INTEGRATION OF HEALTH –ORIENTED INDUSTRIES (BALNEOLOGY, SPA AND WELLNESS) IN THE SCOPE OF BULGARIAN TOURISM

GEORGI GEORGIEV
MARIA VASILEVA

 

Abstract

Health-oriented tourism is assessed as a segment of increasing importance within the scope of the global tourism industry for the last decades. Fast developing processes of segmentation and fragmentation resulted in establishment of separate categories and subcategories of health tourism such as SPA, Wellness and Balneo-oriented tourism. Their wide popularization across the world and customer satisfaction is a precondition for their differentiation into independent industries going beyond the scope of tourism. And logically here comes the most important question – what is the key concept for each of these three industries? How are they treated within the different countries and regions in the world? Why is not there a common concept and definition for SPA and Wellness tourism around the globe? What is the reason for the abundance of interpretations, describing their scope, scale, used means and final products? This paper analyzes the most important problems related to the definitions of SPA, Wellness and Balneo-oriented industries and their specific features in tourism. Some recommendations and a model for their development in Bulgarian are proposed.

 

Key words

SPA, Wellness, Balneo tourism, Health-oriented tourism

 

References

Global SPA Summit, 2008, The Global Spa Economy 2007, SRI International.
Smith M.and L.Puczko, 2008, Health and wellness tourism, p. 85
Smith. M., C. Kelly, 2006, scientific article Wellness Tourism, in Tourism Recreation Research vol. 31 (1).
Spa, Health and Wellness sector Foreign Competitor Profiles, 2006, Canadian Tourism Commission and partners,
Spa Business Association, http://www.britishspas.co.uk/spa_guide/definitions.php
Tabacchi, M.H. 2007,. PKF Growth of the Spa Industry. PKF Trends in the Hotel Spa Industry.PKF Consulting/PKF Hospitality Research. Los Angeles, CA.
Universidad de Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, 2007, The internationalization process of Wellness Tourism, 2007
Regulation on categorization of accommodation establishments, restaurants and places of entertainment, 2007, Proclaimed by Government decree 357 dated on 27.12.2004, Promulgated in
State Gazette issue 46 /12.06.2007, amended in issue 98/ 27.11.2007
www.experienceispa.com/includes/media/docs/Global-Best-Practices-FINAL.pdf

 

Full Text: PDF (English)

Please publish modules in offcanvas position.