Written by Camille Hoheb and Laszlo Puczko, in collaboration with the Hungarian National Tourism Plc., the 4WR report is the collection of information from 140 visionaries representing stakeholders from wellness, tourism, spa and healthcare industries in over 50 countries worldwide. Wellness tourism is one of the fastest growing forms of international and domestic tourism. This trend is not expected to change in the coming 5-10 years. There is one major risk, however: the globalization of standardized and uniform products and services. Key findings of the 4WR Full Report help developers, managers and policy makers and others vested in wellness tourism build on or develop individual competitive advantages and as importantly, avoid costly common mistakes. The report exposes the biggest opportunities over the next 10 years, to better define new product development strategies.
Wellness Tourism Worldwide subscribes to the notion that wellness is more than a spa or a physical orientation (e.g. fitness). WTW is based on the domains of wellness and quality of life indicators. This approach addresses human health in a comprehensive manner and assumes that individuals will actively participate in protecting their health and in preventing diseases.
The wellness industry encompasses everything from spa, food and nutrition, complementary and alternative medicine, to active-aging, and fitness, to workplace wellness, medical and wellness tourism. With regards to tourism, spa and wellness tourism are often considered synonymous and the same can be said of medical and health tourism. Yet all four have unique and different meanings and are manifested in various ways around the world.
Travel for health
Travel can make us happier three ways:
1) with the anticipation and planning of the trip
2) enjoying the vacation
3) relishing the memories that often last a lifetime.
Tourism can enhance our well-being and quality of life, especially if we do it regularly enough, and we may even experience moments of joy. Research studies suggest that going on trips can affect meaningful change, increase work productivity and as importantly, improve health by enhancing sleep and remarkably, decreased the incident of heart disease. These benefits can be enhanced significantly if we engage in health or wellness tourism specifically. That is to say, we travel with the explicit aim or principle motivation of improving our physical and mental condition. This can include improving emotional
well-being, such as stress reduction and calming the mind, as well as healing or rejuvenating the body. By 2000, health motivated travel became very popular and we could observe the proliferation of approaches and services and many countries, destination and operators (re)entering the health tourism scene. Wellness Tourism Worldwide has mapped out the recent situation as well as the expected changes in the coming 10 years. We developed a Global Health Tourism Service Grid in which we introduce the inter- and intra-relationships of the key services and approaches in the spectrum Wellness Tourism Worldwide that extends between medical and wellness services. The Global Health Tourism Service Grid aims at travel ranges from travelling for summarizing the most important types of services invasive treatments (operations) and assets.
4WR: Wellness for Whom, Where and What?
What? – Current Assets (2011)
One of the key objectives of 4WR was the recognition of assets available for wellness tourism. This is key information since the wide range of available assets can serve as one of the foundations for future developments and is essential to product diversification. 4WR found that:
Africa:
In Africa, the natural environment and traditional spirituality received relatively high importance as assets for tourism.
Asia:
In South-East Asia, spirituality achieved the highest importance (the highest absolute rating among all the regions, too), while medical treatments and services as well as alternative treatments were also important. In the Far East, spirituality and complementary and alternative methods were rated as important assets.
Australia, New Zealand and the South-Pacific:
The natural environment and traditional and alternative treatments are important assets, whereas medical services/treatments have the lowest ratings.
Europe:
Nature and the environment are important in every region of Europe, particularly in Southern Europe. Natural healing assets are significant in Western and Central-Eastern Europe. Both non-invasive medical treatments (e.g. rehabilitation) and surgical services are important in every sub-region (except Southern Europe).
Middle-East:
Natural healing as well as traditional services seem to be important, as are medical services.
The Americas:
In North America both invasive and non-invasive medical services are considered to be the most important assets. Alternative treatments and the natural environment also enjoyed high ratings, and spiritual treatments appeared to be more important than in Europe…Read the full version of the article on emag.spamantra.in
Issue 6 Page 90
