A Home and Its Significance
A home is where people resort to whenever they need to be comfortable. For this reason, a home is a place where an individual chooses as his or her ideal location for living. It is important to note that homes are made of memories that reflect what a person has undergone throughout their stay in a given location. In particular, it is in the home where people share both grief and happiness and this makes it become not just a place but also a feeling of happiness and contentment (Xu and Gursoy 2015, p.113).
Hospitality and its Importance
Hospitality refers to the generous and friendly reception of strangers, guests, or visitors. In the event of traveling, people meet individuals who come from different parts of the world. Moreover, there is the need to consider safety during travel and this makes places with the best guest experiences to be regarded as hospitable. Hospitality entails the process of recruiting, rewarding, and retaining the individuals who are responsible for the outstanding guest experiences. Hospitality companies face competition and this makes it vital for them to constantly improve their service delivery and presentation. Hence, the intangible nature of customer experiences poses a big challenge to companies aiming at providing the best hospitality services (Xu and Gursoy 2015, p.113).
Hospitality in Home and Commercial Hospitality
Hospitality takes the form of acts of generosity and having a good attitude towards other people. For this reason, hospitality could be practiced in the home or commercially. Hospitality in the home goes beyond the provision of shelter to visitors but also includes safety consideration and comfort (Zervas, Proserpio and Byers 2017, p.692). Hospitality in the home is attached to fundamental beliefs that over time lead to the effective functioning of relationships among relatives and friends. Besides, there is the need for good behavior whenever outsiders, guests, and strangers are around. Hence, the benefits of hospitality in the home do not only accrue to the visitor but also on the host. Regarding commercial hospitality, significant changes have taken place over time when it comes to the reception courtiers and people of higher rank get when they visit some places. It is important to note that different categories of travelers usually have different expectations. Therefore, they decide on the specific amount they set aside for accommodation. Commercial hospitality aims at meeting the customers' expectations but there are social rituals such as greeting guests at the entrance that are mandatory in most companies and organizations. The same applies to the departure of the guests.
Home Ideas and Tourist Travel
Home ideas have a great influence when it comes to how, to, and when individuals select their tourist visits. In particular, there are push and pull factors that act as motivators during tourist travel. One of the push factors is the home needs whereby both the physiological and psychological ideas play an important role. In particular, ego-enhancement that stems from the status held by individuals comes in handy when choosing the period and location of tourist travel (Ryan 2015, p.345). Other ideas such as the search for social interaction, rest and relaxation, health and fitness, prestige, and regression motivate individuals to visit specific tourist destinations. On the other hand, safety and security have been at the forefront when it comes to home ideas of most tourists during the planning of travel. The pull ideas that encourage people to visit specific regions range from convenient transportation, gaining access to natural environments such as landscapes and mountains, and the time and cost associated with the tourist travel. It is important to note that some tourist attraction sites are constantly gaining markets owing to the home-related benefits they have which attract people from different backgrounds.
Authenticity and Safety
The search for safety and authenticity has contributed immensely to the manner in which tourists choose accommodation sites. It is important to note that the presence of online platforms such as Airbnb and TripAdvisor have made it possible for tourists to obtain accommodation without necessarily residing in a hotel (Denizci Guillet and Mohammed 2015, p.532). In particular, the accommodation could be an apartment that is less expensive compared to the hotels that are purposefully set aside for this function. Apart from acquiring authentic locations of stay, tourists are in a position to enjoy practical benefits that come along with peer-to-peer accommodation. The housing amenities provided have over time seen the rise in the number of bookings made in the less-expensive accommodation locations. On the other hand, security is important when selecting accommodation and the fact that most tourist visits are short-term makes individuals to select potentially secure locations. However, the existence of the sharing economy that has grown courtesy of platforms such as Airbnb might lead to security concerns affecting the safety of the hosts. Whereas housing shortages could be the primary reason why tourists choose specific locations for accommodation, sustainability, safety, and authenticity continue to be the factors behind the common trends in the hospitality sector.
Contemporary Commercial Accommodation
The contemporary forms of commercial accommodation have come up with different ways through which tourists can have meaningful experiences. One of the ways is through offering simpler booking procedure that minimizes friction when interacting with staff and online platforms (King 2017, p.117). For this reason, there will be few cases of clients who chose to abort the booking process owing to the complications involved. Moreover, the technological advancements have made it possible for commercial accommodation companies to automate the guest experience from the moment they walk into a facility to the time they leave. Secondly, the contemporary commercial accommodation firms have introduced a food-focused guest experience. For example, the guests receive decent in-room service immediately they place an order. Moreover, the use of fresh ingredients has made the meals served to clients become exquisite and this has contributed to the rising trend where visitors check into hotels primarily due to the food experience. Lastly, the adoption of eco-friendly visitor experience has seen most commercial accommodation companies give their guests unforgettable memories. The companies have implemented energy conservation measures which translate to ambient places of stay and further a reduction in the arising costs from the services offered.
Traditional Accommodation Providers and Market Competition
In a move to compete with accommodation platforms such as Airbnb, traditional accommodation providers need to adopt new strategies if they are to remain competitive. One of the ways is through implementing online booing which has become a common trend. Besides, the increasing occupancy rates in accommodation facilities under the Airbnb flagship is due to the ease of booking (Law, Buhalis and Cobanoglu 2014, p.741). Secondly, the traditional accommodation providers should come up with personalized and authentic marketing strategies for the products they offer. The traditional accommodation providers can achieve this by improving the accuracy of the data they hold about their competitors. For this reason, they will be in a position to create unique advertisements that will help counter the competition from other organizations. Lastly, the traditional accommodation providers should learn from the best practices of their competitors. For example, upon obtaining the details of the guest, the next step should inquire if the individual would like to make a food reservation that comes with a happy hour package. the traditional accommodation providers being at par with their competitors will require a combination of efforts from the staff who deal with guests and those who handle data. Hence, with a matter of time, the anticipated outcomes will surface.
Conclusion
Hospitality entails the provision of friendly and generous reception services to guests. During tourist travels, it is important to note that individuals interact with people from various backgrounds. Therefore, the providers of accommodation services need to have a good attitude when dealing with their clients. On the other hand, hospitality in the home requires behaving well in the presence of outsiders, guests, and strangers. There are push and pull factors that contribute to the destinations of tourist travel by a given group of people. For this reason, the tourist attraction sites that attract a high number of visitors is because of the home-related benefits accommodation providers confer to the guests. Housing amenities that are relatively affordable but authentic have also had high occupancy rates in the past years. The primary reason for the high stream of guests is attributable to the sustainability, authenticity, and safety of their facilities. The stakeholders in the commercial hospitality industry have automated the booking process in a move to offer their guests meaningful experiences. Moreover, the adoption of eco-friendly solutions and food-focused experience have also seen individuals become attracted to specific accommodation organizations. Lastly, the advent of technology means that traditional accommodation providers need to embrace the new changes if they are to remain competitive.
References
Denizci Guillet, B. and Mohammed, I., 2015. Revenue management research in hospitality and tourism: A critical review of current literature and suggestions for future research. International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, 27(4), pp.526-560.
King, C., 2017. Brand management–standing out from the crowd: A review and research agenda for hospitality management. International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, 29(1), pp.115-140.
Law, R., Buhalis, D. and Cobanoglu, C., 2014. Progress on information and communication technologies in hospitality and tourism. International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, 26(5), pp.727-750.
Ryan, C., 2015. Trends in hospitality management research: a personal reflection. International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, 27(3), pp.340-361.
Xu, X. and Gursoy, D., 2015. Influence of sustainable hospitality supply chain management on customers’ attitudes and behaviors. International journal of hospitality management, 49, pp.105-116.
Zervas, G., Proserpio, D. and Byers, J.W., 2017. The rise of the sharing economy: Estimating the impact of Airbnb on the hotel industry. Journal of Marketing Research, 54(5), pp.687-705.
