Glossary

Question 1

Accessible (guestroom)

Answer 1

guestroom that is designed to accommodate people with disabilities by removing barriers that otherwise limit or prevent them from obtaining the services that are offered

Question 2

account

Answer 2

device used to show increases or decreases in the asset, liability, or owner’s equity sections of the fundamental accounting equation. because of the visual appearance of account, accountants refer to them as T account

Question 3

accounting

Answer 3

the process of summarizing and reporting financial transactions

Question 4

advance deposit

Answer 4

partial or full payment made for guestroom rental before the guest’s arrival

Question 5

all-inclusive (rate)

Answer 5

special rate that typically includes all guest meals and unlimited beverages as well as the use of specifically identified hotel amenities and services

Question 6

all-suite hotel

Answer 6

lodging property in which all guestrooms are suites

Question 7

arrival

Answer 7

an arriving guest. arrivals are typically counted by the number of individuals. used as in “there will be 300 arrivals tonight, including 150 children.”

Question 8

arrival list

Answer 8

PMS report that details the number and names of guests arriving at the hotel during the report period. the arrival list often contains additional information such as each guest’s departure date, room type requests and room ratw

Question 9

asset

Answer 9

item owned by a business, for example, cash on hand, money in checking or other accounts, money owned to the business, inventories, property, equipment, and furnishings

Question 10

audit

Answer 10

process of verifying records for correctness and completeness

Question 11

authorize payment card

Answer 11

to ensure a card’s validity and payment ability and capacity

Question 12

availability forecast

Answer 12

estimate of the number of rooms that remain to be sold

Question 13

average daily rate (ADR)

Answer 13

average selling price of all guestrooms for a given time period, the formula for ADR is as follows: total revenue/total number of rooms sold

Question 14

bed & breakfast inn

Answer 14

very small (one to several guestrooms) property owned and managed by person living on-site. these businesses typically offer at least one meal daily. also called B&B

Question 15

bell service attendant

Answer 15

entry-level hotel employee who assists guests with luggage and who many deliver newspapers, dry cleaning, and other guest-related incidentals to guestrooms. also called bell staff

Question 16

best practice

Answer 16

process or practice unofficially considered to be an industry standard that is used by professionally operated properties

Question 17

blackout date

Answer 17

any day in which the hotel will not honor a negotiated rate. blackout dates should be identified at the same time the hotel and the client agree on a negotiated rate. common blackout dates include NYE and other times the hotel believes its best interest are served by disallowing the negotiated rate.

Question 18

block

Answer 18

rooms reserved exclusively for members of a specific group. a block consists of all rooms held (reserved) by the hotel for the exclusive use of that group. to se aside rooms in this manner effectively creates a “block” of reservations for the group. sometimes referred as a group block.

Question 19

bookeeping

Answer 19

process of initially recording transactions

Question 20

brand loyalty

Answer 20

interest of guests or potential guests to revisit and recommend a hotel (or restaurants)

Question 21

bucket check

Answer 21

indutry term for a systematic examination of guests’ folios to ensure the accuracy of information. bucket checks typically include rate verification, credit monitoring, and confirmation of departure date and guestroom assignment

Question 22

budget (economy) limited-service hotel

Answer 22

lodging property within the limited-service segment that offers low-priced guestrooms and few, if any, amenities other than a complimentary continental breakfast or coffee service

Question 23

business case

Answer 23

advantages that are objectively presented whenever possible in support of a proposal to improve business

Question 24

business plan

Answer 24

plan of goals and activities that will be addressed within the next 12 months to move the organization toward attainment of its mission

Question 25

business traveler

Answer 25

person who travels primarily for business reasons. such guests often have an expense account to defray reasonable travel costs

Question 26

camp/park lodge

Answer 26

sleeping accommodation in parks and other nature conservation areas owned by government agencies and often operated by for-profit management companies

Question 27

cancellation number

Answer 27

series of numbers, letters or both, that identifies the cancellation of a specific hotel reservation

Question 28

cashier’s drawer

Answer 28

cash, checks, payment card copies, and other financial records for which an employee (cashier) is responsible

Question 29

central reservation system (CRS)

Answer 29

entity operated by a franchisor or independently affiliated, that offers potential guests the opportunity to make reservations at the entity’s affiliated (branded) hotels by telephone, fax, or the internet. used as in: what percentage of our transient business last month was generated through CRS?”

Question 30

city ledger

Answer 30

set of accounts used to record charges to and payments from a hotel’s nonregistered guests. example include people not staying in the hotel who purchase the hotel’s meeting space, food, or beverages.

Question 31

comp

Answer 31

short for complimentary or no charge for a product (room) or service

Question 32

competitive set

Answer 32

group of competing hotels to which an individual hotel’s operating performance is compared. often referred to as the comp set

Question 33

concierge

Answer 33

indiviudal(s) within a full-service hotel responsible for providing guests with detailed information about local dining and attractions as well as assissting with related guest needs

Question 34

confirmation number

Answer 34

number (or with letters) that identifies a specific guest reservation

Question 35

continental breakfast

Answer 35

morning meal that includes coffee, juices, and pastries. an upscale continental breakfast may include additional items such as fruits, hot and cold cereals, milk and yoghurt. most limited service hotels offer a complimentary continental breakfast as a guest amenity

Question 36

controller

Answer 36

individual (or department) in a hotel responsible for maintaining the back office accounting system

Question 37

convention hotel

Answer 37

lodging property with extensive and flexible meeting and exhibition spaces that markets to associations, corporations, and other groups bringing people together for meetings

Question 38

corporate traveler

Answer 38

guest who is traveling on business or because of his or her job

Question 39

cost per key

Answer 39

average purchase price of a hotel’s guestroom expressed in thousand of dollars. for example, a 200-room hotel offered for $12 million is selling at a cost of $60,000 per key ($12,000,000/200 rooms = $60,000). sometimes called cost per room.

Question 40

credit (accounting)

Answer 40

accounting transaction that records a change on the right side of a T account in an asset, liability, or owner’s equity account

Question 41

credit balance

Answer 41

amount owed to guests by the hotel. used as in “we just got a check to hold the ballroom for next year’s wedding. when we apply the check to their account, they will have a credit balance of $3,000”

Question 42

credit card

Answer 42

system by which banks loan money with interest to consumers as purchases are made. also known as bank cards. merchants accepting the cards for payments are charged a fee by the banks for the charges made by their customers.

Question 43

credit limit report

Answer 43

comparison of a guest’s folio balance to amount of credit established for that guest. sometimes referred to as a high-balance report

Question 44

credit manager

Answer 44

person responsible for establishing and enforcing the hotel’s credit policies. in smaller properties this role may be filled by the general manager. controller or FOM . in larger hotels, credit management policy may be the result of the joint efforts of several individuals

Question 45

cross-train

Answer 45

tactic of training people for more than one position so that they can assist wherever they are needed

Question 46

currency conversion

Answer 46

process of accepting payment for charges computed in one currency but paid in the currency of another. ex. a european traveler visiting NYC who wished to pay a bill in Euro dollars rather than in US dollars, would require a currency conversion if the hotel provided this type of service

Question 47

cutoff date

Answer 47

date on which unreserved rooms held in a group block are returned to the hotel’s general rooms inventory

Question 48

damages

Answer 48

amount of losses or costs assessed to the individual or company that was found to be liable for a wrongful act

Question 49

database

Answer 49

collection of facts and statistics that provide useful information

Question 50

day rate

Answer 50

special rate that typically includes 8-12 hour use (but not overnight use) of a room.

Question 51

debit (accounting)

Answer 51

accounting transaction that records a change on the left-side of a T account in an asset, liability or owner’s equity account

Question 52

debit card

Answer 52

payment system in which money collected by a merchant (e.g. hotel) is automatically (electronically) deposited into the merchant’s local bank account. as with credit and T&E cards, merchants accepting the cards assessed a fee for the right to do so

Question 53

deep cleaning

Answer 53

intensive cleaning of a guestroom, usually including thorough cleaning of drapes, lamp, shades, carpets, walls and other room fixtures and furnishings