1、中文 3190字 标题： Service Quality: A Study of the Luxury Hotels in Malaysia 原文： During 1997 until 2002, the Malaysian economy experienced slower growth as compared to previous years. This was due to global events such as the September 11 attacks, global economies slowdown, the Bali bombings,
2、the Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS), and bird flu. All this had caused a significant impact on the travel and tourism industry in Malaysia. The numbers of inbound and outbound tourists have been decreasing due to an avoidance of travel. Tourism arrivals to Malaysia dropped from 13.29 millio
3、n in 2002 to 10.58 million in 2003 (fell by 20.4%). However this decrease was not as serious as those that were experienced by some of Malaysias neighboring countries like Singapore and Indonesia. This was perhaps due to the aggressive promotional activities by the Malaysia Tourism Promotion Board (
4、Tourism Malaysia). Tourism Malaysias aggressive promotions and the economic relief package extended by the government to the players in the travel industry enabled the industry to recover quite well. The promotional efforts of Tourism Malaysia as well as Malaysias increasingly strong reputation as a
5、 center for international events, for example the OIC Conference, the F1 Grand Prix, etc., boosted the slow economy and ensure that the balance of tourism payments still remain positive. Furthermore, due to Bank Negara Malaysias policy on keeping the US$ peg for the past few years, the relatively we
6、aker Malaysian currency has become a positive factor for inbound tourism, while making outbound tourism more expensive. At the same time, domestic tourism has been steadily increasing over the period, rising 11% in 2002 to 22.2 million trips. This is because Tourism Malaysia by carrying out programm
7、es such as Cuti-cuti Malaysia that are aimed at encouraging domestic travel has undoubtedly contributed to the increase (Malaysia Tourism Promotion Board, 2004). However, the hospitality industry that was still experiencing severe oversupply and occupancy rates have been severely affected by the SAR
8、S and bird flu crisis. Industry sales grew in 2002 but experienced a drastic decrease in 2003. The industry was highly competitive especially with the opening of more hotels. The number of hotels supply has increased 5.7% and the number of hotel rooms supply has increased 4.4% from year 2001 t
9、o year 2002 (Malaysia Tourism Promotion Board, 2004). However, the year 2004 began on an encouraging and positive note. In January, Malaysia saw the arrivals of 1.4 million tourists, which was the highest monthly arrival in the history of the industry (The Star, 20 March 2004). Furthermore, hotels i
10、n Kuala Lumpur recorded an average occupancy of 61% for January 2004 (The Star, 25 March 2004) and tourist arrivals to Malaysia are expected to increase by 6.9% to 14.3 million by 2005 (The Star, 20 March 2004). The main concern for the Malaysian Association of Hotels (MAH) for year 2004 was the iss
11、ue of recognition of hotel workers as professionals. The Malaysian Association of Hotels Training and Education Centre is now working towards promoting regular training and enhancing training programmes for hotel workers so that they would be recognized as professionals and increase the service qual
12、ity (The Star, 25 March 2004). Hotel Classification Historically, hotel classification systems were formed to ensure safe and reliable lodging and food for travelers at a time when very few such trustworthy establishments existed. In the past fifty years, hospitality has reached the status of a matu
13、re industry with the unprecedented growth of international tourism. As a result, the focus of hotel classification systems has shifted from consumer protection to consumer information. Presently, standardization and competitive marketing of hotel services to foreign customers and tourist professiona
14、ls have appeared as driving forces for instituting a local or national hotel classification system (WTO and IH&RA, 2004). According to a research study by World Tourism Organization (WTO) and International Hotel & Restaurant Association (IH&RA) (2004), the most widely used graphical symb
15、ol in hotel classification is the star. The classification systems are mostly set up by the countries governments, and the Tourism Board and establishments are only consulted. Subsequently, they are adopted into the Tourism Law, the State Constitution or regional constitutions. In Malaysia, th
16、e official hotel classification system is enforced by Ministry of Culture, Arts and Tourism Malaysia and it is a mandatory system. It is necessary for a hotel to be classified before it can obtain license/ permission/ registration to operate. The classification authority in Malaysia is a panel set u
17、p under the Ministry of Culture, Arts and Tourism Malaysia, which consists of ministry officials and members from non-governmental organizations, such as hotel associations, tour operator associations and other relevant government agencies (WTO and IH&RA, 2004). There are two hotel classificatio
18、n schemes, namely the Star Rating (from one- to five-star), and the Orchid Rating (from one- to three-orchid). The Ministry of Culture, Arts and Tourism Malaysia introduced the Orchid Classification Scheme in order to accommodate those hotels such as beds and breakfast, inns, boarding houses, rest h
19、ouses and lodging houses, which do not qualify for any Star Rating (Ministry of Culture, Arts and Tourism Malaysia, no date). In this research, focus was given to the luxury hotels. Only those hotels rated four-star (4S) or five-star (5S) were included in the research study. Influence of Service Qua
20、lity in Hospitality King (1995) mentioned that hospitality in the commercial setting is a specific kind of relationship between individuals, which in this context is the hospitality service provider and customer. In this relationship, the host understands the needs and wants of the customer, which g
21、ive pleasure to the customer and enhance his or her wellbeing and comfort. The host will deliver with generous and flawless face-to-face interactions. The objective is to enhance guest satisfaction and develop repeat business. Kandampully (2000) revealed that service quality is crucial to the succes
22、s of any service organization. As the customers participate in the production and consumption of services, they interact closely with various aspects of the organization. This inside knowledge gives them the opportunity to assess critically the services provided, in particular the quality of service. Customers will assess service quality by comparing the service they get with the service they desire. Hence, service quality plays a critical
