Travel and Tourism: Your Own Hotel

Owning your own hotel can be the culminating dream for someone who has worked for many years in the travel & tourism industry, or an interesting investment choice for a person who wants to start their own business. With your own hotel, you're completely responsible for the comfort, safety and entertainment of guests. You will select and train staff, keep an inventory of all supplies, choose your level of services and maybe even set interior design trends with your taste in décor. Hotels can be small enough to be run by a single family or household, such as bed and breakfasts or soaring sky scrapers and palatial resorts, and range from backwoods retreats, to business traveller convenient stops in industry and commerce hubs, and cater to all sorts of guests from the budget conscious backpacker to one of several permanent residences to the super rich.Franchise versus FreshWhile all brands need to start somewhere, owning a franchise hotel gives you a recognizable name that will pull in more guests. On the other hand, the same recognition that lets guests easily find you demands you deliver the experience that is available anywhere in the franchise network. You'll be obeying a formula with reliability but very little freedom. This can be attractive to a novice, but if you've already got a lot of experience with hospitality business management, your first hotel may be where you want a change to put your skills to work.Size and ServicesBudget determines a lot. The smallest barrier of entry in in starting your own bed and breakfast, a good way to get your feet wet and build up a reputation for excellent hospitality business management, and only the wealthiest of business tycoons is going to be lucky enough to have the funding for extravagant, several hundred room establishments. However if you have a proven track record, private lenders may be willing to get you started with a business loan. Keep in mind that the star system isn't just a measure of the enjoyment guests have, but also pegged on the sort of amenities you have. More stars isn't always better if it's beyond your budget or ability to maintain things.Important SkillsThe smaller your operation, the more general your skills will need to be, but if making the beds yourself doesn't appeal, you'll still need to rise to the challenge of hiring and overseeing the people who do it for you. You'll need to know the labour laws of your region, and have an intimate awareness of how things need to be. If you're not sure you're up to the job of doing everything, or you want to know what to look for, consider a hotel management school.