Summary
This paper is a benchmarking exercise to establish, by comparison with established best practice, quality standards for 'home stay' accommodation provided to visitors in Taiwan. In-depth interviews were conducted with 11 owner-managers in Britain and Taiwan. The results suggest the possibility of using the quality assurance scheme practiced in the British bed-and-breakfast industry as a reference for the 'home stay' industry in Taiwan. From the findings, we argue that quality assurance grading schemes in this sector help to build trust among the public and improve the reputation of the industry. Suggestions for implementing such a scheme are discussed.
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Extract
Developing a Quality Assurance Scheme for the Tourist Industry: A Managerial Perspective
Introduction
Home stay is a 'booming' new trend in Taiwan's service industry. It provides alternative accommodation services to travelers. Home stay is rather similar to Britain's Bed & Breakfast (B&B) scheme mat has proved so successful and Japan's Misuku scheme, which offers "family style" accommodation and service. There are two main reasons to encourage such home stay operations. These include the demand for accommodation services in rural areas which do not have sufficient hotels and to provide a means for farmers to diversify into the recreational and tourist area (Huang et al, 2006). The media in Taiwan have helped to promote home stay as an alternative and desirable option for visitors to an extent that it is now a major topic of discussion in the travel industry.Whilst home stay operations are thriving, they also present some critical problems. The government does not have an effective policy of managing home stay developments and lacks regulations and laws to control its expansion. It also has been unable to open die home stay sector to international travelers. Hence, the quality and standards of home stay operations are unpredictable for both operators and customers. Most owner-managers have their own special ways of doing things, and often make the mistake, in our opinion, of allowing guests to assume that a home s...See the full content of this document
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