Abstract
Because satisfying customers is a persistent goal of the hospitality industry, many studies have aimed to determine the key factors of guest satisfaction. More recently, with the emergence of the sharing economy, Airbnb has also begun to attracting researchers’ attention. Although there has been much research conducted on Airbnb elsewhere, this has not been the case in New Zealand, particularly in the area of tourist satisfaction. This study focuses on Airbnb properties in Queenstown, New Zealand, and uses online reviews from guests to determine the factors that influenced their satisfaction with Airbnb.
The study employed a constructivist paradigm and qualitative approach. Online reviews posted between November 2019 and April 2020 were collected on 20 Queenstown Airbnbs with star ratings of 4.8 or higher. Content analysis was used to analyse the 550 valid reviews collected.
Location, view, homely feeling, cleanliness, and the host, were the most significant factors affecting visitors’ satisfaction with their Queenstown Airbnbs. In contrast, price was determined to have the least impact on satisfaction. These findings confirmed that the satisfaction of Queenstown Airbnb guests was influenced by similar factors to those found in the literature. The study provides practical suggestions for Airbnb hosts and entrepreneurs for increasing tourist satisfaction, and demonstrates the value of using Airbnb online reviews to determine satisfaction with Airbnb. Consistent with this, recommendations for future studies of Airbnb are offered.
