The role of environmental practices and communication on guest loyalty: examining EU-Ecolabel in Portuguese hotels

As a result of consumers’ concern toward environmental sustainability, the hospitality industry is developing voluntary-based tools to reduce its environmental impacts and to satisfy the increasing market segment of green customers. In this context, third-party certified ecolabels ensure hotel compliance with specific environmental performance criteria and offer reliable communication to their guests. Starting with the analysis of literature, we propose a conceptual framework to investigate whether green practices implemented by EU-Ecolabel certified hotels contribute significantly to the formation of guest positive behavioral intention toward green hotels. Firstly, a survey was conducted with guests of two Portuguese hotels awarded with EU-Ecolabel and 152 questionnaires were usable and employed in the analysis, adopting Partial Least Square Structural Equation Modelling (PLS-SEM) to test the hypotheses. Next, five green hotels managers were interviewed to corroborate the results and acquire insights from a managerial viewpoint. Results show that: (1) guest environmental behavior in tourism accommodation influences guest loyalty toward green hotels and guest perception of hotel environmental communication; (2) guest perception of hotel environmental communication influences guest perception of hotel green practices and mediates the relationship between guest environmental behavior in tourism accommodation and guest perception of hotel green practices; (3) guest perception of hotel green practices influence guest loyalty toward green hotels. Research findings are valuable for both hotel managers and decision-makers, clarifying the role of environmental communication in the guest recognition of hotels environmental efforts. The study also confirms the relationship between the implementation of green practices and the raise of market awareness and loyalty towards green hotels.