Innovation in Smaller Hotels in Argentina before and after the COVID-19 Pandemic

The study aims to explore the pre-covid-19 innovative behaviour of smaller hotels located in an urban centre of Argentina and to recognize whether the current pandemic operates as an innovation-inducing factor in these hotels. The contribution and main motivation lies in the lower number of studies on hotel innovation in South American destinations and the need to identify the strategies adopted by smaller hotels in the face of the covid-19 crisis. The methodology followed is a multiple case study composed of six small and medium-sized hotels located in Bahía Blanca city (Argentina). The primary information was collected by surveys sent to hotel managers. The study shows a pre-covid-19 innovative profile oriented to the acquisition of embedded technology, stafftraining and obtaining incremental innovations. Internal factors and external factors influence the innovative profile described. The covid-19 pandemic is not an inducing factor, but rather an obstacle to innovation.