Millennials’ Intention to Visit Green Hotels in India—A Preliminary Analysis Using the Theory of Planned Behavior †

The purpose of this study is to investigate the factors that impact millennials’ intentions to visit green hotels in India and their willingness to participate in the sustainable practices offered by hoteliers. The main objective is to find antecedents of intentions that drive people to visit green hotels using the theory of planned behavior (TPB). This study will focus on millennials as they represent a major part of the consumption economy, having higher disposable income. A preliminary study was conducted using a questionnaire survey, and 35 responses were received. Structural equation modeling was performed to analyze the relationships. Measurement model analysis was performed to validate the instrument and structural model analysis was conducted for hypothesis testing. Collected data were analyzed using SmartPLS V4.0. Findings revealed that subjective norms have a significant impact on customers’ attitude (β = 0.374, p < 0.001) but not much influence on perceived behavioral control (β = 0.218, p > 0.1). Customers’ attitude (β = 0.609, p < 0.001) was found to significantly influence their green purchase intention; PBC (β = 0.242, p > 0.1) did not influence customer’s green purchase intention. Findings also confirmed that attitude is a crucial variable impacting customers’ green purchase intention to visit green hotels. Having a favorable attitude toward saving the environment will have a positive influence on customers’ intention to select a green hotel. This study highlights the factors impacting millennials’ intention to visit green hotels i.e., attitude, subjective norm, and perceived behavioral control. The study’s findings can be put to use by hoteliers to design sustainable strategies to build environmentally viable hotels and create awareness among the millennial generation to contribute towards sustainable tourism. This can also be utilized to gain a competitive advantage for hotels to market them as a differentiating factor in the highly competitive tourism industry. The government can utilize the findings to develop sustainable infrastructure for protecting the environment.