SERVICE QUALITY, CUSTOMER SATISFACTION AND LOYALTY IN 4- AND 5-STAR HOTELS

Service quality, customer satisfaction and loyalty in the hotel business are key components for establishing a long-term organizational relationship. However, the evaluation of customer satisfaction in these organizations is not a current managerial practice. The purposes of this study were to create a hotel service quality and customer satisfaction measurement scale validated for 4- and 5-star hotels; to identify the determinants of customer satisfaction and loyalty; and to model the relationship between service quality; satisfaction and loyalty. The proposed scale evaluates service quality and customer satisfaction through five key dimensions: "Staff Service", "Reception Service", "Bar & Restaurant Service", "Room Quality" and "Safety". A structural model was built to test the relations between "Service Quality" components, "Customer Satisfaction" and "Loyalty". Results demonstrated that the effect of "Service quality" on "Loyalty" was mediated by "Customer satisfaction" which was a strong determinant of "Loyalty". Our new structural model shows that service quality is a strong determinant of hotel guests' loyalty mediated by the guests' satisfaction. However, service quality alone is not enough to ensure the customer's loyalty. To be loyal, the guest must also be satisfied with the service delivered.