Soon, for many it will seem that the management of vacation and urban hotels are very similar, and that the business is well defined in both operations and marketing. Think about it before answering, because although the structure and values of analysis and control are the same, they are two totally different businesses with very particular characteristics.

I am sure that all of you will have in mind many managers of holiday complexes, as well as urban hotel complexes. Well, although we believe that these two face the same hotel management challenge, now we will see why hotel chains need very experienced profiles:

Management of a vacation or urban hotel

Urban Hotels:

They are located mainly in central areas of cities or metropolitan areas as the main demand of their clientele.
Its main core business is focused on the sale of rooms.
The client profile is usually distinguished between: Executive clients or tourists.
They generally enjoy preferential locations in cities, historic centers, airports and downtown areas.
The main sources of income are usually: Rooms, restaurants, halls, meetings and events.
Expenditure control is well defined, and there may be minimal staff to manage it.
Marketing focuses on intermediation channels via tour operators, agencies and incoming companies with even marketing guarantee contracts. Without ignoring the online channels and specialized extranets.
Their work teams focus on operational profiles, marketing usually goes hand in hand with intermediary partners.
They are located in well-connected areas with easy access to transportation: airports, train stations, buses, highways.
Transportation companies have regular business lines to their destinations.

Vacation Hotels or Resorts:

They are located in remote areas of the large urban cones of cities or metropolitan areas.
Its main core business continues to be the sale of rooms, although as a whole of a vacation package.
The client profile is clearly tourist and family. They sell leisure.
They are usually located in strategic areas of the coast, on islands or secluded areas focused on the natural environment.
Its main source of income is focused on the sale of the vacation package, and the use and enjoyment of the facilities. They generally differ between MICE events (Meetings, Incentives, Conventions and Events), Spas, Restaurants and additions such as golf courses and recreational activities.
Spending control is not defined, since they are generally facilities with many rooms and different business centers that have to be active depending on the resort’s demand. They need highly specialized staff for catering, maintenance staff, entertainment staff, customer service in their wellness and treatment centers, swimming pools, etc…
The marketing of this type of complexes focuses on intermediation through specialized vacation tour operators, extranets and specific incoming resorts.
Its work teams have, in addition to a high percentage of operational personnel, a very focused commercial and marketing team with experience in promoting its added values in MICE, Spa, Golf, Wellness segments.
In general, given their leisure profile, they are located away from urban centers with, sometimes, difficult access from conventional means of transportation.
Transport companies do not always have regular access lines to their destinations, so it is sometimes difficult for them to market their products given the structural circumstances of the communication and transport routes.

Surely many of you will have thought that I have left many details along the way in these brief lines of differentiation, or even that the description itself has been very drastic with respect to these last types of vacation hotels or resorts.

The truth is that these two complexes are worthy of studying in more detail, and seeing exactly, from a more analytical point of view, the great differences they encompass between each other. But given the brevity that we need for this article and the language in which I want to show it to the public, I think that the main characteristics have basically been defined.

Nowadays, there is undoubtedly a need for great managers to manage not only the operations of their hotel facilities, but also the expenses they generate. Key to success to achieve a positive cumulative result in the important income statement. Hence, the need for hotel chains to train and find very specific hospitality professional profiles for the management of this type of hotel.