Service interactions are increasingly cross-cultural as invariably they now involve parties from different cultural groups. Tourism establishments, however, have not always been able to create successful cross-cultural service interactions as negative interactions are widely reported. Negative cross-cultural service interactions affect tourists’ and service hosts’ experiences, and disfavour tourism businesses. Thus, there is a need to understand what factors shape cross-cultural service interactions and how these factors might influence the outcomes of cross-cultural service interactions in international tourism.