Plugging into the future: how electric vehicles (EV) charging facilities affect US hotel customers’ satisfaction ratings, booking intentions, and behavior

With the global rise in electric vehicles (EV) adoption, the hotel sector has new challenges and prospects in meeting EV-driving customers’ needs. This research addresses the limited understanding of how EV charging facilities impact customer satisfaction and decision-making through three studies. Study 1 (N = 2,248 hotels) analyzes the effect of EV chargers on customer satisfaction ratings using TripAdvisor and STR data. Study 2 (N = 454) investigates how EV ownership and charger availability shape customer attitudes and behavioral intentions. Study 3 (N = 495) explores how EV charging pricing influences booking behavior under the boundary condition of hotel length-of-stay. Results show that EV infrastructure significantly enhances customer satisfaction, green brand image, and booking behavior. Moreover, customers staying short length-of-stay favor bundled pricing, while long length-of-stay prefer unbundled pricing. This research provides insights into how technological trends are influencing customer behaviors and business strategies within the hospitality industry.