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Hotel, Motel, and Resort Desk Clerks
Accommodate hotel, motel, and resort patrons by registering and assigning rooms to guests, issuing room keys or cards, transmitting and receiving messages, keeping records of occupied rooms and guests' accounts, making and confirming reservations, and presenting statements to and collecting payments from departing guests.
Also Known As:
Desk Clerk
Front Desk Agent
Front Desk Associate
Front Desk Clerk
Front Office Agent
Guest Service Agent
Guest Service Representative
Guest Services Agent (GSA)
Night Auditor
Wages
Annual wages for Hotel, Motel, and Resort Desk Clerks in United States
Job Outlook
Bright
New job opportunities are very likely in the future
United States
2033 Projected Employment
290,200
7% Change From 2023
Explore File Clerks video
Tasks you might complete in a day.
- Greet, register, and assign rooms to guests of hotels or motels.
- Compute bills, collect payments, and make change for guests.
- Clean and maintain lobby and common areas, such as restocking supplies and watering plants.
- Make and confirm reservations.
- Advise housekeeping staff when rooms have been vacated and are ready for cleaning.
- Deposit guests' valuables in hotel safes or safe-deposit boxes.
- Review accounts and charges with guests during the check out process.
- Contact housekeeping or maintenance staff when guests report problems.
- Record guest comments or complaints, referring customers to managers as necessary.
- Record guest comments or complaints, referring customers to managers as necessary.
- Plan, schedule or supervise the work of other employees.
- Issue room keys and escort instructions to bellhops.
- Verify customers' credit, and establish how the customer will pay for the accommodation.
- Perform bookkeeping activities, such as balancing accounts and conducting nightly audits.
- Compute bills, collect payments, and make change for guests.
- Keep records of room availability and guests' accounts, manually or using computers.
- Post charges, such as those for rooms, food, liquor, or telephone calls, to ledgers, manually or by using computers.
- Arrange tours, taxis, or restaurant reservations for customers.
- Plan, schedule or supervise the work of other employees.
- Transmit and receive messages, using telephones or telephone switchboards.
- Date-stamp, sort, and rack incoming mail and messages.
- Answer inquiries pertaining to hotel services, guest registration, and travel directions, or make recommendations regarding shopping, dining, or entertainment.
- Compute bills, collect payments, and make change for guests.
- Prepare for basic food service, such as setting up continental breakfast or coffee and tea supplies.
Subject areas you may need to master.
- Building and Construction - Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
- Physics - Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.
- Production and Processing - Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
- Fine Arts - Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
- Administration and Management - Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
- Public Safety and Security - Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
- Economics and Accounting - Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
- Personnel and Human Resources - Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
- Engineering and Technology - Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
- Geography - Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
- Chemistry - Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
- Telecommunications - Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
- English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
- Administrative - Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.
- Biology - Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
- Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
- Sales and Marketing - Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
- Law and Government - Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
- Philosophy and Theology - Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.
- Mechanical - Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
- Foreign Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.
- Sociology and Anthropology - Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
- Mathematics - Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
- Communications and Media - Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
- Food Production - Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
- Education and Training - Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
- Computers and Electronics - Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
- Psychology - Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
- Design - Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
- Transportation - Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
- History and Archeology - Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
- Medicine and Dentistry - Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
- Therapy and Counseling - Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.
Strengths you may need in this role.
- Programming - Writing computer programs.
- Repairing - Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.
- Critical Thinking - Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.
- Installation - Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.
- Active Listening - Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.
- Equipment Maintenance - Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.
- Management of Financial Resources - Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.
- Mathematics - Using math to solve problems.
- Monitoring - Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.
- Writing - Writing things for co-workers or customers.
- Learning Strategies - Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.
- Persuasion - Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.
- Service Orientation - Looking for ways to help people.
- Technology Design - Making equipment and technology useful for customers.
- Quality Control Analysis - Testing how well a product or service works.
- Social Perceptiveness - Understanding people's reactions.
- Troubleshooting - Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.
- Operations Monitoring - Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.
- Science - Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.
- Judgment and Decision Making - Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.
- Equipment Selection - Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.
- Active Learning - Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.
- Systems Evaluation - Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.
- Complex Problem Solving - Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
- Management of Personnel Resources - Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.
- Systems Analysis - Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.
- Operation and Control - Using equipment or systems.
- Negotiation - Bringing people together to solve differences.
- Reading Comprehension - Reading work-related information.
- Coordination - Changing what is done based on other people's actions.
- Instructing - Teaching people how to do something.
- Operations Analysis - Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.
- Speaking - Talking to others.
- Management of Material Resources - Managing equipment and materials.
- Time Management - Managing your time and the time of other people.
- Far Vision - Seeing details that are far away.
- Flexibility of Closure - Seeing hidden patterns.
- Selective Attention - Paying attention to something without being distracted.
- Rate Control - Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.
- Reaction Time - Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.
- Mathematical Reasoning - Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.
- Fluency of Ideas - Coming up with lots of ideas.
- Speech Recognition - Recognizing spoken words.
- Control Precision - Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.
- Near Vision - Seeing details up close.
- Manual Dexterity - Holding or moving items with your hands.
- Spatial Orientation - Knowing where things are around you.
- Multilimb Coordination - Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.
- Wrist-Finger Speed - Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.
- Deductive Reasoning - Using rules to solve problems.
- Originality - Creating new and original ideas.
- Gross Body Equilibrium - Keeping your balance or staying upright.
- Stamina - Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.
- Visualization - Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
- Extent Flexibility - Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.
- Speech Clarity - Speaking clearly.
- Trunk Strength - Using your lower back and stomach.
- Speed of Closure - Quickly knowing what you are looking at.
- Hearing Sensitivity - Telling the difference between sounds.
- Glare Sensitivity - Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.
- Perceptual Speed - Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
- Category Flexibility - Grouping things in different ways.
- Depth Perception - Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.
- Explosive Strength - Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.
- Dynamic Strength - Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.
- Speed of Limb Movement - Quickly moving your arms and legs.
- Static Strength - Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.
- Information Ordering - Ordering or arranging things.
- Oral Expression - Communicating by speaking.
- Oral Comprehension - Listening and understanding what people say.
- Dynamic Flexibility - Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
- Gross Body Coordination - Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.
- Time Sharing - Doing two or more things at the same time.
- Arm-Hand Steadiness - Keeping your arm or hand steady.
- Memorization - Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.
- Finger Dexterity - Putting together small parts with your fingers.
- Response Orientation - Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.
- Written Comprehension - Reading and understanding what is written.
- Night Vision - Seeing at night or under low light.
- Number Facility - Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.
- Inductive Reasoning - Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.
- Auditory Attention - Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.
- Peripheral Vision - Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.
- Visual Color Discrimination - Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.
- Sound Localization - Noticing the direction that a sound came from.
- Written Expression - Communicating by writing.
- Problem Sensitivity - Noticing when problems happen.
Average Education Attained
Highest level of education earned by people in this career.
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Content sourced from United States Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration ("DOLETA") and the Minnesota Department of Employment & Economic Development ("DEED")