Today, around the world, one of the most important governmental tasks is to stimulate the development of the tourism sector considering its key role in the economy, preserving the equilibrium of balance of payments and in the job creation. On the other hand, certain countries - where the number of tourists is high and the environmental and social results of the mass tourism must be faced up to - have to pay larger and larger attention to serving of the tourists. At first, we present the following thing based on foreign specialized literature: the role of tourism in economy of the developed countries; the development tendencies expected in the coming years as well as the aviation's direct and indirect effects on the job creation. Based on statistical data, we analyse the evolution of number and wages of persons employed in the accommodation and catering national economic sector in the EU countries, highlighting the Hungarian specialities.