8 Part One Welcome to Hospitality
parts. The hospitality industry consists of fi ve
parts or segments: food, lodging, travel, tourism,
and recreation. This text will use the term hospital-
ity to refer to the whole industry.
The hospitality industry is complex because
many parts of the industry work together and are
hard to separate. For example, many lodging busi-
nesses also offer food and beverages. Figure 1-4
provides an overview of these fi ve segments of the
hospitality industry.
Food
The food segment of the hospitality industry
consists of businesses that prepare food and bever-
ages for customers. It is also called the foodservice
industry. A foodservice business can range from
casual to fancy. For example, both a sidewalk
hot dog vendor and an elegant restaurant are
food businesses, 1-5. The business can be large
or small. The hot dog vendor is a small business.
McDonald’s Corporation, which owns and oper-
ates McDonald’s restaurants, is one of the largest
businesses in the world.
Many foodservice businesses are located in
another business. For example, foodservice busi-
nesses are often located in movie theaters, malls,
Georgia Department of Economic Development Georgia Department of Economic Development
1-3
Theme parks such as Six Flags Over Georgia
are part of the hospitality industry.
Segments of the Hospitality Industry
Segment Categories in Segment Examples
Food and
Beverage
Quick-service restaurants, full-service
restaurants, street vendors, carryout,
cafeterias
McDonald’s, Olive Garden, Good Humor
trucks, Taco Bell, your school cafeteria
Lodging Hotels, motels, inns, bed-and-breakfasts,
hostels, campsites
Hilton Hotels, Budget Suites, Holiday Inn,
KOA Kampsites
Travel
Rental cars, buses, trains, airplanes, cruise
ships, travel agents
Avis Rent a Car, Greyhound Bus, Yellow
Cab, Amtrak, Southwest Airlines, Princess
Cruises, Adventure Travel
Tourism Tour companies, tourism offi ces, convention
and visitors bureaus
Vermont Bike Tours, Indiana Tourism
Council, Chicago Convention and Visitors
Bureau
Recreation Amusement parks, theme parks, nature
parks, museums, movie theaters, sports
arenas, concert halls, participatory sports
Six Flags, Disneyland Resort, Grand Canyon
National Park, The Art Institute of Chicago,
Sony Movie Theaters, Conseco Field House,
Carnegie Hall, Blue Mountain Ski Area
Goodheart-Willcox Publisher
1-4
Identify two segments of the hospitality industry and discuss how they relate to each other.