Wellness holidays in between a holistic dream and an unbalanced reality

Abstract

The term wellness is widely used in European tourism. The principal observations regarding the wellness industry concern an expanding supply of and an insufficiently researched demand for wellness programs. The quality dimension of wellness services is increasingly becoming the decisive competitive factor. For this reason quality management plays an important role. Market research shows that average 3- to 5-star hotels provide fairly comprehensive wellness facilities. Wellness hotels should therefore specialize in health information, individual care and a wide range of cultural and relaxation programs. Although the same hotel can host cure and wellness guests at the same time, these two segments have to be considered separately when deciding on the marketing strategy. We therefore assume that wellness is pursued solely by 'healthy' people, the prime aim being prevention. 'Normal cure guests' aim to heal their illness.