Keywords

1 Introduction

In recent years, websites, platforms, and social media have evolved, making it easier for tourists to exchange information through User Generated Content (UGC) (Mariné-Roig, 2022). In the hotel context, reviews are useful for knowing the preferences of guests (Sánchez-Franco et al., 2018). When tourists share their emotional experiences, this information have a greater influence on the choice of service (Xu et al., 2021). Hotels, according to their category, have different types of customers, prices, and service qualities. Thus, knowing the positive and negative ratings of tourists stays in hotels of different categories allows to understand their preferences and it helps to adapt marketing strategies, considering that the category of the hotel can be observed by the tourist before booking, acting as a marketing element (Xu, 2019). Higher-category hotels have higher prices, and this causes customer expectations to increase (Choi and Mattila, 2004). On the other hand, Xu et al. (2021) showed that UGC can be functional (linked to knowing the destination, such as history or means of transport) and emotional (linked to psychological tourist´s attitudes) and both types were positively associated with the destination. This paper locates its analysis in the town of Trujillo (Cáceres, Extremadura, Spain), which is an inland cultural destination which is increasingly developing as a tourist destination in Extremadura, and that stands out for its central position in terms of the relevant cultural and natural resources in the region. This study uses content analysis, based on reviews of tourists that have stayed in different hotels in the town, to find out the most frequently mentioned themes. Since experiences that produce satisfaction or dissatisfaction are described differently (Cassar et al., 2020), it is relevant to analyse positive and negative reviews separately. For this purpose, data were downloaded from the Booking.com platform. Therefore, it is useful to know if there are differences between the elements most tourists assess according to higher and lower hotel categories. This study aims to determine the differences between the factors most positively and negatively evaluated by tourists according to higher and lower hotel categories.

2 Hotel Experience and UGC

Following Nguyen and Tong (2022), content based on UGC attracts potential travellers. UGC is rich in content because it allows tourists to respond freely by focusing on the emotions that they have experienced and allows hotels to adapt supply to demand and discover new markets and activities (Bigné et al., 2020). It is a data source that allows for consider in-depth research on the tourism experience and a deeper understanding of tourists’ perceptions and feelings (Chiu & Cho, 2020). Through the reviews, tourists describe service attributes in detail to help future customers make decisions (Xu, 2019). Gebbels et al. (2021) highlighted that those who enjoyed their experiences, then, commented in detail and recommended them to others.

Furthermore, UGC can be functional or emotional. Functional reviews are those related to practical information such as price, room design or bed size, while emotional reviews refer to messages based on feelings produced by the service (Cheung et al., 2021). Thus, as a source of information, UGC helps to find positive and negative aspects of the tourism experience and reveal emotions (Yan et al., 2022). Following Sthapit et al. (2021), in the hotel context, negative experiences are mainly those based on negative room conditions, while positive experiences are referred to location, socialisation, and bonding. In the current context of services´ digitisation, hotels that offer interaction with staff are more likely to offer a memorable experience than those with digitised functions (Sthapit, 2017). Xu (2019) founds the role of independent hotels and chain hotels and hotels with different star ratings in influencing positive and negative attributes perceived by customers. Therefore, knowing which attributes are evaluated as functional and emotional according to hotel categories is necessary. Thus, an emotional factor could be the friendly attitude of the hotel staff, which could also contribute to the memorability of the experience (Sthapit, 2017). This paper divides the sampled hotels into two categories: 1 and 2-star and 3 and 4-star, as following Ren et al. (2016) the former is considered in the budget category as they offer fewer services and features and good value for money compared to mid-level, 3 and 4-star hotels. In this sense, guests in higher-category hotels may prefer different service-related issues in contrast to those staying in more affordable categories (Heo & Hyun, 2015).

3 Methodology

The methodological approach is based on two steps. The first step consists of downloading data from the online reviews, and the second step is based on analysing them using NVIVO software. The research setting is the town of Trujillo (Cáceres, Extremadura). It has great historical and monumental heritage and proximity to the “World Heritage Triangle”; Cáceres, Mérida and Guadalupe, which have been declared World Heritage Sites by UNESCO. Trujillo is also located close to important natural resources such as the Monfragüe National Park and the Villuercas-Ibores-Jara Geopark, which makes this destination a privileged enclave for visiting other places of interest in Extremadura (Disfrutando Trujillo, 2022). Trujillo is a booming inland cultural destination that played an important role in the discovery of America. Because of this, it has palaces and historic buildings of great value, some of which were converted into hotels that are present in the sample analysed.

Booking.com platform was selected for downloading the data because it contains more hotel reviews for the selected sample compared to the other major platform, Tripadvisor. One of the advantages of this platform is that guests can give separate positive and negative reviews of their stay, which allows separate attribute evaluations. The period contained in the review download has been from September 2019 to September 2022 and the language selected for the reviews was Spanish because it was the language most frequently used in the comments. During this period, there is a change in the platform; since 2019–2020, Booking.com has kept the reviews for 3 years instead of 2 years (Mellinas & Martín-Fuentes, 2021). Also, the COVID-19 pandemic occurred in the period analysed. The web scraping technique has been used to collect the data, as it allows large amounts of data to be collected and converted into structured data for subsequent analysis (Khder, 2021). Subsequently, content analysis is used because it can identify the main topics guests discuss and the relationships between the most frequently mentioned words (Krippendor, 2004). The sample consists of 10 hotels in the locality, and as previously mentioned, they have been categorised into two groups: 1 and 2-star and 3 and 4-star. These groupings reveal the effect of the difference in characteristics and prices. A total of 7305 reviews were downloaded and categorised into positive (4138) and negative (3167). Those with no content were removed. For the total sample analysed, 56.65% were positive, and 43.35% were negative reviews. Regarding the first group, 3 hotels were analysed, with 128 hotel beds, 972 positive and 643 negative reviews. In the second group, 7 hotels were analysed, with 563 hotel beds and 3166 positive and 2524 negative reviews (Table 1).

Table 1 Characterisation of the sample
Full size table

4 Results

The results are presented and divided according to the two hotel categories and according to positive and negative comments. The hierarchical map shows the most frequently mentioned themes and their relationships for each analysis. The functional and emotional factors associated with the most prominent themes in each hierarchical map are analysed. In some cases, examples of reviews are shown to aid understanding.

4.1 1 and 2-Star Hotels

In the hierarchical map (see Fig. 1), three themes stand out positively: location, staff treatment and the characterisation of the hotel. Concerning the functional factors, the location. The central location and, in some cases, the fact that it is located away from the centre to avoid noise are appreciated. The location of the accommodation is assessed with respect to the main attributes of the destination. The treatment of the staff is rated very positively. In terms of the characterisation of the hotel, different elements of the building are mentioned.

Fig. 1
A tree map of positive comments in a foreign language.

Source Nvivo 12

Hierarchical map of positive comments 1- and 2- stars.

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Regarding the emotional factors, the location has an added value when the accommodation is in the historic centre, i.e.: “The stay has been wonderful to be able to stay in a place that transports you to the essence of the sixteenth century, very much in keeping with the rest of the historic centre”. The reviews mention the names of those staff members who facilitated their stay or what it meant for the whole stay, i.e.: “The hotel staff was amazing in every aspect and contributed without a doubt to the trip's success”. About the characterisation of the hotel, it also highlights the hotel sensations, such as “relaxation” and positive value judgements, the “historical” value of the building or elements that surprise and exceed guests’ expectations. The “special” category contains reviews of what the guests’ stay at the hotel has meant to them, demonstrating what is of value to the tourist, i.e.: “Spending a night in a 16th-century palace in such a comfortable bed, in an unbeatable location for visiting the historic centre and with the kindness and recommendations of [staff name] …will always remain in our memory”.

The room is also an important element. In addition to its size or comfort, the category “facilitate requests” refers to those that the staff fulfils, such as changing the room if there is a problem. A small section refers to the destination, with positive reviews about the destination and recommendations to other users. When the experience at the destination is satisfactory, tourists link it to the hotel through the reviews.

The main elements that users evaluated negatively were room, bathroom, and bed. Regarding functional factors, the room was rated for its equipment, size, and age. The TV stands out as an element in the room contributing to dissatisfaction. The window is another of the elements mentioned. In the bathroom, different issues are associated with the lack of amenities, the age of the furniture, the lack of cleanliness, or incidents with the water and pressure. As for the bed, whether it is small, hard, or uncomfortable. Concerning the emotional factors of the room, complaints have been made with respect to requesting changes and the staff not acceding to specific requests or characteristics. In the bathroom, expectations regarding the shower and, in some cases, its functions, such as the hydromassage. Regarding the bed, it is worth mentioning the request made by users before their arrival regarding the type of bed they want. Dissatisfaction arises when they arrive at the hotel, and it has not been provided the things requested.

Problems with the hotel itself are also mentioned. Concerning the car, the main problem is the difficult access due to the location in the historic centre and problems with the GPS in historic areas.

4.2 3 and 4-Star Hotels

The location and the room have been positively assessed in this grouping (see Fig. 2). Concerning functional factors, in terms of location, the fact that the accommodation is close to the historic centre is valued as it facilitates the visit and invites visitors to visit it thanks to its location. About the room, spaciousness, comfort, and cleanliness were highlighted. Some comments refer to the cleanliness and security provided during the COVID-19 stage. In relation to the emotional factors, in terms of location, some users highly value their stay through the subcategories “privileged” and “valued”. About the room, those assigned by the staff, surprising some guests, or the changes made to superior rooms without increasing the price.

Fig. 2
A hierarchical map of comments in a foreign language.

Source Nvivo 12

Hierarchical map of positive comments 3- and 4-stars.

Full size image

Among the positive evaluations, there are three categories related to the enclave of the hotel, which are “Building”, “Palace”, and “Convent”, as the guests have valued very positively staying in this type of establishment, expressing their satisfaction, i.e.: “Sleeping under a 16th-century vault is a real pleasure, and touring the palace and its libraries is quite an experience”.

The main elements negatively rated in this grouping are the hotel, the room, and the bed. Concerning the functional factors in the hotel, reference is made to its category, comparing it with other similar hotels. General dissatisfaction with the stay is also shown, i.e.: “From the photos, I expected something better in general, I will not come back”. Also, the lack of maintenance of common areas, the need for renovation, and problems with accessibility lead to negative comments. Regarding the room, complaints about the furniture (if it is old or worn out), lighting, maintenance, cleanliness, location, and the view appeared. With respect to the bed, complaints were found about the hardness of the mattress, pillow, bedding, and discomfort.

In relation to the emotional factors in the hotel, it was mentioned whether the expectations of the guests and complaints regarding the staff were not met, i.e.: “I am very sorry for [staff name], as their attention has been the only memorable part of my stay, but there are certain limits that should not be crossed”. Attention to detail is valued, as this differentiates these hotel categories according to users. In addition, they made some suggestions such as: “As it is a hotel in a historic building, it would be great if reception at some time of the day at a specific time offered a short tour of the building commenting on its history and characteristics”. From the room, the incorrect soundproofing, the lack of cleanliness, requests not covered, or problems not solved correctly were highlighted. Regarding the bed, the availability of the type of bed is requested.

It is worth noting that these hotel categories are considered more demanding, as the following examples show: “We had a cleaning problem in the bathroom, although the reception staff solved it promptly, this should not happen in a hotel of this category”. “I think there is much room for improvement and many details to take care of for a hotel of this category.” “The hotel has a high price, and based on this, you have to demand from it.”

5 Conclusions

Trujillo is a small inland cultural destination. In this study, hotel customer reviews have been used to evaluate functional and emotional factors in positive and negative aspects of the hotel experience in the locality. In the two groupings analysed, it was found that the most positively rated factor is the location. Following Sthapit and Jiménez-Barreto (2018), this element contributes to the memorability of the hotel experience. Locations near the main tourist attractions benefit the entire travel experience (Xu, 2019). After the analysis, it can be said that tourists who have stayed in both categories have rated both positively and negatively different functional and emotional elements that have added or detracted from the value of their stay. According to the attributes identified by users, to increase the positive hotel experience, the factors that should be considered are the emotional ones. Thus, 1 and 2-star hotels should promote their location, the friendliness of the staff and the general characteristics of the hotel as promotional elements, while 3 and 4-star hotels should promote their location and the characteristics and details of the rooms in their communications. On the contrary, to minimise the negative experience, functional factors should be considered to cover the basic hotel experience. In 1 and 2-star hotels, aspects of the room, bathroom and bed should be considered, while in 3 and 4-star hotels, the focus should be on the characteristics of the hotel or the stay as a whole, emphasising the details that differentiate them from other categories, as well as taking into account elements of the room and the bed. Although the staff's treatment has positive ratings in both groupings, it stands out more in the 1 and 2-star category. Likewise, the staff is one of the reasons for dissatisfaction in the 3 and 4-star categories, while in the 1 and 2-star categories, there is not a high volume of complaints, which could be because guests consider staff treatment as a basic element in higher categories, while in lower categories it is an added value. These results are in line with the study by Ren et al. (2016), which highlights that staff attitude is also an important factor for guests in lower hotel categories. In both categories, there was dissatisfaction with the price paid, although this was higher in the 3 and 4-star categories, which may be because the higher price increases expectations and that customers travelling for leisure on weekends are more price-sensitive (Choi & Mattila, 2004). Also, in both categories, recommendation and revisit intentions have been mentioned, following Bigné et al. (2020), memorable experiences are linked to these positive behavioural intentions. Analysing the categories separately helps hoteliers to better understand what customers assess when staying in their establishments, meeting the tourists’ needs, so it could enhance the appropriate implementation of some marketing strategies. As a main conclusion, the emotional value of the hotel experience is not exclusive to the higher categories. The main limitation of this work is that having resorted to grouping into two categories, information details may have been lost. As future lines of research, it is proposed to deepen the analysis of emotional and functional factors of the different hotel attributes and their relevance to overall satisfaction. Segmentation can also be studied according to whether the hotel belongs to a chain or independent hotel.