Sustainability as a Luxury Attribute: How Green Practices Influence Brand Prestige and Booking Intentions for UAE Eco-Resorts
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.47672/jht.2810Keywords:
Sustainability, Luxury Attribute, Green Practices, Brand Prestige, Booking Intentions, Eco-ResortsAbstract
Purpose: The purpose of this article was to investigate sustainability as a luxury attribute: How green practices influence brand prestige and booking intentions for UAE Eco-Resorts.
Materials and Methods: This study adopted a desk methodology. A desk study research design is commonly known as secondary data collection. This is basically collecting data from existing resources preferably because of its low cost advantage as compared to a field research. Our current study looked into already published studies and reports as the data was easily accessed through online journals and libraries.
Findings: The synthesized findings demonstrate that sustainability is a critical and effective component of modern luxury in the UAE's eco-resort sector. Third-party certifications like ESTIDAMA and GSTC are essential for establishing credibility; they mitigate consumer skepticism and directly elevate perceived brand prestige and exclusivity by signaling authentic commitment. When paired with specific, transparent communication of tangible green practices such as zero-waste operations and water conservation these signals create a compelling narrative of innovation and stewardship. This enhanced prestige positively impacts consumer economics, increasing willingness to pay a premium as guests associate verified sustainability with superior value and quality. Ultimately, these perceptions and economic valuations translate into stronger booking intentions, as the combination of credibility, emotional connection, and perceived exclusivity reduces decision uncertainty for the luxury traveler. However, this positive relationship is contingent on maintaining uncompromised service quality and aligning messaging with the cultural values of the target market.
Unique Contribution to Theory, Practice and Policy: Signaling theory, Value-Attitude-behavior model and Service-Dominant logic may be used to investigate sustainability as a luxury attribute: How green practices influence brand prestige and booking intentions for UAE Eco-resorts. For eco-resort developers, operators, and marketers, strategy must evolve from implementing green practices to engineering a coherent luxury-green brand ecosystem. At the national and emirate-level policy level, governments must transition from viewing sustainability as a compliance issue to treating it as a Strategic National Brand Asset for Luxury Tourism.
Downloads
References
Al-Khouri, A., & Papadopoulos, G. (2020). Redefining luxury in the desert: A qualitative study on sustainable architecture and guest perceptions in the UAE. Journal of Luxury Tourism Research, 4(2), 89-105. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jltr.2020.05.003
Almehairi, K., & Lee, S. (2022). The credential effect: How sustainability certifications build brand prestige through credibility in the Middle Eastern luxury market. International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management, 34(8), 2870-2890. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJCHM-09-2021-1182
Alshamsi, M., Alshurideh, M., & Kurdi, B. (2022). The influence of service quality on customer loyalty in the UAE luxury hotel sector: The mediating role of brand image. Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Management, 51, 345–357. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhtm.2022.04.001
Bensaad, A., & Kelly, C. (2022). Storytelling for sustainability: How narrative framing influences emotional connection and booking intent in eco-tourism. Tourism Management Perspectives, 42, 100963. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tmp.2022.100963
Fernandez, M., & Abbar, S. (2021). The bottom line of green: An econometric analysis of sustainability investments and financial performance in UAE hospitality. Journal of Sustainable Tourism, 29(11-12), 1897-1918. https://doi.org/10.1080/09669582.2021.1921730
Gao, Y., Mattila, A., & Lee, S. (2018). A meta-analysis of behavioral intentions for environment-friendly initiatives in hospitality research. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 67, 46-53. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhm.2017.06.011
Gao, Y., Mattila, A., & Lee, S. (2018). A meta-analysis of behavioral intentions for environment-friendly initiatives in hospitality research. International Journal of Hospitality Management, 67, 46–53. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhm.2017.06.011
Gao, Y., Mattila, A., & Lee, S. (2018). A meta-analysis of behavioral intentions for environment-friendly initiatives in hospitality research. International Journal of Hospitality Management, *67*, 46-53. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijhm.2017.06.011
Gupta, S., & Singh, R. (2021). Antecedents of luxury brand consumption in an emerging economy: Evidence from India. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, 62, 102614. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jretconser.2021.102614
Hassan, R., & Kim, M. (2021). Tangible green: Communicating concrete versus abstract sustainability practices and their impact on premium pricing willingness. Journal of Hospitality Marketing and Management, 30(6), 734-755. https://doi.org/10.1080/19368623.2021.1897877
Kim, M. (2021). A systematic literature review of sustainable tourism with a resilience lens. Journal of Sustainable Tourism, *29*(5), 767-783. https://doi.org/10.1080/09669582.2020.1856840
Kim, M., & Stepchenkova, S. (2020). Altruistic values and environmental knowledge as triggers of pro-environmental behavior among tourists. Current Issues in Tourism, 23(13), 1575-1580. https://doi.org/10.1080/13683500.2019.1628188
Kim, M., & Stepchenkova, S. (2020). Altruistic values and environmental knowledge as triggers of pro-environmental behavior among tourists. Current Issues in Tourism, 23(13), 1575–1580. https://doi.org/10.1080/13683500.2019.1628188
Knight Frank. (2022). The Africa Report 2022. Knight Frank Research.
Kumar, M., Townsend, J. D., & Vorhies, D. W. (2020). The role of brand prestige in consumers’ willingness to pay a price premium for services. Journal of Business Research, 117, 473-483. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2020.06.027
Kumar, V. (2018). A theory of service-dominant logic. Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, *46*(1), 1-3. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11747-017-0555-4
Papadas, K., Avlonitis, G., & Carrigan, M. (2019). The interplay of strategic and internal green marketing orientation on competitive advantage. Journal of Business Research, 104, 632-643. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jbusres.2018.07.009
Rahman, I., Reynolds, D., & Svaren, S. (2022). How “green” thinking and altruism translate into purchasing intentions for electronics and apparel: A case study of millennials. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, 64, 102783. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jretconser.2021.102783
Rwanda Development Board. (2021). Tourism Performance Report 2021. Government of Rwanda.
Shirazi, M., & Mansoor, A. (2019). Cultural lenses on green prestige: A comparative study of Western and GCC tourists in the UAE. Cross Cultural Management Journal, 21(4), 455-473. https://doi.org/10.1108/CCMJ-03-2019-0075
Statista. (2022). Luxury Hotel Brand Perception in the United States. Statista Consumer Insights.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2025 Dr. Aisha Al-Mansoori
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution (CC-BY) 4.0 License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.
