Role of Language to Make or Break a Tourist Experience in a Cross Culture

This paper presents a review of the literature relevant to the topic of intercultural communication in the hospitality industry. English has become the accepted lingua franca of international business, and this is referred to by others as the built-in bias of the English language (Munshie and McKie, 2001). The hospitality industry is a prime example of this, and it has become accepted practice for customer-facing hotel staff to be able to speak English to come extent, regardless of the country in which the hotel is located. It is much less likely for an English receptionist to speak Spanish, for example. One expert has pointed out that frequently non-verbal communication can be misinterpreted. For example, normally a handshake is brief but in Spain it may be prolonged for several seconds. This does not show deep personal warmth as it might somewhere else. Welch et al (2005: 11) point out; intercultural communication can actually be an irritating reminder of what may be involved in crossing foreign cultures, and managing in a cross-cultural environment.