Emotional and Experiential Drivers of Customer Satisfaction in Luxury Hospitality

Drawing on the Stimulus – Organism – Response (S-O-R) framework, this study investigates how perceived service excellence, aesthetic environment, and personalization shape customer satisfaction through emotional experience, hedonic value, and utilitarian value. Using data from 430 guests of five-star hotels in Indonesia, the research applies Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) to test the proposed relationships. Results show that all three service stimuli significantly enhance emotional, hedonic, and utilitarian responses, which subsequently increase satisfaction. Emotional experience exerts the strongest mediating effect, underscoring its pivotal role in the luxury guest journey. By integrating emotional, hedonic, and utilitarian pathways into a unified process model, the study advances theoretical understanding of satisfaction formation in emerging luxury markets. Practically, the findings highlight the need for emotionally engaging service design, culturally attuned personalization, and aesthetically immersive environments to strengthen guest satisfaction and loyalty in luxury hospitality.