Prediction of pollutant emission through electricity consumption by the hotel industry in Hong Kong

This paper estimates the quantity of pollutants produced by the hotel industry through its electricity consumption. A survey of 17 hotels in Hong Kong was carried out to collect 3 years of energy consumption data. Regression analysis indicated that gross floor area was a major and statistically accepted factor in explaining the electricity consumption in hotels. It was found that the average electricity consumption was about 342 kW h/m²/year. Then, based on some established pollutant emission factors of coal and natural gas, the amount of sulphur dioxide, nitrogen dioxides, carbon dioxides and particulates created by the hotel industry's electricity usage during a 10-year period from 1988 to 1997 was estimated. The study further predicts the increase in these amounts in 1998–2003 accompanying the rise in the number of hotel properties. The findings indicate that the existing green measures and devices are inadequate to cope with the increase in pollution emission in the near future. We believe that the hotel industry should adopt a more proactive approach to reduce electricity usage and propose the inclusion of environmental reporting in trade journals.     

A Study on Pollutant Emission Through Gas Consumption in the Hong Kong Hotel Industry

A survey of 11 hotels in Hong Kong was carried out to collect three years' energy consumption data. Regression analysis indicated that gross floor area was a major and statistically acceptable factor in explaining the gas consumption in new hotels. Based on past consumption data and some established pollutant emission factors, the amount of sulphur dioxides, nitrogen dioxides, carbon dioxides and particulate created by the Hong Kong hotel industry's gas usage during a 10-year period from 1989–1998 was estimated. The study predicts the increase in these amounts in 1999–2003 accompanying the rise in the number of hotels. The findings indicate that emissions will rise by nearly 40% in the next few years, requiring urgent discussions. The study also finds that a heat pump running on coal-fired electricity and with a coefficient of performance (COP) greater than 3 could produce lower level emissions than a gas-fired boiler. It is further suggested that an effective method to reduce the emissions is to substitute naptha with natural gas as the fuel for generating town gas and electricity. We believe the hotel industry should adopt a more proactive approach to reduce gas usage and propose the inclusion of environmental reporting in trade journals.     

A Response to 'Ecotourism on Trial: The Case of Billfish Angling as Ecotourism'

This paper estimates the quantity of pollutant produced by the Hong Kong hotel industry through diesel oil consumption. A survey of 20 hotels was carried out to collect three years' energy consumption data. Regression analysis indicated that gross floor area was a major and statistically accepted factor in explaining diesel oil consumption. Diesel oil consumption had reduced from the early 1990s and stabilised by the late 1990s. The sulphur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, carbon dioxide and particulate pollution created by the hotel industry's diesel oil usage from 1990 to 1999 is estimated. The findings indicate that existing green measures and devices are passive and depend on the assimilation of the atmosphere. Environmental costs have stabilised at about HK$54,000 per annum. More proactive approaches to reduce usage and environmental impacts are proposed.     

Energy benchmarking in support of low carbon hotels: Developments,challenges, and approaches in China

Achieving effective and objective energy benchmarking for hotels is integral in fostering the sustainable development of the lodging sector. In this work, we reveal the major and minor streams of hotel energy benchmarking and ascertain that the most popular approach in benchmarking is normalized energy use intensity (EUI) based on floor level. Previous efforts to establish EUI indicators using subsystem average, data envelopment analysis (DEA), and regression technique are also studied. We propose that hotel energy benchmarking based on floor area is useful from the top-down management perspective. However, on a practical perspective, energy benchmarking based on facilities should be the first priority for hotel management or owners. Compared with the general energy benchmarking in the building sector, we find that the hotel sector lags behind in the adoption of computer modeling for benchmarking.     

Commitment to Environmental Management in Hotels in Accra

The sporadic development of hotel facilities in a developing West African city like Accra in Ghana, coupled with their consumption of natural resources and generation of waste has implications for environmental sustainability. This article therefore seeks to ascertain hotel managers’ attitude towards environmental management and to examine their commitment to environmental management through the implementation of environmental policies and programs. The study took the form of a survey of managers of 200 hotels, ranging from budget to four-star rated, employing the stratified random sampling procedure. Though a greater number of hotel managers had a positive attitude towards environmental management, it was the upscale and larger hotels that were more committed to environmental management especially in terms of having; a designated officer responsible for environmental management, written environmental policy statement, environmental action plan, a history of implementing environmental programs and ecolabelling or environment related certification. The article proposes interhotel collaboration in environmental management so that smaller hotels could profit from the experiences and resources of larger hotels.     

Energy use and management in hotels in Hong Kong

This paper reports on a study of energy use in 16 quality hotels in Hong Kong. An overview of energy use in these hotels is firstly presented, and this is followed by a detailed analysis of energy use in one of the 16 hotels. The overview indicates that the energy use situation in hotels in Hong Kong is very much diversified. The total energy use in a hotel is dominated by electricity, with the greatest portion for air conditioning because of sub-tropical climate. A detailed multiple variable regression analysis indicated that a number of hotel operating parameters as well as climatic condition can affect electricity, diesel and gas use in a hotel building. In order to achieve both operating cost saving and environmental protection, it is recommended that an energy management programme be established, and key elements of such a programme based on the experience of implementing energy conservation strategies in hotels in Hong Kong are highlighted.     

Carbon dioxide emissions generated by energy consumption of hotels and homestay facilities in Taiwan

In the field of the tourism, hotels and homestay facilities account for considerable amounts of energy consumption and CO₂ emissions. This study presents an investigation conducted on the CO₂ emissions from four types of hotel in Taiwan. According to the results, the average CO₂ emissions of international tourist hotels, standard tourist hotels, general hotels, and homestay facilities are 28.9, 19.2, 12.5, and 6.3 kg-CO₂/person-night, respectively. Hotels with higher service levels produce higher average CO₂ emissions per person-night. Analytical results indicate that increasing stays at hotels with low CO₂ emissions (such as homestay facilities and general hotels), accommodating more guests together per room, and enhancing energy usage efficiency, can effectively reduce hotel CO₂ emissions without reducing the total number of guests. The results of this study may be applied to CO₂ reduction programmes for tourists, hotel enterprises, and contribute toward the formulation of government policy in Taiwan.     

Exploring the Financial Leakages in the Classified Hotels in Jordan: A Managerial Perspective

The study aimed to provide a better understanding of financial leakages in a sample of classified hotels in Jordan in terms of its reasons, its channels, and potential ways to reduce it from hotel managers’ perspective. Eighteen semistructured interviews were conducted with hotel managers. The results showed a high level of awareness regarding financial leakages by hotel managers. Furthermore, the main reasons for financial leakages included: the high cost of energy, the need to import products not produced locally, and the lack of awareness of sustainability practices. The main channels of financial leakages were: importing furniture and electronics, human resources, and food and beverages not produced in Jordan. The study’s main suggestions are to reduce financial leakages, especially energy consumption, and to increase trust in local products.     

Hotel Attributes and Consumer Satisfaction: A Cross-Country and Cross-Hotel Study

The main purpose of this study was to identify the influence of the consumer’s country of residence on hotel service attributes’ contribution to consumer satisfaction. The hospitality services of Disneyland Paris in Paris, France, were analyzed in the context of the study. Data came from their seven hotels and comprised 47,885 valid questionnaires. The Tetraclasse model was applied to identify hotel attributes’ contribution to satisfaction and compare them for consumer segments from eight European countries and between hotels. Results showed that the four service attributes’ contributions are influenced by country of residence and vary between hotels.     

Preferences and Willingness to Pay for Green Hotel Attributes in Tourist Choice Behavior: The Case of Taiwan

Although many companies in the hotel industry aim to pursue more sustainable and socially responsible practices, the present literature shows mixed results with regard to tourist reactions to such moves, especially for the service quality perception impacted by implemented green practices and the willingness to pay more for such actions. Unlike previous research examining tourists’ preferences for separate green hotel attributes, this study identifies the determinants of tourists’ choice of green hotel attributes. Additionally, the study measures the willingness to pay (WTP) for such services, in the context of the Taiwanese market, using the stated preference of combined green hotel attribute scenarios. A multinomial logit (MNL) model is employed to estimate the relative influence of behavioral and facility attributes on choice behavior. Furthermore, the study examines determinants influencing respondents’ choice of green hotel attributes. A latent variable class model (LVCM) approach is applied in the estimation of the unobserved heterogeneity, and a total of 390 valid respondents were used in the analysis. The empirical MNL results indicate that while tourists prefer luxury rooms and the provision of personal toiletries, they are also willing to accept reduced service quality. Additionally, sex, income, and age have significant influences on tourist choice behavior. The results of the LVCM model demonstrate that respondents with high levels of the green consumption trait are more likely to choose hotels that have a greater number of environmentally friendly attributes. The implicit amount that tourists are willing to pay for room quality is around US$13, for the provision of personal toiletries is about US$22, and for service quality is US$12, but they also require a discount of approximately US$11 in order to accept the common practices of green hotels. This study is useful in providing the hotel industry and government with quantitative information that can be used to develop and implement better green hotel policies.     

Exploring the viability of a new ‘pay-as-you-use’ energy management model in budget hotels

Hotels consume significant amounts of energy, especially in guest rooms. Financial incentives can be given to hotel guests for conserving energy during their stay while financial penalties can be applied for excessive energy use. This can be achieved by deploying the smart energy meters (SEMs) in guest rooms that enable accurate energy monitoring and billing. This study explored the viability of a new business model for energy management in hotels underpinned by SEMs. Semi-structured interviews with managers of UK budget hotels revealed the determinants of industrial adoption of this new model. Despite positive appeal, the chances for the model’s immediate commercialisation were found slim due to its novelty and the market disruption potential held. To enhance the business viability of the proposed model, close integration of energy conservation targets into the corporate agenda of budget hotels is necessary coupled with dedicated policy support.     

A customer satisfaction index model for international tourist hotels: Integrating consumption emotions into the American Customer Satisfaction Index

This study integrates consumption emotions into the American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) model to propose a hotel customer satisfaction index (H-CSI) model that can be applied to estimate customer satisfaction toward international tourist hotels. The H-CSI scale items were designed based on reference to the relevant literature and the suggestions of a focus group. Four-hundred and twelve customers of international tourist hotels were surveyed. The partial least squares method was employed to validate the measurement instruments in the H-CSI model and estimate item weights for the customer satisfaction scales. The H-CSI model is a comprehensive model for the measurement of customer satisfaction that includes most possible antecedents and outcomes. The research results show that the H-CSI model displayed strong explanatory power based on its reliability and validity. Accordingly, if hotel managers apply the H-SCI model instead of a general customer satisfaction survey, they can obtain a robust estimation of customer satisfaction, as well as extra information of post-purchase customer behavior to better manage customer satisfaction and achieve a competitive advantage.     

Evidence of green signaling in green hotels

Green signaling posits that environment-friendly purchases signal consumers’ pro-sociality and willingness to pay more for societal/environmental well-being, enhancing their social status. Using three scenario-based quasi-experimental studies, we sought evidence of green signaling by guests in green hotels when status motive is activated, consumption condition is manipulated, and hotel price is varied. Results showed that, when status motive is activated, consumers signal the intent to purchase better-quality conventional hotels when green hotels are priced more or equal and when the consumption condition is private. In public consumption condition, when controlling for price, and in private consumption condition, when green hotels are priced lower, no significant difference was found between purchase intentions regarding conventional and green hotels. This represents slight, although inconclusive, evidence of green signaling. Industry practitioners in green hotels should lower prices and make the consumption process public by providing consumers with opportunities to engage more actively via social media.     

Assessing holiday satisfaction of Australian travellers in Vietnam: An application of the HOLSAT model

The hotel business model has been diversified in response to the various needs of consumers. Many previous studies focused on the alteration factors of the hotel business model from the consumer's point of view. Although it is one of the factors that affect alteration of the hotel business model, the manager's perspective is also an important alteration factor. This article emphasizes that it is necessary to consider not only the consumer side, but also the management side based on two approaches of the strategy theory: the positioning approach and the resource-based approach.

Surveys were conducted by mail in order to gather information regarding what managers in Japan consider to be important components of a hotel. As a result, “location” was found to be the most important component, followed by “annex facilities” and “deployment system”. Once the components were ordered according to their relative importance, a strong relationship was found between the managers' preferences and the characteristics of “syukuhakusyutai-type” hotels, which are ‘direct management’ (DM) hotels located usually in the city. In Japan, the number of “syukuhakusyutai-type” hotels has recently increased, therefore capturing the spotlight in the hotel industry. However, the results of this research are not compared with those of much previous research conducted on hotel choice attributes, because the measured variables differed significantly.     

Reinterpreting the theory of planned behavior and its application to green hotel consumption intention

The main aim of this paper was to understand a guest’s decision to stay at a green hotel by using the theory of planned behavior (TPB) developed by Ajzen (1991). The population for this study was green hotel customers in Taiwan. A total of 425 usable responses were received from the willing participants around the parking area of green hotels. This study performed a PLS-SEM to examine the proposed model. The results of this study showed that social pressure has very little direct impact on behavioral intention to stay at a green hotel. The results of the estimated standardized regression coefficients and t-values indicated that perceived behavioral control has a slightly higher impact on behavioral intention than attitude. This study also verified the proposed mediating relationships between the first-order and second-order antecedents. This study provided theoretical and managerial implications for understanding respondents’ decision to stay at a green hotel.     

Water use efficiency in the hotel sector of Barbados

Barbados is water stressed, with water production close to its renewable freshwater resources. The hotel sector uses far more water than the general population (756 vs. 240 L/cap-d); water savings there would improve the overall water balance. No comprehensive analysis exists for water use by the Barbados hotel industry; this study addresses the gap. Data were collected from the Barbados Water Authority and from onsite surveys; consumption patterns were compared with international studies which had established environmentally acceptable benchmarks. The water use efficiency of Barbadian hotels was also studied as a function of “influential variables”: unit water consumption was somewhat correlated with the number of rooms, average room rate, property size and number of employees. The lack of success in reducing hotels' water consumption is tied to the fact that water bills represent less than 5% of their annual expenses. A model for unit water consumption was derived using two influential variables: the annual number of guest nights and the number of employees. Ways of fostering sound water practices include promotion among guests of the need to save water, schemes to promote the financial benefits of water conservation by relating unit water pricing to total consumption and awareness-raising among hotel managers.     

How managerial ties affect hotels’ proactive environmental practices in China: The contingent role of institutional environments

Despite the increasing attention of environmental management in the hotel industry, few studies have examined how managerial ties impact hotels’ adoption of proactive environmental practices (PEPs) in China. Drawing on institutional theory, this study develops a model that investigates the differential effects of political ties and business ties on PEPs in the presence of important institutional factors. Using a primary survey and multiple secondary datasets on 190 Chinese hotels, we find that political ties inhibit a hotel’s adoption of PEPs whereas business ties facilitate PEPs. Moreover, advanced legal development and high levels of regional pollution reduce the impacts of both political ties and business ties on PEPs. We also test the relationship between PEPs and hotels’ financial performance. These findings provide novel insights into how managerial ties shape a hotel’s strategic behaviors for environmental protection under the influence of institutional environments in emerging economies.     

Are all five points equal? Scaling heterogeneity in hotel online ratings

Online hotel ratings play a critical role in hotel online reputation building and greatly influence travelers’ decision making. However, self-reported online ratings are vulnerable to scaling heterogeneity due to reviewers’ unique response styles, leading to some incomparability issues. A research framework was developed based on latent state-trait theory and empirically tested using hotel online review data from TripAdvisor. A hierarchical ordered probit (HOPIT) model, which captured threshold differences in hotel online ratings, confirmed the presence of scaling heterogeneity and response styles in the online rating context. Results indicated that younger travelers, women, and travelers with less review expertise used lower thresholds when rating hotels online. Business travelers had the highest rating threshold compared to other types of travelers. Guests staying in high-class hotels tended to have more extreme response styles than those staying in low-class hotels. These findings offer valuable insights for hotel managers and online rating/review sites.     

How psychological and contextual factors contribute to travelers’ propensity to choose green hotels?

Despite the growing popularity of green hotels, there remains a dearth of research examining travelers’ intentions to choose green hotels. The study addresses this research gap by developing and testing an integrated model of green hotel behavior in an emerging market of India. We use a sequential approach of SEM and fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis on 347 responses collected from Indian travelers to gain a more in-depth understanding of the role of biospheric value, green trust, willingness to pay premium, attitude, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control in determining green hotel intentions. The findings show that presence of green trust is a significant and necessary condition for green hotel choice. Additionally, absence of willingness to pay premium, biospheric value, attitude, and subjective norm were found to deter travelers from choosing green hotels. These findings offer unique insights for managers in developing marketing strategies to enhance travelers’ green hotel adoption.     

Do religion and spirituality matter for hotel workers’ well-being and guests’ happiness? An update of the Attraction-Selection-Attrition theory

Drawing on the Attraction-Selection-Attrition (ASA) theory (Schneider et al., 1995), this paper examines how adhering to religious regulations and offering spiritual facilities may affect hotel workers’ psychological well-being and guests’ happiness. Using a mixed method approach, we collected data through two studies on religious practices and spiritual facilities at 5-star hotels in Jordan. In the first stage, interviews were conducted with 18 senior managers at hotels in the Dead Sea area (study 1). In the second stage, data were collected from Muslim guests who visited and stayed at a 5-star hotel in Jordan (study 2) and the hypotheses were tested with partial least squares-structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) using SmartPLS 3.3.3. Our results indicate that spiritual facilities at hotels enhance workers’ well-being and guests’ happiness while not adhering to religious regulations adversely affects workers’ well-being and guests’ happiness. The paper offers a contextual and novel framework to understand the linkages between religion/spirituality and psychology at hotels in a diverse cultural context in the Middle East. The empirical studies highlight the contextual relevance and extension of Schneider’s (1995) ASA theory by incorporating religiosity/spiritualty and well-being of hotel employees in a Middle Eastern context.