The tourism sector represents an important role in the Brazilian economy, and this is particularly true of the state of Santa Catarina, and more specifically, the town of Balneário Camboriú, which receives hundreds of thousands of foreign tourists every year. Given that hotels play a prominent role in this activity, this present study aims to provide evidence of practices in budget at hotel companies in the town. This was done through an empirical study, in which a survey was sent out to all the member hotels of the ABIH-SC (Hotel Industry Association of Santa Catarina). The initial study population consisted of 17 hotels in Balneário Camboriú, from which 11 hotels were selected that have a formal budget. Of these, 6 questionnaires were returned. Descriptive statistics were applied to the results, to improve the basis for discussions. The results show that most hotels have a formal budget, the bottom-up style of budgeting being predominant. The research also reveals the bases used when establishing the budget, and aspects related to the stages of execution and control, as well as their purposes.