Tourism has been ranked the third-best sector for customer service in the UK, with six organisations in the industry named among the top 50.
The sector gained a 79.8% customer satisfaction rating in the UK Customer Service Index (UKCSI), beaten by the food and non-food retail sectors.
Center Parcs was tourism’s top‑rated organisation, ranked 13th in the July 2014 index, with an 83.3% satisfaction score.
It was followed by P&O Cruises and Premier Inn in joint 24th place, P&O Ferries in 29th position, Marriott in 32nd and Hilton in 36th.
However, overall customer satisfaction with tourism companies has fallen in the past year from 80.3% in July 2013 to 79.8% this month.
Jo Causon, chief executive of the Institute of Customer Service, told Travel Weekly that tourism organisations that achieve higher UKCSI scores “tend to receive higher rates of intention to remain a customer, repurchase and recommendation”.
“With rising customer expectations, organisations must invest in customer insight and continuously review their customer service skills, capabilities and standards,” said Causon.
Two travel businesses were ranked among the top 10 most-improved firms: Center Parcs, up 4.4 percentage points, and Butlins, up 3.8 points.
The UKCSI measures customer satisfaction across 13 sectors. The latest report is based on 40,842 survey responses in May to an online customer questionnaire.