The Accommodation Sector

in a Global Perspective
GROUP 1

MEMBERS:
• Cijjy Noel
• John Eric Acevedo
• Regene Abaño
• Arabella Peña
 The Accommodation Sector in a
Global Perspective

The accommodation sector has been acknowledged as

one of the key economic drivers of economic activities in the
tourism and hospitality industry. Hotels, resorts, and other
accommodation establishments bring in significant developments
in different dimensions of the industry, such as economic,
sociocultural, and environment.
Introduction:
In this ever-changing world, the accommodation sector
has been affected by the current global trends, activities, and
issues in connection with the visitors, host communities,
government policies, and business climate; thus, this sector is a
highly competitive arena.

A hotel business may “sink or swim” when faced with

challenging situations, such as economic downturn, changes in
travel patterns and behavior, environmental regulations, and
others. The role of the accommodation professionals is to keep
their brands afloat in times like these.
Current Global Trends in
the Accommodation and
Lodging Sector
1
The Importance of Safety and Security and
Sanitation and Hygiene in the Hotel Business

It is undeniably real that hotel establishments are a

melting pot of different types of tourists and visitors.

Each property has a distinct characteristic and

prioritization in terms of safety and security sanitation and
hygiene. Hotel businesses today are leaning toward ensuring
that all guests are safe and secured while they are staying on
the property. With the emergence of the global pandemic
brought by COVID-19, hotels and other lodging establishments
have strengthened their measures to ensure the safety of the
guests.
1
The Importance of Safety and Security and
Sanitation and Hygiene in the Hotel Business

Thermal scanners are installed at the

entrances of the hotels, while hand gels and
sanitizers can be seen in every area where there is
contact between the guests and employees.
Wearing a face mask and protective clothing is
highly recommended for every guest and employee.
Contactless payment transactions are highly
encouraged too.
2
Contactless Payment System
Most accommodation establishments are now geared toward the norm of
contactless payment transactions. This gives an impression of safe, fast, and hassle-
free transactions of the hotel guests. Examples of contactless payment systems are
Apple Pay and Google Pay.
3

SMART HOTELS
Smart hotels are a new concept in the
hotel scene. Integrating the Internet of
Things (IoT) into the hotel property’s
existing features adds up to the desire
of the guests to stay with these kinds of
accommodation. Smart hotels exemplify
luxury and, at the same time,
convenience to their staying guests.
4

The Use of Virtual and Augmented Reality (AR

& VR)
The fourth industrial revolution (4th IR) has brought significant changes in the
global business arena with the introduction of Artificial Intelligence (AI).
Virtual reality (VR) replaces the real world with visual and audio input, while augmented
reality (AR) layers virtual elements onto the real world. These two new concepts have been
added to the marketing and promotions of different hotels and lodging establishments.
5

Robotics in Hospitality

Robots have taken over some processes in

the hotel sector. Would you imagine that one day,
your food order in the restaurant will be served by
robots? Well, the future is happening now. Robots
are now part of hotel operations from check-in and
guest registration, order taking, room service, and
until check-out.
6
Digital Guest Experience and Property Review

Digital guest experience is a new trend in sharing one’s story

on an online platform. YouTube Vlogs, TripAdvisor, Yelp, and other
sources of guest reviews are all over the Internet. This trend can help
acquire new clients, but it is also vicious when a bad review was left
unanswered.
CONTEMPORARY ISSUES
IN THE GLOBAL
ACCOMMODATION AND
LODGING SECTOR
CONTEMPORARY ISSUES IN THE GLOBAL
ACCOMMODATION AND LODGING
SECTOR
With the changes that occur in the tourism and hospitality industry, it
is inevitable that the accommodation and lodging sector also experiences
some issues and concerns that modern hospitality professionals need to
address. Here are some of the contemporary issues in the global
accommodation and lodging sector.
 Green Hotel Practices and The Pressures of
Designing and Implementing Sustainable
Accommodation

Many hotels today are claiming that they are

practicing sustainable accommodation management
simply by presenting themselves as “green” hotels.

However, green practices do not synonymously go

with sustainability. There are a lot of guidelines and
frameworks issued in the context of designing and
implementing sustainable accommodation management
beyond the concept of environmental conservation.
 Green Hotel Practices and The Pressures of
Designing and Implementing Sustainable
Accommodation

Sustainability involves a consensus effort of all

stakeholders to make a sound decision that will keep the
resources available for future use.

Normally, most hotel businesses view the results of

sustainable practices of their hotel property through the so-
called triple bottom line approach wherein the business has
to fulfill sustainability in three dimensions: (1) people; (2)
planet; and (3) profit.
 Global Hoteliers and Shortage of
Employment
The accommodation sector is a labor-intensive job that
requires every business to create and provide jobs
employment to the community.

Hotel management teams are always in the run to find the

most qualified applicants for different hotel jobs available on their
property. Extensive training is being provided to every hotel staff
and thus requires the hotel management to invest more in hotel
skills training. This is with the recent developments in Tourism and
Hospitality Management Education brought by the ASEAN Mutual
Recognition Arrangement for Tourism Professionals and the new
Commission on Higher Education (CHED) Memorandum Order No.
62 series of 2017.
 Technological Shift on Demands, Customer
Satisfaction and Experience, and Hotel Prices

We can admit the fact that technology plays a very

significant role in all the industries today.

Massive and continuous innovations and

developments in technology have brought a change in the
playing field, especially in the accommodation sector. The
integration of social media platforms and review sites has
created a huge influence on consumer behavior. For
example, a Facebook post that bears a certain name of a
hotel can make people talk about it.
 Technological Shift on Demands, Customer
Satisfaction and Experience, and Hotel Prices

A simple negative review of hotel facilities in TripAdvisor

can result in some turn-away guests. Another issue involving
this massive technological shift is the introduction of Search
Engine Optimization (SEO), which is a way to make a website
and brands relevant on the commonly used search engines
like Google, Yahoo, Bing, and others.

The technological shift also brought the integration of

AI, VR, and AR to our doorsteps. The advent of the 4th IR has
paved the way to a collaborative environment between
organic hotel employees as well as the new technologies to
better serve the guests.
 Increasing Hotel Options Means
Lesser Hotel Brand Loyalty

The competition in the hotel sector becomes

stiffer as major international hotel chains expand their
operation on the local scene.

The options of the travelers have increased, resulting

in a dwindling figure in the aspect of hotel brand loyalty. As
business professionals always say, “It is easier to sell your
products to a returning customer rather than to convince a
new customer to buy your products for the first time.”
 Increasing Hotel Options Means
Lesser Hotel Brand Loyalty

Hotel brand loyalty is a key ingredient in the success

of the hotel business in terms of repeat purchases. Repeat
customers are easier to handle and impress since these
types of guests already have prior knowledge of your
property.
Their expectations are almost at par with the service
that you can deliver. So, with the increasing number of hotel
options, the risk of maintaining a good number of hotel
patrons seems to be a tough challenge for hoteliers these
days.
 OPPORTUNITIES AND FUTURE
DEVELOPMENTS IN THE GLOBAL
ACCOMMODATION AND LODGING SECTOR
 OPPORTUNITIES AND FUTURE DEVELOPMENTS IN THE
GLOBAL ACCOMMODATION AND LODGING SECTOR
The future of the accommodation and lodging sector relies heavily on
the current trends in the tourism and hospitality industry. As we have
encountered in the year 2020, the challenges brought to the tourism and
hospitality industry by the COVID-19 pandemic have severely affected the
tourism statistics in all facets.

Based on the UNWTO 2020 report, a dramatic decline of -74% in

global tourism arrivals has been recorded. Technically, it is the lowest
recorded figure ever in the history of the industry. In terms of the regional
impacts, the ASEAN region garnered the most decline in numbers of
international visitors at -82% due to the strict travel protocols and closing
travel borders.
 OPPORTUNITIES AND FUTURE DEVELOPMENTS IN THE
GLOBAL ACCOMMODATION AND LODGING SECTOR

With this in mind, the global accommodation and lodging sector has
been under fire since the start of the year 2020. Hotels and other
accommodation establishments must comply with international health and
safety standards set by the World Health Organization (WHO), as well as the
national and local health and safety protocols where their property is located.

This sudden shift in the business environment, as well as the

operational requirements, has caused some of the hotels to reduce their
operations, cut down costs, mass layoffs, and even file for bankruptcy.
 Hence, the future of the global accommodation
and lodging sector can be summarized in three
reasons:

1. Compliance with the “new normal” operations.

2. Creating more effective marketing strategies to ensure the

guests stay in the hotel

3. Integration of technology to augment customer service