A Qualitative Review of Cruise Service Quality: Case Studies from Asia

Yeohyun Yoon and Kyoung Cheon Cha
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Yeohyun Yoon: School of Hotel and Tourism Management, Youngsan University, Busan 48015, Korea
Kyoung Cheon Cha: Department of Business Administration, Dong-A University, Busan 49236, Korea

Sustainability, 2020, vol. 12, issue 19, 1-24

Abstract: Although the cruise sector is considered an ‘unreplaceable’ form of tourism, with the cruise industry recording steady growth over the years, there is a lack of research and analysis on cruise ships themselves. Accordingly, this study sought to determine whether service quality differences among ships operating in the Asian market could suggest broader implications for the sustainability of the cruise industry. We chose the SERVQUAL framework for the analysis; we also employed the multiple case study method and topic synthesis to compare the service quality of three ships. Of the ships investigated—the Costa Victoria , Diamond Princess , and Superstar Virgo —the Diamond Princess had the highest service quality. Based on the results, we outlined suggestions for improving the quality of cruise services, including introducing the latest large ships and high-tech facilities, complying with the departure and arrival times of sailing schedules, improving the ratio of crew members per passenger, establishing a cruise personnel training system, and expanding membership program operations.

Keywords: cruise; service quality; SERVQUAL; onboard attributes (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (5)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:12:y:2020:i:19:p:8073-:d:422010

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