INTRODUCTION TO THE HOTEL INDUSTRY

According to the British laws a hotel is a place where a bonafied traveler can receive food and shelter provided he is in a position to for it and is in a fit condition to receive. Hotels have a very long history, but not as we know today, way back in the 6 th century BC when the first inn in and around the city of ondon began to develop. !he first catered to travelers and provided the" with a "ere roof to stay under. !his condition of the inns prevailed for a long ti"e, until the industrial revolution in #ngland, which brought about new ideas and progress in the business at inn keeping. !he invention of the stea" engine "ade traveling even "ore pro"inent. $hich had to "ore and "ore people traveling not only for business but also for leisure reasons. !his lead to the actual develop"ent of the hotel industry as we know it today. Hotel today not only cater to the basic needs of the guest like food and shelter provide "uch "ore than that, like personali%ed services etc. Hotels today are a Ho"e away fro" ho"e. CLASSIFICATION OF HOTEL Hotel can be classified into different categories or classes, based on their operational criteria. &or e'a"ple the type of acco""odation they provide, location of the property, type of services provided, facilities given and the clientele they cater to can help categories hotels today.

Hotels today are basically classified into the following categories( 1 Market segment: #cono"y ) li"ited services hotel *id "arket hotel All suite hotels !i"e+share hotels Condotel ) Condi"iniu" #'ecutive hotels u'ury ) ,elu'e hotels

Propert t pe: !raditional hotel *otels Bread and break fast inns Co""ercial hotel Chain hotel Casino hotel Bouti-ue hotels .esorts o /pa0s

o Conference resorts ! A""or#$ng to s$%e: /"all hotels 1234 roo"s5 *ediu" hotels 1up to 677roo"s5 arge hotels 1up to 644roo"s5

8ther classification can be based on( a9 *arket seg"ent b9 :roperty type c9 /i%e d9 evel of services

e9 8wner ship and application f9 :lans g9 !ype of patronage h9 i9 ength of guest stay ocation etc ;

MAR&ET SE'MENT #cono"y hotel( <t provides efficient sanity private roo"s with bath. !he furnishing and decor are acceptable to "a=ority of travelers. &ood and beverage service "ay or "ay not be available. *id "arket hotels( !hey offer co"fortable acco""odation with private on pre"ises bath. &ood and beverage services and unifor"ed bell staff. !hey offer above average lu'ury. All /uite hotels( <t offers separate sleeping and living areas along with a kitchenette and a stocked bar, and offer class service.

&irst class hotels( !hey are lu'ury hotels with e'ceptional decor better than average food and beverage service, unifor"ed bell services. !hey often have 6 or > dining roo"s, swi""ing pool, spas etc.

,elu'e hotels(

!hey are better and offer "ore speciali%ed services than first class hotels. !hey also provide li"ousine services. PROPERTY TYPE !raditional hotels(

!hey have the basic concept of roo"s with break fast, bell desk services and the other usual services. *otels( !hey are located on highways. ?uest is given parking right outside their roo"s. !he usually have a gas station ) workshop attached to the". .esorts( !hey are usually situated in tourist locations like on rivers, "ountains, =ungles, or the sea. !hey give "ore privilege to sports activities leisure and re+creation activities like "anages, sightseeing, adventure sports, etc. .esident hotels( $here guest stay for longer duration, stay like weeks, "onths even years. Casino hotels(

!hey are hotels usually in tourist spots and "ainly cater to people who are on holidays. Casino hotels like the na"e suggest offer ga"bling facilities along with acco""odations. /<@# /"all hotel A up to 234 roo"s *ediu" hotels A234 to 677 roo"s arge hotels A 677 to 644 roo"s #'tra large hotels A above 644 roo"s

LE(EL OF SER(ICES: $orld+class services( !hey target top business e'ecutives and provide service s that cater to needs of such people like lap tops in the roo"s, business center, sectarian services. *id range services( !hey appeal to the larger seg"ent of traveling public 1tourist5. !he services provided by the hotel are "oderate and sufficient to budgeted travelers. #cono"y ) i"ited services hotel(

!hey provide co"fortable and ine'pensive roo"s and "eet the basic re-uire"ent of the guest. !hese hotels "ay be large of s"all in si%e depending on the kind of business they get. !he key factor behind the survival of these hotels is that they are priced very low and are in the budget of "ost of the travelers.

O)NERSHIP AND AFFILIATION: <ndependent hotels(

!hey have no application with other properties. !hey have their own "anage"ent and are single properties with one owner. Chain hotels( !hey i"pose certain "ini"u" standards, levels of service, policies and procedures to be followed by their entire establish"ent. Chain hotels usually have corporate offices that "onitor all their properties and one "anage"ent runs these properties. !hat is all the hotels under the chain are co"pletely owned and run by the chain itself. &ranchisee hotels( !he franchisee grants the entities, the right to conduct business provided they follow the established pattern of the franchisee, "aintains their standards, levels of service, practice their policies and procedures.

A)ARDIN' OF CLASS:

Awarding of class is done by the H.ACC in <ndia. !hese are a few things listed down that are taken into consideration while awarding star category to any hotels. Bu"ber and types of roo"s the hotel has #legant and co"fortable surroundings .oo"s efficiency Cleanness and sanitation /taff si%e and speciali%ation .ange and level of services Bu"ber of .estaurants Bars and Beverage services Concierge services Accessibility to entertain"ent Availability of transportation /pa and swi""ing pool facility .eservation and referral services.

Star "ategor o* +ote,s -In#$a. 8ne star 1C5

!wo star !hree star &our star &ive star &ive star delu'e

1CC5 1CCC5 1CCCC5 1CCCCC5 1CCCCC delu'e5

THREE STAR CATE'ORIES: &or a hotel to be recogni%ed as a three star property the architectural features and general features of the building should be very good there should be ade-uate parking facilities. At least 34D of the roo"s "ust be air+conditioned. Also the a"bience and decor of the place "ust be ecstatic. !hey should provide reservation and infor"ation facility apart fro" reception, infor"ation, bell service at least two gour"et dining facility should be available. !he establish"ent "ay or "ay not have ban-ueting facility. !hey should provide high levels of personali%ed services. !he staff "ust be well+ trained and proper standards for hygiene and sanitation "ust be followed. Also all properties have to keep in "ind that proper waste "anage"ent is done.

FI(E STAR CATE'ORIES: &ive star category is only allotted to properties, which have all the -ualities of a three star property and a few additional. ike the entire property "ust be centrally air+ conditioned. !he building of the property "ust be an attractive one. All the roo"s "ust

be spacious. !he property "ust have proper ban-ueting facility, business center. :roper and well+"aintained pool and health club a spa is optional.

!he property "ust have 6E hour coffee shop, round the clock roo" service, a bar, and a "ini"u" of 2 gour"et restaurant. !he staff "ust be highly trained and a degree of speciali%ation "ust be shown. /tate of art #-uip"ents "ust be used and the facility provided in the roo"s "ust be sophisticated.

FI(E STAR DELU/E CATE'ORIES: !hey are "ore or less like five star properties with the only difference is that they are on a larger scale. &ive star delu'e properties "aintain a very high staff to guest ratio and very high levels of service is "aintained. !hey in addition to five star properties have 3 to F dining roo"s, a bar, 6E+hour coffee shop, ban-ueting facility. /pas, fitness centers, business centers etc