Omaxe has signed a memorandum of understanding with Carnation Hotels, Lemon Tree Hotels’ wholly owned subsidiary, covering 10 planned hospitality projects with 4,000 keys across India.
In its 16 October 2026 announcement, the developer estimated investment of INR 4,000 crore, or INR 40 billion, with development and commissioning expected to take nine months to five years, depending on the property.
A mix of transport, pilgrimage and commercial locations
The tentative portfolio spans Lucknow, Vrindavan, Amausi, Ghaziabad, Greater Noida, Amritsar, Kaushambi and Faridabad. It includes bus-terminal developments, airport-area accommodation and serviced apartments.
The properties are intended to operate within Lemon Tree Hotels’ brand portfolio, although individual brand allocations have not been announced. Omaxe says it expects to fund completion through sales proceeds without loan funding.
These are planned projects rather than new hotel openings. The statement establishes an operating partnership, while leaving property-level opening dates and recruitment plans undisclosed.
Part of a wider development programme
The agreement follows Omaxe’s 29 June announcement of a dedicated hospitality business. That earlier programme envisaged 19 hotels, almost five million square feet of development and INR 6,200 crore of investment over four to five years.
Uttar Pradesh was central to that plan, accounting for 12 proposed hotels. The developer described a range of formats, from midscale and upscale properties to pilgrimage hotels, serviced apartments and extended-stay studios.
The June announcement made investment conditional on project approvals and market conditions. It also said Omaxe was discussing branding and management partnerships with hotel operators. The latest MoU provides a named operating partner for a substantial portion of the proposed programme.
Lemon Tree’s regional expansion
The deal arrives alongside a separate expansion of Lemon Tree’s Uttar Pradesh network. On 13 October, the group announced a franchise agreement for a 52-room Keys Select hotel in Bareilly.
At that point, it reported eight operating hotels and 18 upcoming properties in the state. Across its wider business, the same release described more than 130 operating hotels and a pipeline of more than 140 properties.
Those figures predate the Omaxe announcement. They should not be combined with the new deal to produce an updated portfolio total without clarification from the company.
What operators should watch
For competing operators, the practical question is when each location becomes bookable. A multi-year development programme will affect local supply differently from an immediate opening, so property-level schedules will be more useful than the combined key count alone.
The proposed formats also suggest different operating requirements. Serviced apartments, airport-area accommodation and bus-terminal hotels are likely to need distinct approaches to staffing, housekeeping, guest flows and distribution. This is an operational implication, rather than a company staffing forecast.
For people teams, the useful next step will be to connect confirmed commissioning dates with recruitment and training plans. Until those dates and brands emerge, the partnership is an indicator of potential demand for talent, rather than a quantified hiring commitment. That distinction matters when allocating scarce pre-opening resources.
Related reading: India’s hotel expansion turns skills into the sector’s biggest hiring question.
Image: Omaxe Connaught Place in Greater Noida, one of the planned project locations. The photograph shows the existing development, not an operating Lemon Tree hotel. Photo: Omaxe Limited.
