Text2 The History of Hotel Industry

The term “hospitality” derives from an old French word “hospice”, meaning a place of rest for travellers and pilgrims. Facilities offering guests hospitality have been in evidence since early biblical times. Travelers throughout the world have always sought hospitable places to rest and eat.

The Greeks developed thermal baths in villages designed for rest and recuperation. Later, the Romans built mansions to provide accommodation for travellers on government business. The Romans were the first to develop thermal baths in England, Switzerland and the Middle East. Later still, caravanserais appeared, providing a resting place for caravans along Middle Eastern routes. In the Middle Ages, monasteries and abbeys were the first establishments to offer refuge to travellers on a regular basis. Religious orders built inns, hospices and hospitals to cater for those on the move. Staging posts were established for governmental transports and as rest stops. They provided shelter and allowed horses to be changed more easily.

The Hotel Industry started in the 15th century in France, the law required that hotels keep a register of the guests. English law also introduced rules for inns at that time. At the same time, around 1500 thermal spas were developed at Carlsbad and Marienbad. During this epoch, more than 600 inns were registered in England.

The industrial revolution, which started in the 1760s, facilitated the construction of hotels everywhere, in mainland Europe, in England and in America. The first boom in the hotel industry started in the early years of the twentieth century which was rich in new hotels that rapidly became prestigious.

The fifties saw the second boom in the hotel industry. These years were also notable for the construction of the first casino hotels. This was also the time when the airline companies began to develop their own hotels.

In the sixties, new tourist resorts flourished around the Mediterranean. From Spain to Greece and from the Balearics to Yugoslavia, numerous city and beach hotels opened their doors to summer guests hungry for relaxation and a good dose of sunshine. Portugal and the Scandinavian countries soon followed their lead.

1970s saw the beginning of the construction of hotels for business people. It was supported by the airline companies that wanted to extend their efforts in the domain of hotels. The end of the seventies, when China opened its doors to foreign tourists, also saw the first congresses of international hotel experts.

The third boom in the hotel industry began in 1980s, marked by more inventive marketing and the development of hotels increasingly adapted to a particular type of clientele. This trend prompted the construction of hotels near airports, hotels for conferences, health hotels, ski holiday hotels, holiday villages and marina hotels. The first Property Management Systems appear in the hospitality market.

The early nineties were characterised by a recession in the hotel business, without doubt caused by reductions in multinationals' travel budgets and the growing crisis in the Gulf.

Nowadays, architects, designers, engineers, managers more and more are conscious that taste of guests could be different, according to their wishes or needs. Hotel specialists permanently analyse new trends, define better criteria, present modern standards in order to improve quality of life in hotels.

Answer the Questions:

1. What does the term “hospitality” mean?

2. When does the hotel industry take its beginning?

3. What establishments were the first to provide rest for travellers?

5. What did the first staging posts provide?

6. Where and when did the hotel industry start?

6. What did the law in France require at that time?

7. What facilitated the construction of hotels in mainland Europe, England and America in the early years of the twentieth century?

8. What were the fifties notable for?

9. What supported the beginning of the construction of hotels for business people in 1970s?

10. What is taken into account before building modern hotels?