Construction of hotel properties is on the rise in Kenya and is projected to increase the total number of available rooms from 17,500 currently to 19,400 by 2018, according to a report by PricewaterhouseCoopers.

Hotel bed nights are however expected to decline due to insecurity challenges that have reduced the number of foreign visitors into the country, affecting business in the tourism sector.

"Marriott plans a new hotel in Nairobi in 2015 and Hilton plans to open two hotels in Nairobi in the next few years.

Radisson Blu, Park Inn and Lonrho Hotels are other international hotel brands planning to expand in Nairobi," the report says.

Bed or stay night, which measures occupancy in terms of one person a night in a hotel room, will recover to the levels reached in 2011 later in 2018, according to the report.

This is the fourth edition of PwC's coverage of the hospitality industry and is titled 'Hospitality outlook: 2014-2018'. It focuses on South Africa, Nigeria, Mauritius and Kenya.

In 2011 when tourism industry was gaining momentum following a downturn in 2008, bed nights stood at 4.1 million. The report says the bed nights are currently at 3.6 million and will drop slightly next year to 3.5 million before rising modestly to 3.8 million in 2017, and later to around 4.1 million in 2018.

Despite the dip in bed nights, room rates are projected to increase slightly. "We project the average room rate to increase from $155 in 2013 to $163 in 2018, a one per cent compound annual increase," the report states.

This translates to a rate growth of Sh699 per room from an average of Sh13,544 to Sh14,243 at current dollar exchange value of 87.38. The hospitality industry outlook report focuses on the major segments of hotels, guest houses and farms, caravan and camping sites, bush lodges and other accommodation.

Nigeria will be the fastest-growing hotel market over the next five years with a projected 22.6 per cent compound annual gain, fuelled by increase in available rooms and large gains in stay unit nights attributed to a booming economy.

In South Africa, increased construction in the hospitality sector is expected to raise the number of hotel rooms to 20,873 in 2018 from 14,144 currently.