These days, hotels are big business. Every day, travelers spend $2.2 billion on average on travel expenses, including hotel accommodations. This adds up to $162.4 billion in revenue a year in the United States alone. Roughly 150 million travel bookings are made every year in United States.
Derived from the French word meaning “to host,” modern hotels come in all different varieties. From super fancy $1000 a night rooms at luxury business hotels to $30 youth hostels, there are accommodations available for anyone and any budget. There are even special theme hotels. For example, Jukkasjärvi, Sweden has a hotel made of ice that exists every year between December and April. Japan offers capsule hotels where each guest is assigned a 6’7″ long and 3′ wide capsule to sleep in overnight. The Treetops Hotel in Kenya is a hotel literally built on to the tops of trees near a safari watering hole.
Recently, it seems as though luxury business hotels have been getting grander and grander. Consider the Burj Al Arab Hotel in Dubai. The 60 floor hotel sits on its own artificial island and boasts a unique shape meant to resemble the sail on a ship. The cheapest rooms at the Bristol in Paris go for €1000 a night. The hotel offers guests access to a three star restaurant, a spa, an art gallery, and a spectacular view of Paris. Many of the hotel managers at luxury business hotels have university degrees in hospitality management and are highly trained in providing hospitality services.
For your next trip, it may be worth looking online for an interesting hotel to stay in. The world is littered with both interesting and luxurious places to stay. You can also read reviews and figure out prices online so you can ensure that your next stay is interesting, comfortable, and economical.