HISTORY OF THE
LODGING INDUSTRY
Ancient History
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Classic Greek and Roman Days
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In ancient Greece, hospitality was provided by certain elements of
religion: missionaries, priests and pilgrims formed a very large part
of the traveling public.
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The accommodations were meager, providing only shelter and the
barest of sustenance.
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In the earliest times, they were operated by slaves who belonged
to the temples or holy places.
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Gradually, freemen replaced the slaves, but even they were
considered to be of low social prestige.
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ancient Rome, the inns were large mansions.
Owners of these inns would not allow guests to stay
unless they carried a “letter of eviction.” Which was
permission to travel from government officials.
 Inns
and taverns were well established throughout
the empire. Their taverns were called “tabernas,”
and the attached inn was called a “caponas.” but
the general quality of the taverns and inns
available to the public was poor.
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In early days in the Near East, caravans crossing vast desserts,
stopped at caravansaries. These were accommodations that
surrounded large courtyards.
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These were simple structures consisting of four walls that
provided protection against marauding enemies who attacked
under cover of darkness.
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Within the walls, platforms were constructed upon which the
traveler’s slept.
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In the last years of the Roman Empire, taverns and inns
provided shelter for traveling merchants, actors, and scholars.
Accommodations were still primitive. There were rooms for
people but no stables for the horses, more often there were
stables but no rooms.
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The high point of this era in terms of hospitality
was the development of the post houses along
caravan routes.
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In his writings, Marco Polo described post houses
known as yams as apartments suitable for a king
Bible References
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The most famous inn is the one in Bethlehem. The great
crowds reporting there to pay their taxes had
overburdened the lodging industry of the small town.
In the old testament, we are told about Jacob and his
brother traveling in Judea, going to an inn, and
foddering their mounts (feeding domesticated livestock.)
to these inns, travelers would bring their own supplies.
They are similar to khans, or rest houses, found in the
Middle East today.
Middle Ages
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The term hostelers, meaning “inn holders” were not used until 1473. The
term may have come from the Old French word ostel.
Gradually, “hostelers” shifted from “owner” of the inn to”inn-servant.” The
h is sometimes dropped to “ostel.”
The term hostel, meaning inn was not used until the 1800s.
In modern usage hostels are accommodations of lesser quality, and
hostelers are guests who stays at the hostels
During the Crusades, the hotel industry grew. The design was fairly
standard. The enclosed courtyard was surrounded by the kitchen, tavern
and public rooms on the front façade. On each side, winging out from the
front, were the sleeping rooms. Along the back of the building were stables.
Colonial Period
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Public coach service was put into effect around 1650. The coaches
ran between major cities and stopped wherever passengers wanted,
similar to the way bus lines operate today.
Coach inns were built along the routes primarily at points where
teams of horses were changed. The British use the term ordinary to
describe such inns.
The United States Postal Service, established in 1710, called its
primary routes between major towns along the Atlantic Coast Post
roads.
With the establishment of these post roads, entrepreneurial farmers
converted their farm houses into inns. Passengers from the coaches
slept in the hostel’s long room with their feet towards the fire.
Nineteenth Century
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The introduction of railroads had great influence on the
hotel/motel industry. In the early 1800s, as train tracks
were laid throughout the Western world, depot hotels
began to arise.
In most cases the hotel was connected directly to the
train station.
Similarly, think of the masses of hostels around airports
today with shuttle busses carrying passengers directly
to their lodgings.
Spas and Resorts
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Spa, which are mineral springs or pools are believed to
be medicinal or healthful, have been tourist sites since
Roman days.
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The advent of trains caused beautiful resorts. The
most famous spa in the 1830s was Saratoga
Springs, New York.
Spas at Baden, Germany; Marienbad, Bohemia; and
Vichy, France, which has been popular for centuries,
became more accessible to the public via rail.
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Another benchmark for the hotel industry in the 19th century was the
opening of the Tremont Hotel (Tremont House) in Boston.
It was the first luxury hotel and boasted the first indoor toilets and
the first private bedrooms with locks on the doors.
The Tremont also had a version of today’s bellhop, then called a
“rotunda man.”
In 1889, the famous Swiss hotelier Cesar Ritz became manager at
the Savoy in London. Eventually, he opened his own London Ritz and
subsequently opened famed luxury hotels in Paris, New York and
other countries.
Twentieth Century
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This was the motto that lead the hotel industry into
the 29th century. Elsworth Milton Statler opened his
first hotel in Buffalo, New York, in 1907.
Individual rooms with private bats and Statler’s
ability to cater to business travelers set this hotel
apart.
Statler’s name is legendary in the hotel industry
today.
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The automobile led the hotel industry into a booming business in the
1920s.
The term motel, coined from “motor hotel.” goes back to the time
when a farmer owning land along the major routes would build
wooded 10 foot by 10 foot cabins along the road in front of his
property.
A car would pulled right of the cabin, where a traveler could spend
the evening.
The owners of these motels soon expanded to perhaps, 15 cabins.
These were called tourist courts.
These businesses proved profitable during the free economy of the
1920s.
Advent of Air Travel
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At the end of World War II, a new mode of transportation had
matured. Air travel was now available to the masses, and business
was booming,.
Conventions and conferences became an integral part of successful
commerce. Companies opened regional and branch offices. Thus
business travelers, in their vast numbers, became the most important
lodging guests.
The advent of air travel prompted resort hotels to spring up around
the world.
Many resorts offered package plans, some in conjunction with the
airlines where one price pays for airfare and accommodations.