ABSTRACT
The Kingdom of Bhutan is a very unique country in a number of ways. Firstly, it is one of the last countries to open its borders to Western influence, and this includes international standards of hospitality and tourism practices. Secondly, the Royal Government of Bhutan (RGoB) regulates the number of international tourists that visit through strict visa control, and has introduced a tariff system that requires a daily minimum spend, but also controls tourist movements through systematic check points. Thirdly, as a developing economy limited tourism infrastructure and the inability to deliver international hotel service standards directly impacts tourist perceptions of their overall experience in a negative way. Finally, and most importantly for this case study, there has been no formal tertiary education for the middle to senior management in Bhutan hotels, therefore international service standards and sustainable environmental hotel practices have been overlooked. In the past, to try and bridge this gap, foreign hotel managers with tertiary qualifications were acquired from countries such as New Zealand, Australia, Singapore, Switzerland and India, but this has always been a temporary solution and does not form part of the RGoB future plans.
