Guests’ Happiness in Luxury Hotels in Jordan: The Role of Spirituality and Religiosity in an Islamic Context

Abstract

This study uses Stephenson’s model of Islamic-spiritual hotels to examine how spiritual practices and Islamic Shari’a compliant approach (i.e., religious obligations) inside luxury hotels may increase guests’ subjective happiness (GSH). In total, 248 guests from luxury hotels in Jordan participated in this study. The findings show that high levels of guests’ spirituality and religiosity decrease their happiness during their stay in luxury hotels, while the existence of spiritual facilities inside this class of hotels enhances their happiness. In total, 83.8% of the participants contend their preference to stay in an Islamic hotel wherever they travel. The empirical study highlights the contextual applicability and extension of Stephenson’s framework by presenting a fresh understanding of the linkages between spiritualities at hotels and guests’ happiness. This warrants a range of future directions for further studies.