Cooperativismo y Desarrollo, September-December 2020; 8(3), 552-568
Translated from the original in Spanish
Perceived quality in city hotels: a tool for evaluation
Calidad percibida en hoteles de ciudad: un instrumento para su evaluación
Qualidade percebida em hotéis urbanos: um instrumento para a sua avaliação
Marie López Cruz1, Yanlis Rodríguez Veiguela2, Roberto Carmelo Pons García3, Jensy Tanda Díaz4
1 Universidad de Matanzas "Camilo
Cienfuegos". Matanzas, Cuba. ORCID:
https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0462-792X. Email: marie.lopez@umcc.cu
2 Universidad de Matanzas "Camilo Cienfuegos". Facultad de Ciencias Empresariales.
Matanzas, Cuba. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6220-0209. Email: yanlis.rodriguez@umcc.cu
3 Universidad de Matanzas "Camilo Cienfuegos". Matanzas, Cuba. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0836-8323. Email: roberto.pons@umcc.cu
4 Universidad de Matanzas "Camilo Cienfuegos". Matanzas, Cuba. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0214-7888. Email: jensy.tanda@umcc.cu
Received: May 30th, 2020.
Accepted: November 15th, 2020.
ABSTRACT
Urban tourism has experienced a growth in recent years. In this sense, city hotels have distinctive characteristics, conditioned by the motivations of the urban tourist, where culture and identity are important elements to consider. Based on this, the research aims to: design an evaluation instrument of the perceived quality in city hotels. An exploratory and descriptive type of research is developed, for which a qualitative and quantitative methodology is used. Among the main results, there are: the bibliographic review about the methodologies to evaluate the perceived quality in city hotels, the determination of the dimensions and attributes of the perceived quality, which have an impact on the customer satisfaction in these hotels, and the design of an evaluation instrument of the perceived quality in city hotels. The results obtained were analyzed and interpreted, and the validity and reliability of the instrument was verified.
Keywords: evaluation of perceived quality; city hotels; Velasco and Louvre hotels
RESUMEN
El turismo urbano ha experimentado un crecimiento en los últimos años. En este sentido, los hoteles de ciudad tienen características distintivas, condicionadas por las motivaciones del turista urbano, donde la cultura e identidad son elementos importantes a considerar. En función de esto, la investigación tiene como objetivo: diseñar un instrumento de evaluación de la calidad percibida en hoteles de ciudad. Se desarrolla una investigación de tipo exploratoria y descriptiva, para lo cual se utiliza una metodología cualitativa y cuantitativa. Entre los principales resultados, se encuentran: la revisión bibliográfica sobre las metodologías para evaluar la calidad percibida en hoteles de ciudad, la determinación de las dimensiones y atributos de la calidad percibida, que inciden en la satisfacción del cliente en estos hoteles y el diseño de un instrumento de evaluación de la calidad percibida en hoteles de ciudad. Se analizaron e interpretaron los resultados obtenidos y se verificó la validez y fiabilidad del instrumento.
Palabras clave: evaluación de la calidad percibida; hoteles de ciudad; hoteles Velasco y Louvre
RESUMO
O turismo urbano tem experimentado um crescimento nos últimos anos. Neste sentido, os hotéis urbanos têm características distintivas condicionadas pelas motivações do turista urbano, sendo a cultura e a identidade elementos importantes a considerar. Com base nisto, a investigação visa: conceber um instrumento para avaliar a qualidade percebida dos hotéis da cidade. É desenvolvido um estudo de tipo exploratório e descritivo, para o qual é utilizada uma metodologia qualitativa e quantitativa. Entre os principais resultados estão: a revisão bibliográfica das metodologias para avaliar a qualidade percebida dos hotéis urbanos, a determinação das dimensões e atributos da qualidade percebida que influenciam a satisfação do cliente nestes hotéis e a concepção de um instrumento de avaliação da qualidade percebida dos hotéis urbanos. Os resultados obtidos foram analisados e interpretados e a validade e fiabilidade do instrumento foi verificada.
Palavras-chave: avaliação da qualidade percebida; hotéis urbanos; hotéis Velasco e Louvre
INTRODUCTION
Tourism in recent times has been one of the fastest growing activities in the world, contributing to economies in terms of enterprise, economic and social growth, which brings with it increased labor supply, financial benefits and increased quality of life (Monsalve Castro & Hernandez Rueda, 2015); aspects that are not unrelated to current trends in 2020, where there are trends marked by new forms of consumption and choice of a destination, from activities and experiences as the so-called Live Like a Local, associated with the development of technology and Internet connection. The growing sense of responsibility, ecological awareness and a greater connection with people and places of destination are the factors that will mark the main trends of travel, being also evident that, among the trends of tourism, will prevail the adequate management of the quality that will guarantee, to a great extent, the satisfaction of the client and therefore the perceived and total quality, allowing, in addition, the capture of new markets and the consolidation of the already existing ones.
This has implied the development of urban tourism as opposed to other tourist segments with a growing expansion (Hiernaux Nicolas & González Gómez, 2015), linked to the aforementioned aspects, in addition to being attractive the development of cultural products in cities, which leads to the strengthening of identity attractions as part of the differentiation of the city product that allows the positioning of the city as an urban tourist destination (Rodríguez Veiguela, 2016).
However, in a globalized and highly competitive economy, managers must seek the key elements that allow them to develop competitive advantages that last over time. The enterprise that wants to survive in this environment must offer a service of the highest possible quality, respond quickly to changes in demand and control costs (Aznar et al., 2016). Based on this, studies of perceived quality acquire great significance, being a necessity for all types of service (Parasuraman et al., 1985).
Hence, researchers in the service sector have seen the importance of working and researching on quality in tourism and in the hotel industry in particular, and this shows that, in recent years, numerous studies have developed the concept of service quality in the hotel industry (González Arias et al., 2016).
However, the inadequacies and shortcomings in hotel services are due in most cases to a lack of knowledge about the needs of clients and the actions of competitors (Sierra Parada et al., 2018).
In this sense, the studies of perceived quality, in agreement with Rogel Villacis (2018) and Soto and Villena (2020) allow to raise information in relation to the experiences originated during the stay in a place, answers that are valuable to know the weaknesses and strengths that will facilitate the accomplishment of the suitable adjustments by those who direct the organization; reason why it can be said that these studies constitute a value added to compete efficiently in the market.
However, the quality of service is a subjective construct that depends on user satisfaction, which serves as a basis for decision making and possible improvements, so it is of utmost importance to provide an excellent service that meets the needs and requirements of the client, from there starts the good experience and relationship: organization-customer (Vanegas Lopez et al., 2018).
On the other hand, there is a great diversity of motivations that condition the demand for hotel services in particular, so that, according to Millán Vásquez de la Torre et al. (2015) and Soto and Villena (2020), the companies that provide services should measure the quality based on the client's perception and, especially, the lodging establishments, which will help to improve the flow of visitors not only to the lodgings but to the city itself, which contributes to local and tourist development.
In accordance with the above, Mora Pisco and Duran Vasco (2017) propose that the service offered in hotels is fundamental for the development and sustainability of tourist destinations. Therefore, it can be said that the studies of perceived quality in city hotels lead to results that contribute to achieving positive effects not only for the hotel, but also for the management of cities.
This generates the existence of a close hotel-city relationship that must be taken into account when managing the quality of services and, at the same time that integrated policies can be articulated to ensure a comprehensive, successful and efficient management in pursuit of economic and social development at the level of the tourist destination and at the national level.
Therefore, it is possible to consider that city hotels have specific characteristics according to the own motivations of the tourists who visit them, conditioned fundamentally by the culture, where this client looks mainly for authenticity, identity of the city.
Therefore, the hotel offer of an urban hotel must take into account these elements that are also determinant for its clients, in order to achieve a greater satisfaction of them. Therefore, it is essential to carry out studies that allow us to know not only the characteristics of the clients, but also their motivations, benefits that they look for in the offer, in short, the attributes that are determinant for their satisfaction and to take them into account in the research on perceived quality of the service. This in turn contributes to achieving market positioning with a differentiated product, according to the customer.
In the case of Cuba, the tourist activity plays a fundamental role, for that reason, in accordance with the guidelines derived from the VII Congress of the Party, regarding the Policy for Tourism, it is considered necessary to raise the quality of services with the objective of achieving enough competitiveness levels to face successfully the high demands and challenges of the market, as well as to dynamize economy.
The city of Matanzas in specific has been object of a process of restoration under the direction of the Office of the Conservative, with the objective to foment the tourism of city in the same one.
Nevertheless, when making reference on the hotels of Matanzas, in general, they emphasize only those that are located in the tourist pole of Varadero, which reveals the degree of decommercialization of those located in the city.
In addition, in spite of the attractions that present these hotels, as well as the own city, they are not with the level of exploitation wished, because the demand that they possess is tourists mainly "of passing through", which only make short stays, mainly to sleep and then to continue their trip toward other tourist destinations, being wasted the opportunity to develop the urban tourism in Matanzas.
In this sense, with a view to fomenting the tourism in this city, it becomes necessary the constant improvement of these hotels with the objective of offering services adapted to the perceptions of the clients, in such a way that it contributes to the commercialization of the same ones in its interrelationship with the city.
That is why the present study takes place in the hotels Velasco and Louvre, which are located in the Historical Center of Matanzas, considered a jewel of the Cuban architecture of the beginning of the 20th century, with a refined decoration and elegant furniture. They are distinguished by the detail, privacy, familiarity, high level of service and a gourmet cuisine.
However, the Velasco and Louvre hotels do not carry out studies with due scientific rigor, regarding the knowledge of their markets' characteristics, their motivations, benefits, which look for determining attributes for the clients that affect their perceptions on the quality of the facilities and, therefore, their satisfaction, which limits the correct evaluation of the perceived quality and the implementation of improvement actions, directed from the client's perspective. Therefore, the research that is being carried out aims to: design an instrument to evaluate perceived quality in city hotels.
MATERIALS AND METHODS
A bibliographic review was carried out regarding the methodologies to evaluate the perceived quality in city hotels. Among the authors consulted were Falces et al., (1999), López and Serrano (2001), Olorunniwo et al., (2006), Gadotti and França (2009), Díaz and Pons (2009) and González, Frías and Gómez (2016).
From the analysis of the methodologies and coinciding with Diaz and Pons (2009), it can be seen that, in general, the research does not explicitly develop procedures for the evaluation of perceived service quality; however, the methodological procedure used can be inferred.
Although some authors take into account the generation of a measured scale for the evaluation of perceived quality, to a greater extent they apply the scales proposed by other researchers, which affects the fact that, for the definition of the attributes to be used in the instrument, this is covered mainly for the case of rural establishments and to a lesser extent for other types of hotel establishments.
In addition, it was not possible to establish methodologies that would allow for the evaluation of perceived quality in city hotels, taking into account attributes of urban identity and image. Therefore, taking into account the importance of these elements for urban tourists, an instrument should be designed to evaluate the perceived quality of city hotels, taking these attributes into account.
The procedure for the design of an instrument to evaluate perceived quality in city hotels is set out below.
Phase I. Design of the instrument to evaluate the perceived quality in city hotels
Stage 1. Definition of dimensions and attributes for the evaluation of perceived quality in city hotels
Studies on the evaluation of perceived quality in the hotel sector should be consulted, taking into account, fundamentally, those that have dealt, in one way or another, with the environment. Studies on the identity and image of the city should also be taken into account, with the aim of determining the determining attributes in the perceptions of clients in an urban environment. On the basis of the studies consulted, a synthesis matrix is drawn up to find out the criteria on which there is the greatest agreement in the literature.
Based on the previous results, a group work should be carried out with the objective of contextualizing the attributes of the city hotels, taking into account the determining elements in the demand of the urban tourist, which are related to the identity and image of the city.
Taking into account the previous results, the priority dimensions and attributes are defined from the application of the Modified Füller Triangle (Parra Ferié et al., 2019), where those involved must offer a ponderation on the attributes that were presented to them in the group work.
On the basis of the results of the previous step, the final and definitive list of the dimensions and attributes that explain the quality perceived by the client in the city hotels should be prepared.
Stage 2. Design of a reliable and valid instrument for the evaluation of perceived quality in city hotels
It is determined, from the bibliographic review, to know the most used scales.
The objectives of the research and the most appropriate scale to be used in the research are taken into account when developing the questionnaire questions. At first, group work is done to analyze the correct understanding of the questions and structure of the work. From this, a final version of the questionnaire is formed.
Reliability analysis using Cronbach's Alpha coefficient and R2 coefficient analysis is implemented to demonstrate validity.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
Phase I. Design of the instrument to evaluate perceived quality in city hotels
Stage 1. Definition of dimensions and attributes for the evaluation of perceived quality in city hotels
The results of the application of the synthesis matrix allowed to know the dimensions for the quality evaluation (Table 1), attributes for the quality evaluation (Table 2) and the attributes of identity and urban image (Table 3) more recurrent in the literature.
Table 1 - Dimensions of perceived quality
Dimensions |
Frequency (f) |
Percentage (%) |
Reliability |
25 |
83.33 |
Security |
22 |
73.33 |
Empathy |
20 |
66.67 |
Response capacity |
18 |
60 |
Tangible elements |
29 |
96.67 |
Complementary offer |
12 |
40 |
Location |
3 |
10 |
Basic Benefit |
5 |
16.67 |
Staff professionalism |
4 |
13.33 |
Staff |
3 |
10 |
Staff response |
1 |
3.33 |
Treatment of the tourist |
2 |
6.67 |
Characteristics of the staff |
2 |
6.67 |
Sociability |
1 |
3.33 |
Communication |
1 |
3.33 |
Courtesy |
1 |
3.33 |
Rural and regional environment |
1 |
3.33 |
Basic offer |
1 |
3.33 |
Source: Own elaboration
As a result of the synthesis matrix, the dimensions of perceived quality most addressed in the literature, as far as the hotel sector is concerned, are: tangible elements (96.67%), reliability (83.33%), safety (73.33%), empathy (66.67%) and responsiveness (60%).
In the case of the complementary offer dimension, it was only addressed by 40% of the authors, which represent those who carry out studies in rural establishments. The location and rural and regional environment dimensions are less representative because they are used interchangeably in studies, in rural establishments.
In the case of the basic benefit and basic supply dimensions, they are also used indiscriminately by the authors who research rural establishments, while the dimensions of staff professionalism, personnel, staff response, treatment of tourists, staff characteristics, sociability, communication and courtesy are used and mean the same as the empathy and response capacity dimensions.
Table 2 - Attributes of perceived quality
Attributes |
Frequency (f) |
Percentage (%) |
Well located establishment |
11 |
100 |
Simple and welcoming decoration |
11 |
100 |
Comfortable rooms |
11 |
100 |
Parking facilities |
11 |
100 |
Careful looking staff |
11 |
100 |
Employees who know the business |
11 |
100 |
Quality food and drink |
11 |
100 |
Clean physical facilities |
11 |
100 |
Cultural environment of great beauty |
11 |
100 |
Cultural environment of exceptional interest |
11 |
100 |
Typical gastronomy |
11 |
100 |
Integration of guests into the city's way of life |
11 |
100 |
Cordial and familiar treatment of staff |
11 |
100 |
Personalized/individualized attention |
11 |
100 |
Facilities in good condition |
11 |
100 |
Reservations fully guaranteed |
11 |
100 |
Competitive prices |
11 |
100 |
Good image of the establishment |
11 |
100 |
Existence of unique fairs and festivals |
11 |
100 |
Access to cultural, recreational and sports activities |
11 |
100 |
Quiet place |
11 |
100 |
Advertising |
1 |
9.09 |
Punctuality |
1 |
9.09 |
Aptitude |
1 |
9.09 |
Physical Security |
1 |
9.09 |
Complementary services and integration with the environment |
1 |
9.09 |
Source: Own elaboration
On the other hand, with regard to the attributes related to the environment, used in the evaluation of the quality perceived in the hotel sector, these are treated only in studies developed in the rural sector, showing that the most addressed are: well-located establishment, cultural environment of great beauty, cultural environment of exceptional interest, typical gastronomy, integration of guests to the way of life of the city, existence of fairs and unique festivals, access to cultural, recreational and sporting activities, quiet place and, to a lesser extent, complementary services and integration with the environment.
Table 3 - Identity and city image attributes
Attributes |
Frequency (f) |
Percentage (%) |
Architecture and urbanism |
10 |
90.91 |
Historical heritage |
11 |
100 |
Cultural offerings |
11 |
100 |
Tourist offer |
9 |
81.82 |
Services |
10 |
90.91 |
Environment |
10 |
90.91 |
Transport and infrastructure |
10 |
90.91 |
City Attitude |
8 |
72.73 |
Physical aspect of the city |
8 |
72.73 |
Prestige of the city |
8 |
72.73 |
Quality of life |
5 |
45.45 |
Source: Own elaboration
Finally, with the objective of preparing a list that would be adapted to the urban environment, identity and city image studies were consulted, where there is greater agreement on the part of the authors with regard to the following attributes: historical heritage and cultural offerings with equal percentages of agreement on the part of the authors (100%); architecture and urban planning, services, environment and transport and infrastructure; also, with equal percentages of agreement on the part of the authors (90. 91%), tourist offer (81.82%), attitude of the city, physical aspect of the city and prestige of the city also present the same percentage of agreement by the authors (72.73%), while the least addressed is quality of life (45.45%).
Based on the previous results, a group work was carried out with those involved, where an initial proposal of attributes was arrived at. The attributes referred to both the hotel and the urban environment were taken into account, based on the need to carry out studies according to what the client values in a city hotel.
As a result, a list of 26 attributes related to the hotel was created: state of infrastructure, appearance of the employees, comfortable rooms with varied services for a quality offer, well-located establishment, competent and professional staff, availability of parking spaces, simple and welcoming decoration, quality/price ratio of services, personalized attention, speed of service, clean physical facilities, visual pollution, availability of meeting and business services, safety and comfort, architectural attraction, heritage attraction, quiet place, availability of cultural recreation offerings that reflect the tradition and folklore of the city, fully guaranteed reservations, diversity of cultural offerings, diversity of commercial offerings, noise pollution, environmental education of employees, integration of guests to the way of life of the city, variety of restaurants offerings, rooms have cable TV and are air-conditioned.
In addition, a list of 25 attributes related to the city or environment was achieved: architectural attractiveness, heritage attractiveness, city security, availability of the cultural offer of recreation, diversity of the cultural offer of recreation, pleasant social environment, diversity of the commercial offer, diversity of the offer of restoration, environmental protection, visual pollution, environmental education of the citizens, intercity transport, signaling, road congestion, cab services, availability of parking spaces, quality of life, motorcycle/car rental, attitude of the city, the city is well lit, attractiveness of other tourist attractions, physical appearance of the city, prestige of the city, ease of institutional services, quality/price ratio of services.
From the previous results, the Modified Füller Triangle was applied according to the criteria of Parra, Rhea and Gómez (2019), where the attributes of greater weight in each case were obtained according to the criteria of those involved.
The attributes related to the hotel, which represent a greater weight or importance for those involved are state of infrastructure, competent and professional staff with a 60% match; comfortable rooms with varied services for a quality offer, availability of parking spaces, quality/price ratio of services, personalized attention, speed of service, visual contamination, availability of meeting and business services, security and comfort with a 50% match; appearance of the employees, architectural attractiveness, heritage attractiveness, availability of cultural offer of recreation that reflects the tradition and folklore of the city, diversity of the cultural offer, diversity of the, commercial offer, noise pollution, environmental education of the employees, variety of the offer of restoration with a 40% coincidence.
In the case of the attributes related to the city, it was obtained that those that represent a greater weight or importance for those involved are Architectural attractiveness with a 70% coincidence; availability of the cultural offer of recreation, diversity of the cultural offer of recreation, diversity of the commercial offer with a 60% coincidence; diversity of the offer of restoration, environmental protection, visual pollution, environmental education of the citizens, interurban transport, road congestion with a 50% coincidence; heritage attractiveness, signposting, cab services, availability of parking places, motorbike/car rental, attitude of the city, physical aspect of the city, prestige of the city, quality/price ratio of the services with a 40% coincidence.
From the previous results, the final and definitive proposal of dimensions and attributes for the evaluation of the perceived quality in city hotels was reached, where five dimensions were taken into account (tangibility, reliability, empathy, response capacity and environment) according to which attributes were established, taking as a reference the hotel-environment relationship.
The tangibility dimension refers to elements such as the appearance of physical resources, equipment, personnel, among others, where the company is concerned that the physical evidence of the service always projects an image of quality. Therefore, in the present study, it is conformed by the following attributes: architectural attractiveness of the hotel, patrimonial attractiveness of the hotel, visual contamination in the hotel, availability of parking spaces in the hotel, state of the infrastructure of the hotel, appearance of the employees, comfortable rooms with varied services for a quality offer.
The reliability dimension is nothing more than the ability to execute the promised service with safety and scrupulousness, so it contributes to the customers' belief and trust in the company and in the constant quality of its services, therefore it has the attributes: Availability of cultural offerings in the hotel that reflect the tradition and folklore of the city, diversity of cultural offerings in the hotel, diversity of commercial offerings in the hotel, proper use of the property, variety of catering offerings in the hotel, prestige of the hotel, competent and professional staff and the quality/price ratio of the hotel services, since clients, when coming to a hotel, need these attributes to meet their expectations.
The empathy dimension refers to the care and individualized attention to clients, therefore, it has the attribute: personalized attention.
The capacity of response dimension constitutes the willingness to help customers and provide the service warned, so employees must always be willing to provide the service when the customer needs it, not when the company considers it convenient; for this reason, the attributes: speed of service and availability of meeting and business services in the hotel are made to correspond, because these attributes correspond to the willingness of employees to help customers and provide the service warned.
The security dimension means that workers possess knowledge, courtesy and the ability to demonstrate confidence, thus demonstrating that the company cares and ensures that customers are kept away from all types of damage, risks and doubts; this dimension is attributed with the attributes: noise pollution in the hotel, environmental education of hotel employees and safety and comfort of the hotel. These attributes clearly show the knowledge that the workers have and the concern to keep customers away from any type of damage or risk.
Finally, the environment dimension refers to all the elements that surround the hotel in the city and affect the quality perceived by customers in city hotels. The following attributes correspond to this dimension: architectural attractiveness of the city, heritage attractiveness of the city, availability of cultural offerings for recreation in the city, diversity of cultural offerings for recreation in the city, diversity of commercial offerings in the city, diversity of catering offerings in the city, protection of the environment, visual pollution in the city, environmental education of citizens, interurban transport, signage, road congestion, cab services, availability of parking spaces, car/bike rental, attitude of the city (vibrant, supportive, friendly, hospitable), physical aspect of the city (lit up, clean, well-cared for), prestige of the city, security of the city and the quality/price ratio of the city's services, as it is these elements that affect the quality perceived by customers in city hotels.
Stage 2. Design of a reliable and valid instrument for the evaluation of perceived quality in city hotels
It was determined to use the SERVPERF model, which was developed by Cronin and Taylor (1992). It constitutes a modification of the SERVQUAL, where only the perceptions are analyzed. The authors themselves state that it is more recommendable because there is little evidence that clients value the perceived quality of a service in terms of the differences between expectation-perceptions, with perceptions being the ones that contribute most to measuring the quality of the service (Cronin Jr. & Taylor, 1992).
The questionnaire is composed of a heading where the objective of the research is explained to the client.
Question 1: it is aimed to know if it is the first time that the client visits the city of Matanzas. It was written in a closed and dichotomous way, followed by multiple choice, both for the number of times and for the type of accommodation where the client stayed, it is a structured question.
Question 2: it is aimed at finding out the level of importance that clients give to the reasons for their trip, a 5-point Likert scale is used.
Question 3: it aims to find out how clients value the perceived quality of the hotel and the level of importance they give to each attribute with a 5-point Likert scale in each case.
Question 4: it aims to know the general quality of the hotel, with a 5-point Likert scale ranging from 1 (very negative) to 5 (very positive); this is a structured question.
Question 5: this question measures the fulfillment of the client's expectations, since it is clear that these are part of the internal stimuli that shape the quality perceived by the tourist with respect to the place and influence his or her final purchase decision. It was used to measure the Likert scale, which goes from 1 (no way) to 5 (totally); this is a structured question.
Question 6: it refers to the intention to return to the hotel, which moves with a Likert scale from 1 (certainly not) to 5 (certainly yes); this is a structured question.
Question 7: it aims to find out the number of days the client was in the hotel; it is an open question.
Question 8: it refers, at first, to the means by which the client got to know the hotel; it is a polytomical question. Later, it refers to the respondent's country of origin, followed by the age range; these questions are semi-structured and multiple choice. Then the sex of each visitor was analyzed; it is a dichotomous and structured question. The work situation of the respondent was analyzed, if he or she was accompanied; these questions are structured and multiple choice.
A pilot test was applied to clients of the Velasco and Louvre hotels, 15 surveys were applied during the last week of February, from which a question referring to the level of annual income was eliminated because it was controversial for the clients, since most of them did not answer it.
Reliability analysis using Cronbach's Alpha coefficient was implemented. The analysis of the R2 coefficient presented values above 0.7 in each case, which allowed us to confirm that the scales are free of errors, both systematic and random, and that we are measuring what we really want. In order to verify the reliability of these coefficients, the analysis of variance was implemented and, in all cases, the values behaved below 0.05, which allowed rejecting the null hypothesis, verifying that there was a correlation between the independent and dependent variables, which gave, therefore, validity of the construct.
Based on the previous analyses, once the reliability and validity of the questionnaire has been verified, it can be adopted for the evaluation of the perceived quality in city hotels.
From the results exposed in the research, it can be stated that the city hotels have specific characteristics, so an instrument that allows to evaluate the quality perceived by the client must take into account these differences.
The procedure designed through a phase, as well as a set of stages and steps, allows the design of an instrument for the assessment of perceived quality in city hotels, based on the use of consistent methods and techniques.
It was achieved the design of an instrument that allows the evaluation of the quality perceived in city hotels and that reflects the dimensions and attributes that affect the client's satisfaction and that are related to the characteristics of urban tourism, where it highlights the importance of the identity elements of the city, as well as the image that it projects.
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Conflict of interest:
Authors declare not to have any conflict of interest.
Authors' contribution:
The authors have participated in the writing of the paper and the analysis of the documents.
