BACKGROUND OF HOTELS IN THE WORLD

The first travelers exchanged goods for lodging. Undoubtedly, hosting was one of the first
commercial enterprises, and hospitality was one of the first services in exchange for
money. The inns of biblical times offered little more than a bed in the corner of the stable.
Most of these establishments were private abodes that offered temporary
accommodation for strangers. The rates were reasonable but the company was rough,
travelers sharing rooms with horses and cattle.

It was not until the Industrial Revolution in the 18th century that European taverns began
to combine lodging with food and drink service. Despite this, hygiene received little
attention. Travelers had to share beds and rooms with others, and the rates were high.
They adopted the word hotel and their rates exceeded the resources of ordinary citizens.

Throughout the 19th century, American innkeepers improved services and continued to
build larger properties and equip them more extensively. Such establishments were
located in ports and operated alongside taverns. The traveling tendency of Americans
produced constant inspiration in lodging houses.

The first American hotel, the City Hotel, opened in 1794 in New York City. The City Hotel
had 73 guest rooms, whose sole purpose was lodging.

The City Hotel inspired the construction of other pioneering hotels. The Exchange Coffee
House in Boston, followed by the Mansion House in Philadelphia and the Adelphy Hotel in
New York. These hotels became important social centers and, unlike their European
counterparts, welcomed anyone who could pay reasonable rates. Meanwhile in Europe,
hygienic accommodation continued to be considered a privilege reserved for the
aristocracy. On the other hand, in the United States, clean and comfortable
accommodations were available to any worker or middle-class family...

In 1829, architect Isaiah Rogers undertook the construction of a grand hotel in Boston.
The Tremont House was the first first-class hotel and the milestone towards the revolution
in hospitality. It was the first hotel to offer locked rooms. Each room had a sink, jug, and
bar of soap. Another of his innovations was to employ full-time staff. Tremont House was
the forerunner of a new generation of prestigious lodging establishments.

In 1874, in San Francisco, Ralston took on the task of building the most luxurious hotel in
the world. His grandiose creation, the Palace Hotel, boasted 800 rooms and stood at the
height of 7 floors. This hotel became a symbol of San Francisco's transition

At the beginning of the 19th century, a new type of traveler entered the scene - the
businessman - for whom accommodation was a dilemma: large hotels were very
expensive and old-style inns were unhygienic. To accommodate this new type of guests, a
new type of establishment was invented: the commercial hotel. The first opened in
Buffalo, New York, in January 1908.

The concept of private and hygienic rooms was taken and the private bathroom was
added. The advertising slogan - a room and a bath for a dollar and a half - was well known
among American travelers in the early 20th century.

After World War I, many hotels were built in large cities and smaller suburban
communities. In 1927, the Stevens Hotel - later named the Conrad Hilton - was established
in Chicago and, for several decades, remained the largest hotel in the world.

In the following year the Hilton Hotel Corporation, organized in 1946, purchased or built a
large number of luxury hotels around the world and engaged the two largest hotel chains
of that time - Sheraton and Statler - in fierce competition.

At the end of World War II, With a car in every garage, families began traveling across the
country. For this new type of traveler, the formality of the traditional hotel was
inappropriate. Traveling families needed accommodation that could be reached from
highways and had ample parking spaces. By 1960, the motor hotel or, as it is known today,
the motel, became a permanent part that influenced the hospitality industry...

California was the site of the first motel revolution. Throughout the 1950s, the motel
trend spread throughout the western and southern United States, especially in Florida and
Texas. Two men, Kemmons Wilson and Howard Johnson, were early innovators in the rise
of the motel.

In 1952, Kemmons Wilson began building a chain of standard roadside hotels throughout
the United States.

The property had 130 guest rooms, each with a private bathroom, air conditioning and
telephone. Additional features were free ice, free parking, and kennels

From humble beginnings, the Holiday Inn system grew to become the largest chain of
lodging establishments in the world.

In 1982, the company began construction of the first Embassy Suites and Crowne Plaza
hotels.

Howard Johnson

In 1925 Howard Johnson created his own snow line, which made the soda fountain the
most popular public dining room in the area. He added hamburgers, hot dogs and
sandwiches to the menu, and the soda fountain became Howard Johnson's first restaurant
in the world.

The rise of the budget hotel: The Hilton, Sheraton, Holiday Inn, Howard Johnson and
Marriott chains continue to be successful. But in the 1960s, a new type of lodging
establishment - the budget hotel - came onto the scene. These new establishments sold
only room space, without food or drink service. In order to save construction costs, budget
hotels were built on cheap land and the staff was small, and there were no buttons. By
minimizing costs, budget motels offered much lower rates than their competitors.

The first successful budget hotel, Travelodge opened in 1956, but the chain did not spread
nationwide until 1966.

The first austere budget motel, Motel 6, was established in 1963; It offered a rate of $6.66
for simple, clean accommodation, but without a television or telephone.

The era of competition: The largest budget hotel chain, Days Inn, was founded in 1970 by
Cecil B. Day, who opened six austere motels. Two years later, a Days Inn executive noticed
intense construction in the Orlando, Florida, area. Kessler convinced Day to start putting
up motels near the construction. The object of construction was Disney World-Epcot
Center, and, due to foresight, the Days Inns became the main provider of lodging for
visitors to one of the largest tourist attractions in the world. In 1990, the Days
organization became the largest budget motel chain in the United States.

Upward expansion also took place during the 1970s and 1980s. The Holiday Inn chain
created Crowne Plaza hotels to attract businessmen who prefer high-end properties, and
Ramada Inn created RenaissanceInns to compete with first-class hotels.

The lodging trend in the 1990s is toward integrated services, combining the features of
full-service and limited-service hotels to create a new type of hotel, hoping to attract
guests away from traditional lodging options. The up-and-coming stars of the lodging
trade, namely all-suite hotels, add yet another dimension. But one premise will certainly
hold true throughout the 1990s and into the next century: Competition for customers will
be more intense than at any time in history.