The Impact of Tourists' Awareness of Greenwashing on Their Intention of Booking Green Accommodation Services: The Mediating Roles of Green Skepticism and Tourists' Trust

The study investigated how tourists' awareness of greenwashing affects their intention to book green accommodation services, focusing on the roles of green skepticism and trust as mediators. A structured questionnaire was used to assess tourists’ ability to identify misleading environmental claims, trust in service providers, skepticism towards sustainability claims, and intention to book green accommodation services. The survey was distributed online and in person, resulting in 303 valid responses. The data were analyzed using SPSS version 20.0 for preliminary statistical analyses and AMOS version 24.0 to conduct Covariance-Based Structural Equation Modeling. Results indicate that tourists’ awareness of greenwashing increases green skepticism and positively influences trust, while its direct effect on booking intention is not significant. Interestingly, tourists’ green skepticism strengthened their trust and booking intention, suggesting that critical thinking may help tourists make more confident, informed decisions. Trust was found to be the strongest predictor of tourists’ booking intention, with both green skepticism and trust mediating the relationship between awareness and behavioral intention. The study concludes that skepticism can serve as a useful filter, helping tourists differentiate between superficial and genuine sustainability claims, offering valuable insights for hospitality professionals seeking to build credibility in a consumer-conscious market.