The Hotel Investment Conference – South Asia (HICSA) 2025, organised by Hotelivate, successfully concluded its 20th edition at The Westin Mumbai Powai Lake, marking a milestone moment in the evolution of South Asia’s most influential hospitality investment summit
This landmark edition drew over 770 delegates from across 16 countries, bringing together global hotel owners, investors, operators, developers, lawyers, bankers, and consultants to engage in powerful dialogue on the future of hospitality in South Asia and beyond.
With over 100 influential speakers and 30 thoughtfully curated sessions, the two-day conference offered invaluable insights into a wide array of topics, including investment trends, brand performance, sustainability, AI in hospitality, and the evolving role of alternative accommodations, among many others.
The closed-door Owners’ Only Workshop saw over 170 owners in attendance, with some interesting topics being covered like “Creating Efficient Back of the House”, “Legal Challenges Faced in the Past and Present”, Owner-centric panels, to name a few.
Commenting on the 20th anniversary of HICSA, Manav Thadani, Founder Chairman – Hotelivate, said, “The 20th edition of HICSA was more than a milestone — it was a powerful statement about the future of hospitality in South Asia. While we took a moment to honour our journey, the real focus was on what lies ahead. The conversations sparked, partnerships formed, and ideas exchanged over these two days will undoubtedly influence the trajectory of our industry. We are deeply grateful to our delegates, speakers, patrons, and sponsors whose unwavering support and enthusiasm made this celebration of all things hospitality truly exceptional.”
The conference featured some exclusive interviews and keynote addresses of some notable speakers such as Kevin Goh – Chief Executive Officer, Lodging, CapitaLand Investment Limited, Chief Executive Officer, The Ascott Limited, Vikram Oberoi – Chief Executive Officer & MD, The Oberoi Group, Ritesh Agarwal – Founder & Group CEO, OYO, Kenneth Macpherson – Chief Executive Officer, Europe, Middle East, Asia & Africa, IHG Hotels & Resorts, Sébastien Bazin – Chairman and CEO, Accor, to name a few. It also covered some interesting topics, including “AI in Hospitality,” “Chasing the Leisure Traveller,” “Franchising and Third Party,” and “Hospitality Real Estate and Capital Markets.”
Amongst other speakers were global leaders such as Dillip Rajakarier – Group CEO, Minor International, CEO, Minor Hotels, Dimitris Manikis – President – Europe, Middle East, Eurasia, & Africa, Wyndham Hotels & Resorts, Gaurav Bhushan – Co – CEO, Ennismore, Haitham Mattar – Managing Director – Middle East, Africa & South West Asia, IHG Hotels & Resorts, Sunjae Sharma-Managing Director – India & Southwest Asia – Hyatt, Jatin Khanna -Chief Executive Officer, Sarovar Hotels, Camil Yazbeck -Global Chief Development Officer – Premium, Midscale & Economy, Accor, Elie Younes – Executive Vice President & Global Chief Development Officer, Radisson Hotel Group, Suma Venkatesh -Executive Vice President – Real Estate & Development, IHCL to name a few.
HICSA also featured curated panel discussions and mini keynote sessions with industry leaders. While each session was well attended, the “General Manager to CEO – The Journey” panel with Anil Chadha – Managing Director, ITC Hotels, Anuraag Bhatnagar – Chief Executive Officer, The Leela Palaces, Hotels & Resorts, Dr. Sanjay Sethi – Managing Director & CEO, Chalet Hotels and Rajeev Menon -President – Asia Pacific (excluding China) – Marriott International, as panellists and Mohit Nirula – Chief Operating Officer, The Oberoi Group, as the moderator gets a special mention as it received a standing ovation.
Other topics of interest included “Buying into Luxury”, “Hotel Valuations: Who is Buying, Building What and Where?”, “Branded Residences & Villas”, “Impact of Pollution”, and many more.
The curated experiences and awards at HICSA were well-received and celebrated. ‘HICSA Hotels of the Year Awards’, presented by MakeMyTrip, saw seven winners across the seven categories and a critic’s choice award. The winner of the Critics’ Choice Award was The Lotus Palace, Chettinad.
The winners across the other six categories were: ITC Ratnadipa, a Luxury Collection Hotel, Colombo the Luxury Hotels Segment; Hilton Kathmandu for the Upscale/Upper Upscale Hotels segment; Hyatt Place Aurangabad Airport in the Upper Midmarket Hotels Segment; Moxy Bengaluru Airport Prestige Tech Cloud in the Budget & Midmarket Segment; Morickap Lords 83, Trademark Collection by Wyndham in the Boutique Segment and Hyatt Centric Ballygunge Kolkata in the Conversion – Urban Segment and Ronil Goa – JDV by Hyatt in the Conversion – Leisure Segment.
The General Manager of the Year Awards, presented by MakeMyTrip, was another highlight this year. These awards are a wonderful opportunity to recognise and highlight the hard work and outstanding performance displayed by the General Managers, tirelessly running the show.
For the Budget and Economy Category, the winner was Prafull Dhapate – Holiday Inn Express, Pune Pimpri, for the Midmarket/ Upper Midmarket segment – the winner was Divakar Shukla–Holiday Inn Chennai OMR IT Expressway, in the Upscale / Upper Upscale category, the winners was Amardeep Singh–The Westin Resort and Spa Himalayas, and for the Luxury Category, the winner was Abhimanyu Singh Lodha – The Lodhi New Delhi.
The closing cocktails and the “After-Hours” at The Fairmont Mumbai were the perfect end to the 20th edition of HICSA.
Looking Ahead
With the successful culmination of HICSA 2025, Hotelivate is now gearing up for the 21st edition of HICSA and planning to bring it back better than ever. HICSA 2026 will return to Mumbai on the 8th and 9th of April 2026. The next big event on the calendar is the 10th edition of THINC Indonesia in Bali on 3rd—4th September 2025. As the company expands its global hospitality footprint, its commitment to innovation, collaboration, and thought leadership remains stronger.
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