Tourism & Hospitality Industry at a Glance (Part 1)

If you are one of those who are interested towards the professional development and education for tourism and hospitality, then you are on the right path to pick up a career in the diverse and most exciting international industries and feel lucky for taking such proactive steps.

The field of hospitality is very well-established and it provides the most interesting and strongest functions in world. All through the downturns and upturns, the AG&LA (American Hotel & Lodging Association) has been representing all the stakeholders and sectors in lodging industry as the only national organization. All the members and professionals in this field receive a number of benefits which are proved to be very helpful in running their businesses effectively. There are also an entirely separate set of the benefits which are uniquely designed for the students of hospitality. The Educational Foundation approximately funds $1.3 million for the academic scholarships, school-to-career, research grants and other workforce development programs. Educational Institute of the U.S. also provides distance learning programs, videos, DVDs for the training purposes along with the certification in this industry. It serves as an important and major source of the textbooks and curricula throughout the world.

A Brief Overview on Tourism Industry Statistics in US

In U.S., the tourism industry currently is the 3rd largest retail industry among the largest employers of America. Tourism and travel is the biggest services export industry of the nation. The international travelers and residents in the U.S. approximately $23,500 every second, $1.4 million in a minute, $84.5 million every hour and nulltotal $2 billion every day. There are a lot more than just 48,000 of the lodging properties in U.S. totaling around 4.5 millions rooms. Just as these properties, the industry approximately employs 1.4 million sincere workers and directly supports around 7.5 million of the jobs on various levels. With an extremely overwhelming majority of the positions easily available outside the hotels itself, there would never be any shortage of the diverse jobs that are needed to be filled. There is a great opportunity for switching the categories of your career often within the company rather than just being pigeonholed in the same area throughout your whole career. The employment which is generated by the travel directly has nearly grown to 30 percent in last 10 years. This rate is almost one and a half times faster as compared with most of the other industries. However, with the limited growth, a conservative estimate shows that 300,000 or more fresh employees will be required in the hotel industry by the year 2014.

Importance & Career Opportunities

Wide range of interesting opportunities is offered by the hotel industry from marketing to management, advertising to operations, and almost everything in between. This industry does not only offer such great opportunities inside the U.S., but also throughout the world. Everyone would be able to enjoy the advantage of the international posting sometime in their career, of course with due luck. Hospitality is not just limited to the hotels. It also encompasses all the phases of the tourism and travel industry, from the cruise lines to airlines, tour operators to travel agencies and from the national tourism organization to the hotels. In all, when we refer to the “hospitality” or the “tourism” industry, we are actually talking about 15 interrelated businesses or more. This diversity in the industry clearly means that there is definitely something for every talent, personality, and skill set. Being the students of future industry leaders and hospitality, all the skills that people learn along their way are transferable and interchangeable from one job to another. There is a much greater emphasis now which is being placed on the specialized training and education. This, the education has finally become a very important commodity in the industry today. By supporting this thought, each and everyone is taking a giant step for ensuring a much successful career.

Optimism for the industry and the amount one can contribute towards it is very essential. The employers usually consider attitude as an addition to skills. People must work hard once they step inside the door and doing so would allow them the opportunity for qualifying for the positions of leadership with their respective company or hotel. As the nature of this industry is of the kind that offers good opportunities for the robust, diverse and long growth of one’s career. Another important thing that should be added here is regarding the hospitality. It is not just a profession; it actually is a perfect way of life. This industry is one place where you would make friendships that would stand the actual test of time. A friendly advice to everyone who embarks upon this career is to just keep abreast of the industry developments and stay active in the industry associations and community. As they are the greatest sources for building relationships, networking and giving back what you have learned and earned to your industry and community.

Scope Of A Good Career In Hospitality & Travel

People who are working in the hospitality and travel industry earn their living by assisting others to content themselves. The jobs in this particular field are usually encompassing, diverse positions in the hotels and lodging; travel and tourism; cruise ships, recreation and resorts; culinary arts and restaurants; gaming and casinos; and other communication roles involving operations, management, human resources, customer service, teaching, and more. A number of opportunities are available worldwide for the career changers and students who are interested in hospitality and travel, depending upon their strengths and interests. Whether a person aspires to manage a soothing spa on any cruise ship, become a sommelier at the premier restaurants in the world, or lead the customized adventure tours in the wilderness. According to American Hotel & Lodging Association, behind the food and automotive stores, tourism is the third largest industry currently in the U.S. Tourism and travel is largest export services industry in the nation and one of the largest employers in America; In fact, the 1st, 2nd or the 3rd largest employer in almost 30 out of 50 states in the U.S. Tourism industry includes 15 interrelated businesses or more from the airlines, lodging establishments, car rental firms, to cruise lines, and restaurants, tour operators, and travel agents.

You would be taking an outlook on the career opportunities in Hospitality and Travel Industry Part 2 of this article. Stay tuned.

5 COMMENTS

  1. Your information and articles are really very useful and informative. speacially for those persons who are in hospitality industry and want to grow and for those who want to join this industry but unable to study. Thanks

  2. Hi,

    I am a Hotel Management professional specializing in Food and Beverage Service. I have got 6 and a half years of experience in UK hotels.

    My latest position was Cafe Bars Manager managing a Cafe and a Restaurant. I have recently moved to India and looking for employment.

    Just wondering if someone could help.

    Regards
    Sourav

  3. As a HOSPITALITY professional,I really appreciate this content,which is very well written and informative and will be useful to any one linked with this industry.As a HOSPITALITY professional,I really appreciate this content,which is very well written and informative and will be useful to any one linked with this industry. THANKS

  4. Nice post. After reading the whole article, i do agree with you that tourism and hospitality industry is becoming a great carrier option for all the interested students. Hotel industry is spreading quite rapidly since last few years, and it will grow more in future.

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