Travel distance and hotel service satisfaction: an inverted U-shaped relationship

Park, S., Yang, Y. and Wang, M. (2019) Travel distance and hotel service satisfaction: an inverted U-shaped relationship. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 76(Part A), pp. 261-270. (doi: 10.1016/j.ijhm.2018.05.015)

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Abstract

The existing literature suggests that travel distance is a crucial factor that determines tourism demand and tourist behavior. However, there are limited attempts to understand how tourists’ travel distance shapes their experiences, and more specifically, their satisfaction in a destination. This paper aims to shed light on the distance–satisfaction relationship by analyzing a data set of online hotel reviews at four large US cities in a one-year period. The results show an inverted U-shaped relationship between travel distance and service satisfaction. Inflection points of the quadratic relationship across different cities are also identified. The implications of these findings contribute to literature on tourism geography and allow tourism marketers to develop more effective differential marketing strategies.

Item Type:Articles
Status:Published
Refereed:Yes
Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID:Wang, Dr Mingshu
Authors: Park, S., Yang, Y., and Wang, M.
College/School:College of Science and Engineering > School of Geographical and Earth Sciences
Journal Name:International Journal of Hospitality Management
Publisher:Elsevier
ISSN:0278-4319
ISSN (Online):1873-4693
Published Online:28 May 2018

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