Days Inn, part of global group Wyndham, plans eight to ten hotels outside Asunción, with market studies due around mid-2027. Other operators, including Minor Hotels and Meliá, are also weighing projects, according to the Hotel Industry Association of Paraguay (AIHPY). Days Inn’s representative in the region cites a shortage of international-standard hotels beyond the capital, and plans new hotel investment in Paraguay.
“A gap outside Asunción”
Pablo Andrés Albamonte, co-founder and director of Grupo Hotelero Albamonte, outlined the plans. His group represents Days Inn and Howard Johnson in Argentina, with 42 hotels open and 17 under construction. It also has eight years of experience in Paraguay through a Howard Johnson hotel in Ciudad del Este, on the Brazilian border.
Asunción’s hotel scene is very good, with many international chains, Albamonte says. The interior is a different story. “International hotel infrastructure is lacking in the interior of the country.”
Cities under study include Filadelfia, in the Chaco region, and Pedro Juan Caballero, on the Brazilian border. Villarrica, Concepción, Caaguazú, Ciudad del Este and Encarnación, on the Argentine border, are also named. So are towns in Alto Paraná and Guairá. A second phase would consider the Bioceanic Route. This road corridor is designed to link Brazil with Chile’s Pacific ports across the Paraguayan Chaco.
“Demand begins to grow”
Albamonte’s approach is to build ahead of demand. “When you present a good-quality hotel offer, demand begins to grow,” he says. The company sees air and road connectivity as a main challenge, but limited infrastructure should not stop investment. His group has built in Argentine towns where facilities were initially modest and demand grew later.
“If you wait for everything to be perfect and everything to be developed, it never gets done.”
For hotel investment in Paraguay, stability is a further draw. “We see Paraguay as a very stable country economically, with enormous potential and a strategic location.” Hotels, Albamonte notes, require long-term investment and therefore a predictable environment.
Mid-sized hotels for business and families
The hotels would have 60 to 80 rooms, depending on local demand. Facilities could include a restaurant, spa, swimming pool and event spaces. Weekdays would draw corporate guests, while weekends would bring short-break tourists. Each site would cover around 20,000 m², leaving space for gardens and later expansion.
Families are a key target, alongside competitive rates. Under a “family plan”, a couple with up to two children under 12 can share a room with two double beds. The group’s experience suggests this scheme lifts occupancy.
Investment and timeline for Days Inn
Each hotel would cost between US$4 million and US$6 million, depending on its number of rooms and services. The company plans to partner with local businesspeople who know each area. Formal invitations to investors will follow only once the studies confirm viability. No city has yet been chosen for the first Days Inn. From concept to opening, a hotel takes roughly three years, covering planning, design, construction and launch.
Investment in Paraguay’s hotels draws other global brands
Juan Carlos Danieri, president of AIHPY, names Minor Hotels, Wyndham Garden Costa del Paraná and Meliá in comments to local media. Minor Hotels has already made official progress on a project. Wyndham Garden Costa del Paraná, another Wyndham-branded hotel, is under way in Hernandarias, in Alto Paraná. Meliá carried out an official scouting visit between January and April, but has not set a date for a signing.
At least two more chains are studying entry, according to Danieri. Separately, Swissôtel’s official exploratory visit was reported in July. Its plans, still at an exploratory stage, contemplate an investment above US$200 million.
What is driving the interest
Hotel occupancy in Paraguay reached 61% nationwide in the first half of 2026, and 64% in Asunción. The average room rate was US$95.6, and international arrivals grew 46% in the first quarter, according to AIHPY. Paraguay also entered the top ten of the ICCA ranking, a benchmark for meetings tourism, for the first time. It ended 2025 in sixth place.
Danieri also highlights Paraguay’s second investment-grade rating and incentives for tourism projects. One scheme, for investments above US$15 million, offers tax benefits and grace periods. AIHPY expects international brands to lift the average room rate, which remains below other South American capitals.
AIHPY also became a founding member of the Latin American Hotel Associations Forum, created on 4 September in Buenos Aires. During the Hotelga 2026 trade fair, where the forum was created, Paraguay’s delegation presented its investment incentives for meetings tourism.
