119 www.ejthr.com European Journal of Tourism, Hospitality and Recreation Vol. 4, Issue 3, pp.119-145, 2013 © 2013 Polytechnic Institute of Leiria. All rights reserved Printed in Portugal SERVICE QUALITY, CUSTOMER SATISFACTION AND LOYALTY IN 4- AND 5-STAR HOTELS 1 Ana Lúcia Maroco Polytechnic Institute of Lisbon, Portugal João Maroco ISPA, Lisbon, Portugal ABSTRACT: Service quality, customer satisfaction and loyalty in the hotel business are key components for establishing a long-term organizational relationship. However, the evalu- ation of customer satisfaction in these organizations is not a current managerial practice. The purposes of this study were to create a hotel service quality and customer satisfaction measurement scale validated for 4- and 5-star hotels; to identify the determinants of cus- tomer satisfaction and loyalty; and to model the relationship between service quality, sat- isfaction and loyalty. The proposed scale evaluates service quality and customer satisfac- tion through five key dimensions: “Staff Service”, “Reception Service”, “Bar & Restaurant Service”, “Room Quality” and “Safety”. A structural model was built to test the relations between “Service Quality” components, “Customer Satisfaction” and “Loyalty”. Results demonstrated that the effect of “Service quality” on “Loyalty” was mediated by “Custom- er satisfaction” which was a strong determinant of “Loyalty”. Our new structural model shows that service quality is a strong determinant of hotel guests’ loyalty mediated by the guests’ satisfaction. However, service quality alone is not enough to ensure the customer’s loyalty. To be loyal the guest must also be satisfied with the service delivered. Keywords: Hotel Service Quality, Customer Satisfaction, Loyalty, Structural Equation Modeling. RESIMEN: La calidad del servicio, la satisfacción del cliente y la lealtad en el sector hotele- ro son componentes clave para establecer una relación del cliente com la organización a largo plazo. Sin embargo, la evaluación de la satisfacción del cliente, en estas organizaciones, no es una práctica de gestión actual. Los objetivos de este estudio han sido crear una escala de ca- lidad de servicio hotelero y de satisfacion del cliente, validado para hoteles de 4 y 5 estrellas; identificar los determinantes de la satisfacción y lealtad del cliente; y modelar la relación entre la calidad del servicio, la satisfacción y la lealtad. La escala propuesta evalúa con alta sensibili- dad psicométrica, validez y fiabilidad la calidad del servicio y la satisfacción del cliente a través de cinco dimensiones clave: "Personal", "Servicio de recepción", "Servicio de Bar & Restau- rant", "Qualidade de la habitacion" y "seguridad",. Un modelo estructural fue construido para probar las relaciones entre "Calidad de servicio" la "Satisfacción del Cliente” y "lealtad". El efecto de la " Calidad de servicio " en la "lealtad" fue mediada por "satisfacción del cliente", que fue un fuerte determinante de la "lealtad". Palavras clave: calidad del servicio hotelero, satisfacción del consumidor, lealtad, modelo de ecuaciones estructurales. RESUMO: Qualidade de serviço, satisfação e fidelização dos clientes são componentes fun- damentais, no ramo da hotelaria, para estabelecer uma relação de longo prazo entre os clien- 1Ana Lúcia Maroco is a invited assistant teacher of ESCS Lisbon Polytechnic Institute), where he teaches Data Analysis. João Maroco is an associate professor of ISPA-IU (www. ispa.pt) where he teaches courses in Statistics, Research Methods and Data Analysis. Author’s email: jpmaroco@ispa.pt.