WOW! What IS the difference between the hospitality industry and the service industry? Do you know? Can you tell me?

I can't believe I haven't done this before. I guess I've assumed that anyone who is reading my posts would already have an idea of what the Hospitality and Service industries are, what they entail, and how they differ.

Then, I got to thinking. Do I even know the difference well enough to tell someone if asked?

The answer. No. I don't. And I'm a long time hospitality industry professional. I've worked in hotels, restaurants of every type, at event companies, at resorts, convention centers... you name it.

I use the two interchangeably to mean the same thing in some cases, and in others I mean two different things. That doesn't help anything, does it?

So, for my sake, let's quickly define the two so that from now on we're all on the same page.

The Hospitality Industry.

So, here's what pops up when you google, "What is the hospitality industry?"

"...a broad category of fields within the service industry that includes lodging, event planning, theme parks, transportation, cruise line, and additional fields within the tourism industry."

When I think hospitality, I think hotels. I don't know if you do the same, but I won't make that mistake again.

The Service Industry.

And here's what you get when you google, "What is the service industry?"

"...business that does work for a customer, and occasionally provides goods, but is not involved in manufacturing."

Well, I've been making another mistake on this one, too. When I was talking about the service industry, I was referring to restaurants and food service establishments.

I'm not really quite sure how I came to call the restaurant industry the "service industry." I stand corrected.

Well, this has been a humbling experience, but I hope it's cleared some things up in your head.

Moving forward, I'll refer to the Hotel Industry and the Restaurant Industry.

I hope you found this quick post informative? If you already knew the difference between the two, then I hope this was a good refresher.

Feel free to share this on your blog and social profiles or use it in your training and classroom teaching.

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