1. The Scale of Participation
The Crowd: Reports indicate over 150,000 registrationsincluding more than 10,000 foreign delegates and representatives from over 100 countries.
The VIPs: This isn’t just a corporate trade show. Attendees include heads of state (like French President Emmanuel Macron and Brazilian President Lula da Silva) and tech titans like Sam Altman (OpenAI), Jensen Huang (NVIDIA)and Sundar Pichai (Google).
Security Needs: Because so many attendees are high-profile government and tech leaders, demand is concentrated in a tiny “top layer” of hotels that meet international security and diplomatic standards.
2. The Price Surge: How High is “High”?
While your article mentions “unprecedented” levels, the actual numbers being reported this week are staggering.
Standard Rooms: Properties in central Delhi (The Imperial, Taj Palace, ITC Maurya) that usually cost ₹20,000–₹40,000 per night are currently listed at ₹1 lakh to ₹5.5 lakh per night.
Ultra-Luxury Suites: The “Maharaja” or “Presidential” suites at top-tier hotels are commanding prices as high as ₹25 lakh to ₹30 lakh ($33,000 USD) per night.
The “Sold Out” Status: As of February 14, 2026, many of these iconic properties are effectively 100% occupiedwith only the most expensive suites or “last-room” inventory available at these peak rates.
3. Industry & Public Reaction
The “Fleecing” Concern: Former Infosys CFO Mohandas Pai recently flagged these prices on social media, warning that “fleecing” international visitors creates a “bad name for India” and suggests a critical lack of hotel capacity.
The Hotel Association’s Defense: The Hotel Association of India (HAI) has pushed back, noting that most rooms were pre-booked months ago at “negotiated rates.” They argue that the headline-grabbing ₹30 lakh prices only apply to the final few unbooked luxury suites, which are subject to dynamic market pricing.
Consumer Scrutiny: A recent survey found that 71% of consumers now favor a “price ceiling” for hotels during mega-events to prevent profiteering.
Impact on Local Dynamics
Your article correctly identifies a “mixed bag” of reactions. While luxury hotels are seeing record-breaking revenue, the situation is creating significant friction for others:
The Board Exam Clash: The summit overlaps with the start of the CBSE board exams (February 17). Local authorities have had to issue traffic advisories and coordinate with schools to ensure that summit security doesn’t prevent students from reaching their exam centers.
Regular Professionals: Many business travelers are being pushed out of the city center into Aerocity or even Gurgaon and Noida, where prices have also jumped—though not to the multi-lakh extremes of Chanakyapuri.
Key Takeaway: The “Delhi Hotel Price Boom” is a classic case of supply-side constraint. Delhi’s pool of “diplomatic-grade” luxury rooms is relatively small, and when a “once-in-a-decade” global event like the AI Impact Summit hits, the market undergoes a “hard reset” rather than a gradual hike.
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