 has seen investment activity in the Iberian hotel sector remain buoyant. The volume of investment in hotels in Iberia reached nearly €1 billion in the first quarter of the year, up 44% year-on-year, and accounted for 21% of the total transacted in Europe, according to CBRE.
