How to become a 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.

Steps to get there

Most employers expect usually requires a high school diploma or ged, though some occupations may not..Some occupations may need little or no previous experience; others require several months to a year of experience. For example, landscaping and groundskeeping workers might require very little training or previous experience, while agricultural equipment operators can benefit from on-the job training.

What hotel, motel, and resort desk clerks do

• Make and confirm reservations.
• Greet, register, and assign rooms to guests of hotels or motels.
• Verify customers' credit, and establish how the customer will pay for the accommodation.
• Issue room keys and escort instructions to bellhops.
• Advise housekeeping staff when rooms have been vacated and are ready for cleaning.
• Record guest comments or complaints, referring customers to managers as necessary.

Skills that matter most

• Speaking
• Active Listening
• Reading Comprehension
• Monitoring
• Writing
• Critical Thinking
• Active Learning
• Mathematics

Is hotel, motel, and resort desk clerks a good career?

On the numbers, this job is close to the average across occupations. Median pay is 31% below the all-occupation median. Whether it fits you depends on the work itself, the schooling you are willing to do and where you want to live.

Where it pays most

• Hawaii $59,110
• District of Columbia $47,060
• Vermont $44,940
• Washington $40,460
• Massachusetts $39,400

Hotel, Motel, and Resort Desk Clerks salary by state and city

Sources: O*NET® 31.0 (CC BY 4.0, USDOL/ETA) and BLS Employment Projections 2025–35. Pay: BLS OEWS May 2025.