The impact of the hotel star rating system on tourists’ health safety and risk perceptions: Study based on tourists’ vacation experiences

Hotel star rating systems are useful for classifying and communicating services to the customer. This research examined how visitors’ expectations, perceived health safety, attitude, and future behavior vary with hotel star ratings from the vacationer's perspective. The study investigated customer experiences while staying in a star-rated hotel. There has been only a small amount of research attempted to determine the impact of the hotel star rating system on tourists’ health safety perceptions. The theoretical model adopted in this research is based on social exchange theory. Using purposive sampling, 678 respondents were examined and evaluated via structural equation modeling with maximum likelihood estimation. The results revealed that the star rating system impacted the attitudes of vacationers and motivated them to improve their future behavior. Government authorities, tourist organizations, and DMOs need to identify what visitors perceive about their accommodations, especially what they expect and how safe they feel, to develop a marketing strategy. This study fills a knowledge gap and offers valuable practical implications.