Novotel Lucknow Convention Centre Signed By Accor

LUCKNOW, June 15, 2026: Accor has signed Novotel Lucknow Convention Centre, Golf City, a 160-key hotel with approximately 4,000 sq. m. of banqueting and event space, developed by Amarnani Promoters Group and scheduled to open in 2031. The property will sit within the Golf City–Ekana corridor, one of Lucknow's fastest-developing commercial and lifestyle zones, adjacent to the BRSABV Ekana Cricket Stadium and within reach of the city's airport and major institutional infrastructure.

The scale of the convention infrastructure is the headline detail and the commercial argument in the same breath. Four thousand square metres of banqueting and event space, attached to 160 rooms under a globally recognised hospitality brand, in a corridor that is also home to one of India's major international cricket venues, that combination is not assembled by accident. It is a deliberate positioning of a convention-class hotel in a location that can generate demand from corporate events, government gatherings, sports delegations, and social celebrations simultaneously. Lucknow has been waiting for a property that can hold that range of occasions at scale. The Novotel Lucknow Convention Centre is built to be that property.

The Golf City–Ekana corridor: what it is and why it matters

The Golf City–Ekana corridor has been emerging as one of the most commercially active development zones in Lucknow for the past several years. Anchored by the Ekana Sports City, which includes the BRSABV Ekana International Cricket Stadium, one of India's largest cricket venues with a capacity of approximately 50,000, the corridor has attracted residential developments, institutional campuses, and commercial investment that have transformed what was previously peripheral urban land into a high-activity growth hub.

For a convention hotel, proximity to a stadium of Ekana's scale and national standing is a specific commercial asset. International cricket fixtures bring visiting teams, broadcasting crews, sponsors, and media delegations to Lucknow on a predictable and recurring basis. Each of those groups needs accommodation, event space, and F&B infrastructure at a level that the stadium's immediate surroundings have not always been able to provide. The Novotel Lucknow Convention Centre, opening five years from now, will be positioned to serve that demand from its first year of operation.

What the hotel will offer

The 160-key property will feature an all-day dining restaurant and bar designed around Novotel's approach to balanced, sustainable dining. A swimming pool, spa, and fitness centre address the wellness and lifestyle expectations of both leisure guests and corporate travellers on extended stays. The 4,000 sq. m. of event infrastructure, spanning banqueting halls, pre-function areas, and flexible meeting configurations, forms the backbone of the hotel's MICE proposition and its most commercially distinctive feature.

The hotel's guest mix, as Accor has positioned it, will span business travellers, MICE delegates, sports teams, leisure visitors, and transit guests, a range that is realistic given the corridor's varied activity profile, and one that gives the property genuine revenue diversification across segments and seasons.

What Ranju Alex said about Lucknow's emergence

Ranju Alex, CEO – South Asia, Accor, placed the Novotel Lucknow signing inside the brand's strategic read of India's evolving city hierarchy.

"Lucknow is rapidly emerging as a key commercial and lifestyle destination, with the Golf City–Ekana corridor evolving into one of the city's most dynamic growth hubs. The signing of Novotel Lucknow Convention Centre, Golf City underscores Accor's continued commitment to expanding its presence in high-potential markets across India. Strategically located and supported by robust MICE infrastructure and contemporary hospitality offerings, the hotel is well-positioned to meet the growing needs of business, sports, and leisure travellers alike."

— Ranju Alex, CEO – South Asia, Accor

The reference to "business, sports, and leisure" in a single hotel's positioning is not a generic sweep of market segments. In the Ekana corridor specifically, all three demand streams are real and documented. The cricket stadium drives sports demand. The institutional campuses and commercial development drive business demand. The residential growth and lifestyle infrastructure drive leisure demand. The Novotel sits at the intersection of all three because the corridor itself has been built to generate all three.

The developer's long-term vision for Lucknow

Dhiraj Amarnani, Director, and Kunal Amarnani, VP Hospitality, Amarnani Promoters Group, articulated what the hotel means to the developer's thesis for the city.

"We are delighted to partner with Accor to bring the globally recognised Novotel brand to Lucknow's emerging Golf City district. This development reflects our long-term vision of creating high-quality hospitality destinations that align with the city's evolving aspirations. With the rapid transformation of the Ekana corridor into a vibrant commercial and lifestyle hub, we believe this hotel will become a preferred destination for travellers, events, and large-format gatherings."

— Dhiraj Amarnani, Director, and Kunal Amarnani, VP Hospitality, Amarnani Promoters Group

The phrase "the city's evolving aspirations" is worth pausing on. Lucknow has been on a trajectory of significant commercial and infrastructure growth, supported by state government investment in road, metro, and airport development. The aspirations in question are not abstract, they are expressed in the city's growing appetite for quality branded hospitality, large-format event venues, and the kind of infrastructure that signals Lucknow's arrival as a Tier 1 business destination rather than a Tier 2 city still becoming one.

Accor's MICE and Novotel strategy in India

The Lucknow Convention Centre signing continues Accor's deliberate expansion of its MICE-capable Novotel portfolio across India's high-growth cities. The Novotel brand sits in Accor's upper midscale range, positioned to offer convention-class infrastructure and consistent international service standards at pricing that captures both corporate accounts and government events, without requiring the rate levels of a full luxury property.

For Lucknow, a city where the gap between existing branded MICE supply and actual MICE demand has been widening as the city's institutional and commercial profile grows, a 160-room Novotel with 4,000 sq. m. of event space represents a meaningful structural addition. The 2031 opening target gives the city and the Ekana corridor five years to continue maturing into the demand base the hotel is designed to serve.