Travel benefits, such as reduced rates for transportation and accommodations, attract many people to this occupation.
  Training at a postsecondary vocational school or college or university is increasingly important for getting a job.
  New developments in Internet technology, allowing people to access travel information from their personal computers and make their own travel arrangements, will limit the need for travel agents in the future.
  Small businesses account for 94 percent of the travel and tourism industry, but “small” does not equal insignificant: U.S. residents spent $448.5 billion on domestic travel in 1999, a 5.3 percent increase over 1998 ($426.1 billion) making travel and tourism the country’s largest retail sales industry.

Hotels and lodging places are as diverse as the many families and business travelers they accommodate. The industry includes all types of lodging, from upscale hotels to campgrounds. Motels, spas, inns, and boarding houses also are included. In fact, nearly 60,000 establishments provided overnight accommodations to suit many different needs and budgets in 2000.

Establishments vary greatly in size and in the services they provide. Hotels and motels make up the majority of establishments and tend to provide more services than other lodging places. There are four basic types of hotels commercial, resort, residential, and extended-stay. Most hotels and motels are commercial properties that cater mainly to business people, tourists, and other travelers who need accommodations for a brief stay. Commercial hotels and motels usually are located in cities or suburban areas and operate year round. Larger properties offer a variety of services for their guests, including coffee shops, restaurants, and cocktail lounges with live entertainment. Some even provide gift shops, newsstands, barber and beauty shops, laundry and valet services, theater and airline counters, swimming pools, and fitness centers and health spas.

Larger hotels and motels often have banquet rooms, exhibit halls, and spacious ballrooms to accommodate conventions, business meetings, wedding receptions, and other social gatherings. Conventions and business meetings are major sources of revenue for these hotels and motels. Some commercial hotels are known as conference hotel fully self-contained entities specifically designed for meetings. They provide physical and recreational facilities for meetings in addition to state-of-the-art audiovisual and technical equipment.

Resort hotels and motels offer luxurious surroundings with a variety of recreational facilities like swimming pools, golf courses, tennis courts, game rooms, and health spas, as well as planned social activities and entertainment. Resorts are located primarily in vacation destinations near mountains, the seashore, or other attractions. As a result, the business of many resorts fluctuates with the season. Some resort hotels and motels provide additional convention and conference facilities to encourage customers to combine business with pleasure. During their off season, they solicit conventions, sales meetings, and incentive tours to fill their otherwise empty rooms.

Residential hotels provide living quarters for permanent and semi-permanent residents. They combine the comfort of apartment living with the convenience of hotel services. Many have dining rooms and restaurants that also are open to the general public.

Extended-stay hotels combine features of a resort and a residential hotel. Typically guests use these hotels for a minimum of 5 consecutive nights. These facilities usually provide rooms with fully equipped kitchens, entertainment systems, ironing boards and irons, office spaces with computer and telephone lines, access to fitness centers, and other amenities.

In addition to hotels and motels, inns, campgrounds, and spas provide lodging for overnight guests. Inns vary greatly in size, appearance, type of operation, and cost. Some inns are very large and provide services similar to those found in hotels, while others are quite small and often run by families. Their appeal is quaintness, with unusual service and decor. Campgrounds, including trailer and recreational vehicle (RV) parks, cater to people who enjoy recreational camping at moderate prices. Some campgrounds provide service stations, general stores, shower and toilet facilities, and coin-operated laundries. although some are designed for overnight travelers only, others are for vacationers who stay longer. Spas may offer an all-inclusive package with lodging, food, and various programs for health-conscious guests, such as massage and exercise classes. Most spas are small, with fewer than 80 guestrooms.

In recent years, hotels, motels, camps, and RV parks affiliated with national chains have been growing rapidly. To the traveler, familiar chain establishments represent dependability and quality at predictable rates. National corporations own many chains, although several others are independently owned, but affiliated with a chain through a franchise agreement.

Increased competition and more sophisticated travelers have induced the chains to provide lodging to serve a variety of customer budgets and accommodation preferences. In general, these lodging places may be grouped into properties that offer luxury, all-suite, moderately priced, and economy accommodations. The numbers of limited service or economy chain properties economy lodging without lobbies, restaurants, lounges, and meeting rooms has been growing. These properties are not as costly to build and operate. They appeal to budget-conscious family vacationers and travelers who are willing to sacrifice amenities for lower room prices.

While economy chains have become more important, the movement in the hotel and lodging industry is towards more extended-stay properties. In addition to fully equipped kitchenettes and laundry services, the extended-stay market offers guest amenities like in room access to the Internet and grocery shopping. This segment has eliminated traditional hotel lobbies and 24-hour personnel, and housekeeping is usually only done about once a week. This helps keep costs to a minimum.

All-suite facilities, especially popular with business travelers, offer a living room and a bedroom. These accommodations are aimed at travelers who require lodging for extended stays, families traveling with children, and business people needing to conduct small meetings without the expense of renting an additional room.

Increased competition among establishments in this industry has spurred many independently owned and operated hotels and other lodging places to join national or international reservation systems, which allow travelers to make multiple reservations for lodging, airlines, and car rentals with one telephone call. Nearly all hotel chains operate online reservation systems through the Internet.

Hotel, motel, and resort desk clerks perform a variety of services for guests of hotels, motels, and other lodging establishments. Regardless of the type of accommodation, most desk clerks have similar responsibilities. Primarily, they register arriving guests, assign rooms, and check out guests at the end of their stay. They also keep records of room assignments and other registration information on computers. When guests check out, they prepare and explain the charges, as well as process payments.

Front desk clerks always are in the public eye and, through their attitude and behavior, greatly influence the public's impressions of the establishment. When answering questions about services, checkout times, the local community, or other matters of public interest, clerks must be courteous and helpful. Should guests report problems with their rooms, clerks contact members of the housekeeping or maintenance staff to correct them.

In some smaller hotels and motels, clerks may have a variety of additional responsibilities usually performed by specialized employees in larger establishments. In these places, the desk clerk often is responsible for all front office operations, information, and services. These clerks, for example, may perform the work of a bookkeeper, advance reservation agent, cashier, laundry attendant, and telephone switchboard operator.