Adani plans Changi-inspired airport cities in five states with initial ₹20,000 crore investment

Adani Airport City Ltd, a subsidiary of Adani Airport Holdings Ltd, on Thursday unveiled a plan to develop integrated airport cities across its airport network, bringing together hospitality, retail, entertainment, convention and commercial infrastructure.

The development will see an investment of over ₹20,000 crore in the first phase. Around 22 million sq. ft will be developed across Mumbai, Navi Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Lucknow, Jaipur and Guwahati, according to a company statement.

The development will take place over 655 acres of land, across six airports in five states, it said. Of this, nearly 440 acres are in Mumbai and Navi Mumbai alone. Nearly 70% of the planned investment will be concentrated in Mumbai and Navi Mumbai.

Adani Airport Holdings, India’s largest private airport operator, owns and manages eight airports. Mangalore and Trivandrum are not part of the first phase of the airport city project.

“Around the world, the most successful airport districts have become centres of commerce, tourism and urban growth. As India’s aviation market expands, airports have an opportunity to create value far beyond aviation,” Jeet Adani, director, Adani Airport Holdings, said in the statement. “We are creating a network of integrated urban destinations where airports become catalysts for investment, employment, better passenger experiences and the long-term growth of the cities they serve.”

In May, Adani Airport Holdings said it has signed a managed hotel portfolio agreement with IHG Hotels & Resorts to develop five hotels across key airport-linked and high-growth urban destinations in India.

The agreement will add close to 1,500 keys across multiple brands and locations, in line with IHG’s growth plans for India. The agreement will also see the debut of the Kimpton brand of hotels in India.

The company is also engaging with other domestic and international partners across the hospitality, food and beverage, retail and entertainment sectors.

Adani’s larger airport city development is inspired by globally successful airport districts such as Singapore’s Changi, Dubai International, Amsterdam’s Schiphol and Seoul’s Incheon, bringing an airport-led development model to India’s rapidly expanding aviation market.

“These developments are being designed with leading global design and engineering partners and informed by emerging trends in hospitality, retail, workplaces and entertainment,” Adani added.

Unlike conventional real estate developments, the airport city model is designed around connectivity and experience, and the districts are being planned as extensions of the airport ecosystem. By integrating hotels, workplaces, retail, entertainment and convention facilities within a single master-planned environment, the company said the developments would create walkable destinations.

Adani’s plan to monetize land around its airports has been in the works for a while now. In 2024, Adani Airport Holdings appointed Amit Grover as chief executive, city side development, airport business. Grover had worked with India’s largest developer DLF Ltd for nearly two decades, and was executive director, office business, prior to this.

Airport-centric realty rush

Airport-centric commercial developments throw up a huge real estate opportunity. Earlier this month, the Prestige Group, a leading developer, said it will develop a large integrated project within Bengaluru Airport City, including an 8,000-seater convention and exhibition centre, two luxury hotels, premium office and hotel space, as well as a performing arts hub.

Prashant Thakur, executive director and head of research & advisory at Anarock Property Consultants, said commercial and hospitality developments around the new airports are a good way to monetize land, as residential development may not be possible due to the height restrictions in such areas.

“This also provides a good source of annuity income through such developments. As the traffic of airports increases, the importance and capital value of such land near the airport will also rise,” Thakur added. “Going forward, developing airport cities will become the norm for the newer airports.”

For instance, analysts believe that the opening of the new Jewar airport in the National Capital Region is expected to further open up the Noida and Greater Noida real estate market.