Top 5 Cities for Hospitality Management Jobs
By Angela Rose, Hcareers.com
It’s a great time to be a hotel job seeker. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics(BLS), the leisure and hospitality industries will employ 14.4 million professionals by 2020. Jobs will increase by 1.3 million this decade alone—and the growth is already noticeable as evidenced by Hcareers’ 2012 Hospitality Jobs Snapshot report. It states that the number of job openings in the hospitality industry rose by 23 percent in 2012. Hotel and resort job openings, in particular, increased by 18 percent. And hotel management positions—including sales manager, hotel general manager and front office manager—saw substantial growth.
It’s easy to see why. According to the STR Construction Pipeline Report, which tracks hotel data, 407 new properties opened in the US in 2012. They expect the trend to continue in 2013, with 817 new hotels slated to open. More hotels mean more hotel employees—including hospitality managers. While prospects for these professionals are excellent as a whole, some cities stand out from the rest. Consider the following we deem particularly notable.
1. Los Angeles, California
If the number of hotels alone is any indication, the Los Angeles metro area is an excellent location for hospitality management jobs. A 2011 tally of Trip Advisor data performed by priceoftravel.com found 386 hotels and bed and breakfasts in Los Angeles, the second highest of any city in the U.S. BLS data reveals the area employed the highest number of lodging managers in 2011. According to hotelchatter.com, two highly anticipated properties will open in 2013: The Moment and The Line.
2. New York, New York
New York is also home to an astonishing number of hotel properties. There were 667 in 2011 according to priceoftravel.com, the most of any city in the US. PKF Hospitality Research considers a generous 18 percent of the rooms in the city to be “luxury” accommodations, and ten new major properties are set to open in 2013. These include The The Jade Hotel, The Refinery NYC and The Quin, an 18-story hotel with 200 rooms. According to BLS data, the New York Metro area employed the second highest number of lodging managers in 2011.
3. Washington, DC
Our nation’s capital employed the third highest number of lodging managers in 2011. Hoteliers have slated several high profile properties to open in 2013 according to htoelchatter.com. These include The Capella Georgetown, a hotel with 49 rooms and 12 suites. Not surprisingly given the city’s importance, review data compiled by hotel site Trivago reveals that the capital has a covetable 81.23 percent reputation rating in terms of guest satisfaction—the fourth highest in the US.
4. San Francisco, California
San Francisco has more than 346 hotels and bed and breakfasts, the fourth most in the US. PKF Hospitality Research categorizes 13.3 percent of them as “luxury” accommodations. Employing the seventh highest number of lodging managers in 2011, according to BLS data, that number is certain to increase in 2013 with the opening of new properties such as The Hotel Zetta.
5. Orlando, Florida
Orlando ranked third in sheer number of hotel and bed and breakfast properties in 2011 with 359. It also cracked Trivago’s top ten reputation ranking list, landing at number ten for customer satisfaction. New hotels opening in the area in 2013 include Aloft Orlando Downtown.
With numerous hotels located in every major metropolitan area and many more in the planning stages for 2013 and beyond, your hospitality management job opportunities should remain plentiful. Wherever your career takes you, remember Hcareers for job openings, employment search advice and more.
Read more hospitality career tips. Find more hospitality jobs by visiting the career center.
About the Author
Angela Rose researches and writes about job search strategy, career management, hiring trends and workplace issues for Hcareers.com.
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• 3 Areas Where Hospitality Employment is Expected to Boom
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