Perception-satisfaction based quality assessment of tourism and hospitality services in the Himalayan region: An application of AHP-SERVQUAL approach on Sandakphu Trail, West Bengal, India

Abstract

About 800 million people, or about 12% of the world's population, go abroad annually, making tourism one of the greatest global enterprises. The Himalayan region's nature and adventure-based tourism has a significant economic influence on West Bengal, India. The Singalila Range is well-known among tourists and trekkers from all over the world for its distinctive features and dynamic environment. The modified AHP-SERVQUAL model covering service provision attributes was studied in the subject of a case study in the Sandakphu Trail, Darjeeling, India, to determine critical dimensions. The most significant subdimension is deemed to be promptness of services, while the responsiveness dimension needs the most improvement in terms of providing excellent service. The discrepancy between tourists' perceptions and satisfaction with the tourism and services offered in the Sandakphu Trail, which is nestled in the Himalayan region of India, is critically examined in this topic based on Overall Tourism Satisfaction Index (OTSI). In order to evaluate the gaps in terms of tangibility, reliability, responsiveness, assurance, and empathy which eventually leads us to the assessment of the tourism and hospitality services in the Sandakphu Trail of the Himalayan region of India, this study has combined the methodologies of the AHP-SERVQUAL model. The OTSI data for the halting points, i.e., Mane Bhanjang (33.38), Meghma (42.53), Tumbling (67.23), Gairibus (42.14), Kalpokhri (44.70), and Sandakphu (65.79), demonstrate inconsistencies in the gap in the tourism services in these locations. As part of an operational research on management, this approach used in the study provides us with a clear understanding of the quality of tourism services in a straightforward manner without the need for quantitative data, which will be useful in proper tourism and hospitality service planning and management.