Jet2holidays has been rated the highest out of six travel firms ranked in the latest top 50 listing for customer satisfaction.
The UK’s largest tour operator is placed 14th in the twice-yearly report by the Institute of Customer Service on the state of service across the country.
Sister airline Jet2 was placed joint second highest in the transport and tourism sectors alongside Premier Inn at joint 19th position.
Trivago was placed at 24th place ahead of Booking.com in joint 30th place and Airbnb joint 35th.
The highest rated organisations in the latest UK Customer Satisfaction Index (UKCSI) covering 13 sectors are Timpson (87.2 out of 100), Starling Bank (86.5) and Nationwide (86).
Jet2holidays secured a score of 83.3, down 0.9 points from a year ago when it was placed sixth overall. Jet2’s score fell by 1.5 points to 82 out of 100.
Lastminute.com was among the top 20 most improved companies with a score of 73.4 and Trivago with a rating of 78.7.
Website navigation is the top issue that organisations in the tourism sector should improve, according to the report.
This is followed by making it easier to contact the right person to help; better app design; and the quality of products/services.
Around half of recorded customer experiences in the sector were conducted via an organisation’s website, more than in any other sector.
Across the sector as a whole, satisfaction with tourism organisations is 0.5 points (out of 10) higher than the UK all-sector average for speed of resolving a complaint, according to the new customer satisfaction index.
The leading causes of problems with organisations in the sector are quality or reliability of goods/services (cited by 36.5% of customers experiencing a problem), suitability of goods/services (21.2%) and staff competence (19.3%).
However, average customer satisfaction in the tourism sector is 79.6, the same as in January 2024 but 3.5 points above the UK all-sector average of 76.
Tourism is the fourth highest rated of the 13 sectors and is one point below the highest rated sector, retail (non-food).
Just 10.1% of customers had a problem or bad experience with an organisation, the lowest rate of any sector.
But satisfaction with customer service across all sectors remains near decade lows. The all-sector average is 76.1, almost the same level as a year ago and only 0.3 points higher than in July 2024.
Almost one in three customers are also found to be willing to pay for good service, even if it costs more, compared to less than one in five who prioritise low prices above all, demonstrating that businesses can reap the rewards of investing in a better customer experience, according to the ICS.
Chief executive Jo Causon said: “As we enter an economically uncertain 2025, businesses should be looking to every opportunity to boost productivity and revenue.
“This year’s UKCSI demonstrates a compelling case for why customer service matters to the UK economy, reflecting the clear relationship between customer satisfaction, productivity, and growth.
“Across the UK economy, service failures are costing billions a month in employees’ time and subsequent lost revenue.
“We can only achieve sustainable growth in the economy through long-term investment in products, services, and customer experience, as evidence shows us that organisations who consistently outperform their sector for customer satisfaction achieve stronger financial results.”