Abstract:
Hospitality establishments are lacking in the aspect of family friendly services and facilities. There is not
much research of family friendly services in the hospitality industry. This may affect the satisfaction of
families on vacation. Family tourism is increasing worldwide such that it is now a huge market which
should be given attention. In Zimbabwe very few hotels are servicing families who come for holiday
vacation. This shows that lack of family friendly services, activities and facilities could affect customer
satisfaction resulting in low volumes to hotels. Kariba was used as the research area, which is one of the
popular destinations in Zimbabwe. The purpose of the research was to explore the level of satisfaction for
families with family friendly services offered by hotels in Zimbabwe. The researchers used qualitative
research design for hotels and tourists (supply and demand). The researchers established that the level
of satisfaction was low based on the limited choice and variety. Key findings revealed that there is still
extensive research lacking in the area of family friendly service provision. The services provided were
also noted to be of poor standard where quality was concerned. Hence hotels need to improve the
quality, quantity and variety of the family services so as to increase guest frequency and satisfaction
levels and thus become more sustainable.
