Host Hotels & Resorts

Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. is an American real estate investment trust that invests in hotels. As of December 31, 2023, the company owned 77 upscale hotels containing approximately 42,000 rooms in the United States, Brazil, and Canada.

History
In 1927, John Willard Marriott and his wife Alice opened a root beer stand in Washington, D.C. that they named “The Hot Shoppe,” which later became a public company. In 1957, Hot Shoppes, Inc. expanded into the lodging business with the opening of its first hotel in Arlington, Virginia, and in 1967, the company was renamed Marriott Corporation.

In 1897, the Van Noy Brothers of Kansas City, Missouri, formed Van Noy Railway News and Hotel Company to operate news stands along the Missouri Pacific and other regional railroads. The company later expanded to various hospitality services, including hotels. After several name and business changes it became the Host International Company in 1968. It was acquired by Marriott Corporation in 1982.

In 1993, Marriott Corporation divided its business into two companies: Marriott International, Inc., which took over management and franchising, and Host Marriott Corporation. Host Marriott managed lodging and travel concessions at airports and along turnpikes and interstate highways. The concession businesses were further spun off as Host Marriott Services, or HMSHost. After divesting its non-hotel business and reorganizing it as a real estate investment trust in 1998, it adopted its current name—Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc.—in 2006.