HOTELIER: A PASSION OR A PROFESSION?

Agung Gita Subakti

Hotel Management, Faculty of Economic and Communication, BINUS University Jln. K. H. Syahdan No. 9, Palmerah, Jakarta Barat 11480 [email protected]

ABSTRACT

The history of hotels is intimately connected to that of civilizations. Or rather, it is a part of that history. Through years and time, many people are making their mark in the hotel industry by gaining the title as a Hotelier. Not just nationwide but they placed their footsteps throughout the world and became leading people in the Hospitality industry. The aim of this paper is to overview some of the people who had achieve the reputation as an Hotelier: globally recognized, set up their set of high quality standard, developing international brand and be able to sustain and succeed worldwide.

Keywords: hotelier, hotel

ABSTRAK

Sejarah hotel berhubungan erat dengan peradaban daerah tersebut. Atau lebih tepatnya, hotel merupakan bagian dari sejarah. Bertahun-tahun,banyak orang meninggalkan jejak mereka di industri perhotelan dengan memperoleh gelar sebagai Hotelier. Tidak hanya dalam skala nasional, mereka menjejakkan diri di seluruh dunia dan menjadi orang terkemuka di industri perhotelan. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk menggambarkan secara umum beberapa orang yang telah mendapat reputasi sebagai seorang Hotelier: diakui secara global, mengatur perangkat standar kualitas tinggi mereka, mengembangkan merek internasional, dan mampu mempertahankan serta berhasil di seluruh dunia.

Kata kunci: hotelier, hotel

Hotelier: a Passion or a Profession? (Agung Gita Subakti) 111 INTRODUCTION

The history of hotels is intimately connected to that of civilizations. Or rather, it is a part of that history. Facilities offering guests hospitality have been in evidence since early biblical times. The Greeks developed thermal baths in villages designed for rest and recuperation. Later, the Romans built mansions to provide accommodation for travelers on government business. The Romans were the first to develop thermal baths in England, Switzerland and the Middle East. Later still, caravanserais appeared, providing a resting place for caravans along Middle Eastern routes. In the Middle Ages, monasteries and abbeys were the first establishments to offer refuge to travelers on a regular basis. Religious orders built inns, hospices and hospitals to cater for those on the move.

Donald Albrecht wrote: Hotels are building that have been reinvented and re imagined for two hundred years- now more so than ever. Since the nineteenth century, hotels, whether in cities or remote oases, have evolved from simple places to sleep while on the road into elaborate destinations that combined private guestrooms, with restaurants, lounges, gyms, spas, meeting facilities and ballrooms. Architecture has become experience (Turkel, 2009).

The history of hotels is intimately connected to that of civilizations. Or rather, it is a part of that history. Facilities offering guests hospitality have been in evidence since early biblical times. The Greeks developed thermal baths in villages designed for rest and recuperation. Later, the Romans built mansions to provide accommodation for travelers on government business. The Romans were the first to develop thermal baths in England, Switzerland and the Middle East.

Later still, caravanserais appeared, providing a resting place for caravans along Middle Eastern routes. In the Middle Ages, monasteries and abbeys were the first establishments to offer refuge to travelers on a regular basis. Religious orders built inns, hospices and hospitals to cater for those on the move. Inns multiplied, but they did not yet offer meals. Staging posts were established for governmental transports and as rest stops. They provided shelter and allowed horses to be changed more easily. Numerous refuges then sprang up for pilgrims and crusaders on their way to the Holy Land.