Green Attitudes and Behaviours of Western Guests at Green Hotels in Phuket, Thailand

Abstract

This study aims to examine the relationship of green attitudes and behaviours of Western Guests at green hotels in Phuket, Thailand which were influenced by the hotel guests’ personal demographics including their gender, education, and income. Global environmental awareness trends have an influence on tourists' travelling behaviours. Many hotels have achieved green practice certification to reduce their negative impact on the environment and to enhance their competitive value for tourists with eco-friendly behaviour. Evidence was found in the literature that supported the fact that tourists who stay at green hotels, generally have environmentally friendly attitudes and practise eco-friendly activities. However, it was unclear if their green attitudes affected the hotel guests’ decisions or intentions to stay at green hotels specifically with the group of Western visitors in Thailand. Therefore, this study aimed to investigate the connection between green attitudes and behaviours leading to the guests’ intentions to stay at green hotels. The results have been drawn based on a questionnaire of 400 Western tourists from 36 Green Leaf certified hotels in Phuket, Thailand. It found that age and gender had not affected the guests’ green attitudes and behaviours, but had been affected by their education. It also found that the global environment, green hotel attitude, green participation behaviour, and intention to stay were individually related. This indicated that, in designing marketing strategies to attract Western tourists intent on staying at green hotels, the hotels should pay attention to the guests’ green attitudes and behaviours which were impacted by education.