Resort

s, shown here in San Diego, CA]] ing provided by a lakeside resort in Jasper, Alberta]]

A resort is a place used for relaxation or recreation, attracting visitors for holidays or vacations. Resorts are places, towns or sometimes commercial establishment operated by a single company. Such a self-contained resort attempts to provide for most of a vacationer's wants while remaining on the premises, such as food, drink, lodging, sports, entertainment, and shopping. The term "resort" may also be used to identify a hotel property that provides an array of amenities and typically includes entertainment and recreational activities. A hotel is frequently a central feature of a resort, such as the Grand Hotel at Mackinac Island, Michigan. A resort is not merely a commercial establishment operated by a single company, although in the late twentieth century this sort of facility became more common.

Towns that contain resorts—or where tourism or vacationing is a major part of the local activity—are often called resort towns. Towns such as Sochi in Russia, Sharm el Sheikh in Egypt, Barizo of Spain, Cortina d'Ampezzo of Italy, Druskininkai of Lithuania, Nice or French Riviera of France or Newport, Rhode Island or St. Moritz Switzerland, Blackpool, England or larger regions, like the Adirondack Mountains, the English Lake District, or the Italian Riviera are well known resorts. The Walt Disney World Resort is a prominent example of a modern, self-contained commercial resort. Resorts exist throughout the world, increasingly attracting visitors from around the globe. Thailand, for instance, has become a popular destination. Resorts are especially prevalent in Central America and the Caribbean. Closely related to resorts are convention and large meeting sites. Generally these occur in cities where special meeting halls, together with ample accommodations as well as varied dining and entertainment are provided.

Types of resort

, Alberta, Canada]]

Destination resort

A destination resort is a resort that contains, in and of itself, the necessary guest attraction capabilities—that is to say that a destination resort does not need to be near a destination (town, historic site, theme park, or other) to attract its public. A commercial establishment at a resort destination such as a recreational area, a scenic or historic site, a theme park, a gaming facility or other tourist attraction may compete with other businesses at a destination. Consequently, another characteristic of a destination resort is that it offers food, drink, lodging, sports, entertainment, and shopping within the facility so that guests have no need to leave the facility throughout their stay. Commonly these facilities are of higher quality than would be expected if one were to stay at a hotel or eat in a town's restaurants. Some examples are Atlantis in the Bahamas, Costa do Sauípe in the Northeastern Brazil, Laguna Phuket in Thailand and Sun City near Johannesburg in South Africa.

All-inclusive resort

An all-inclusive resort is a resort that, besides providing all of the common amenities of a resort, charges a fixed price that includes most or all items. At a minimum, most inclusive resorts include lodging, unlimited food, drink, sports activities, and entertainment for the fixed price. In recent years, the number of resorts offering "all-inclusive" amenities has decreased dramatically; in 1961, over half offered such plans and in 2007, less than ten percent do so.

Spa resorts

A spa resort is a short term residential/lodging facility with the primary purpose of providing individual services for spa-goers to develop healthy habits. Historically many such spas were developed at the location of natural hot springs or sources of mineral waters. Typically over a seven-day stay, such facilities provide a comprehensive program that includes spa services, physical fitness activities, wellness education, healthy cuisine and special interest programming.

Golf resorts

Golf resorts are resorts that cater specifically to the sport of golf, and include access to one or more golf course and or clubhouse. Golf resorts typically provide golf packages that provide visitors with all greens and cart fees, range balls, accommodations and meals.

Ski resorts

A ski resort is a ski area plus amenities that generally make them a destination resort. This includes accommodations and other amenities adjacent to the ski area. Some ski resorts offer lodging options on the slopes themselves, with ski-in and ski-out access allowing guests to ski right up to the door. Ski resorts often have other activities, such as snowmobiling, sledding, horse-drawn sleds, dog-sledding, ice-skating, indoor or outdoor swimming, and hottubbing, game rooms, and local forms of entertainment, such as clubs, cinema, theatre and cabarets.

Seaside resorts

in Florida has seaside resorts.]]

Seaside resorts are located on a coast. Many seaside towns have turned to other entertainment industries, and some of them have a good deal of nightlife. The cinemas and theatres often remain to become host to a number of pubs, bars, restaurants and nightclubs. Most of their entertainment facilities cater to local people and the beaches still remain popular during the summer months. Although international tourism turned people away from British seaside towns, it also brought in foreign travel and as a result, many seaside towns offer foreign language schools, the students of which often return to vacation and sometimes to settle.

Luxury resorts

A luxury resort is an expensive vacation facility which is fully staffed and has been rated with five stars. Luxury resorts often boast many visitor activities and attractions such as golf, watersports, spa and beauty facilities, skiing, natural ecology and tranquility. Because of the extent of amenities offered, a luxury resort is also considered a destination resort.

Megaresorts

in 2009]] A Megaresort is a type of destination resort which is of an exceptionally large size, sometimes featuring large-scale attractions (casino, golf course, theme park, multiple accommodations). The hotels and casinos along the Las Vegas Strip are often considered megaresorts due to their immense size and complexity.

Historical resorts

A famous resort of the ancient world was Baiae, Italy, popular over 2,000 years ago. Capri, an island near Naples, Italy, has attracted visitors since Roman times. Another famous historical resort was Monte Ne near Rogers, Arkansas, which was active in the early 20th century. At its peak more than 10,000 people a year visited its hotels. It closed in the 1930s, and was ultimately submerged under Beaver Lake in the 1960s.

See also

Canada's grand railway hotels

Beach resort

Condo hotel

Golf resort

Luxury resorts

Megaresort

Resort town

Seaside resort

Spa resort

Ski resort

Sanatorium (health resort)

Tourism

Travel

References

External links

Category:Hotel types