1. Hospitality in tourism industry. A brief History of the Hotel Industry.

The history of hotels is intimately connected to that of civilisations. Or rather, it is a part of thathistory. Facilities offering guests hospitality have been in evidence since early biblical times.The Greeks developed thermal baths in villages designed for rest and recuperation. Later, the Romans built mansions to provide accommodation for travellers on government business. The Romans were the first to develop thermal baths in England, Switzerland and the Middle East.Later still, caravanserais appeared, providing a resting place for caravans along Middle Eastern routes. In the Middle Ages, monasteries and abbeys were the first establishments to offer refuge

to travellers on a regular basis. Religious orders built inns, hospices and hospitals to cater for

those on the move.

From antiquity to the Middle Ages - The history of hotels is intimately connected to that of

civilisations. Or rather, it is a part of that history. Facilities offering guests hospitality have been in evidence since early biblical times. The Greeks developed thermal baths in villages designed

for rest and recuperation. Later, the Romans built mansions to provide accommodation for

travellers on government business. The Romans were the first to develop thermal baths in

England, Switzerland and the Middle East.

Later still, caravanserais appeared, providing a resting place for caravans along Middle Eastern

routes. In the Middle Ages, monasteries and abbeys were the first establishments to offer refuge

to travellers on a regular basis. Religious orders built inns, hospices and hospitals to cater for

those on the move.

Inns multiplied, but they did not yet offer meals. Staging posts were established for

governmental transports and as rest stops. They provided shelter and allowed horses to be

changed more easily. Numerous refuges then sprang up for pilgrims and crusaders on their way

to the Holy Land.

Travelling then became progressively more hazardous. At the same time, inns gradually

appeared in most of Europe. Some of them have remained famous, for example, l' Auberge des

Trois Rois in Basle, which dates from the Middle Ages.

Around 1200, staging posts for travellers and stations for couriers were set up in China and

Mongolia.

In Europe, or more precisely in Belgium, l' Auberge Cour Saint Georges opened in Gant, while

the Angel Inn was built at Grantham in Lincolnshire, England.

The start of the hotel industry - In France, at the beginning of the fifteenth century, the law

required that hotels keep a register. English law also introduced rules for inns at that time. At the

same time, around 1500 thermal spas were developed at Carlsbad and Marienbad.

During this epoch, more than 600 inns were registered in England. Their architecture often

consisted of a paved interior court with access through an arched porch. The bedrooms were

situated on the two sides of the courtyard, the kitchen and the public rooms at the front, and the

stables and storehouses at the back. The first guide books for travellers were published in France

during this period.

An embryonic hotel industry began to develop in Europe. Distinctive signs were hung outside

establishments renowned for their refined cuisine. At the end of the 1600s, the first stage coaches

following a regular timetable started operating in England. Half a century later, clubs similar to

English gentlemen's clubs and masonic lodges began to appear in America.

In Paris in the time of Louis XIV, the Place Vendôme offered the first example of a multiple-use

architectural complex, where the classical façades accommodated boutiques, offices, apartments

and also hotels.

2. The brief history of hotel industry in Kazakhstan.

Currently, there are around 600 tourist companies represented in Kazakhstan, half of them with offices in Almaty. They face a mountain of unsettled issues and problems. Expensive rates for advertising services, impossibility to get in touch with government bodies and consular services, insufficient information about the recent events, and a lack of professionals: all this reminds our entrepreneurs about the instability of the tourist business. Creating the Kazakhstan Association of Hotels and Restaurants (KAHR) in 1998 and the Kazakhstan Tourist Association in 1999 made it possible to focus joint efforts on resolving these problems.

Here are some examples of recent crucial achievements. Entry visas were cancelled for Kazakhstani citizens in July 2001 at an initiative of KAHR. The consular fee for entering the country was cut to $30 for foreign citizens. On 1st January 2002, an experimental streamlined visa procedure for citizens from 22 countries was launched. In October 2000, the Kazakh government issued the resolution On Measures for Improving the Tourist Image of Kazakhstan for 2000-2003. In July 2001, the bill On Tourist Businesses in Kazakhstan and Concepts for the Development of Tourism in Kazakhstan was passed. Members of the KAHR and KTA participated in the consideration of this bill, and made important proposals for its improvement. KAHR members also took an active part in developing Kazakhstan's new Tax Code. They have also contributed to cancelling the annual re-certification of hotels.

The association has acquired a good deal of experience of taking part in various world and regional exhibitions, such as the World Travel Market (2001, 2002), ITB fair of Berlin (2001), KITT Exhibition in Almaty, KITT in Moscow (2001), and other exhibitions.

We took the decision to join the Russian Association of Tourist Agencies (RATA) at the annual Hotel Conference of the CIS and Baltic countries, which was organized by the Best European Hotels and Akademservis. Since January this year, members of KTA and KAHR have been receiving electronic versions of the RATA-News daily newspaper, which conveys detailed information about the latest events in the tourist business.

Moreover, KAHR co-operates with the Almaty Association of Entrepreneurs, Russian Restaurant Guild, Kazakhstan Franchise Association, Central Kazakhstan Association, and other non-government associations.

The Kazakhstan Association of Hotels and Restaurants is grateful to all who support it and share its precious experience, and shows respect to those whose future is connected to the tourist industry.