Surfing the service gap: A study on managerial and guest perspectives in Portuguese surf hostels

Abstract

In the last decade, Portuguese surf tourism has been on the rise, experiencing a steady increase of surf tourists and with them contributions to the local economic development. Surf enthusiasts are always searching for the ideal wave and Portugal’s rising popularity after successful marketing campaigns such as the Big Wave Surfing in Nazaré is helping to establish the country as one of Europe’s leading surfing destinations (Bradshaw, 2021). An increasing number of surf tourists also brings an increasing number of offers of accommodation providers, and especially hostels and surf camps along Portugal’s coastline emerged as visitors’ favourites. Therefore, it is important to deliver high service quality within these lodgings, not only to attract new customers and offer a reasonable price-for-value experience but also to ensure the continuous purchase of recurring guests, helping to build a favourable reputation for Portuguese surf tourism locally and nationally. However, the managerial approach to delivering high service quality and the customer's perceptions of high service quality do not always match (Brochado and Rita, 2018).