Hotels soar, airlines tumble in satisfaction study

Here’s the good news: hotel guests seem more satisfied than any time in the past three years. The bad (and not terribly surprising) news: airline passenger satisfaction is the lowest it’s been in almost half-a-decade.

That’s the conclusion of the latest Market Metrix Hospitality Index ™. The MMHI says hoteliers’ investment in staffing, services and amenities made for some very satisfied guests in the first quarter of 2007. Taking the edge off the gains, however, were results from the Luxury segment, where, "satisfaction slumped to its lowest level in years" according to Dr. Jonathan Barsky, who directs Market Metrix’s research.

It was hard to find a bright spot among airlines. Even perennial customer service stalwarts such as Midwest Airlines and discount airline JetBlue suffered, recording the largest declines in customer esteem according to the MMHI. The first quarter of 2007 saw airline industry scores as a whole plummet. Scores for what Market Metrix calls "Loyalty Emotions™" reached near-record lows. Loyalty Emotions rate, "critical elements of a passenger’s emotional experience and are fundamental components of customer satisfaction and loyalty."

What’s to blame? Barsky attributes it to, "unprecedented angst among passengers which has been caused, in part, by disenchanted employees."

Airline workers have seen wages and benefits slashed since September 11, and their ranks thinned. Worry, and bitterness, pervades the workforces at some carriers. Also to blame, says Barsky, for passenger angst are, "record levels of lost, delayed, and damaged luggage."

Despite JetBlue’s recent well-publicized problems, and despite its lower score this quarter, the discount airline still managed to rank first in passenger satisfaction. Walt Disney World Resorts topped the hotel category, and Enterprise Rent-A-Car led car rental firms.

© Cheapflights Ltd Jerry Chandler