Suomalaisten terveys- ja hyvinvointimatkailukohteiden kartoitus
Keywords:
tourism destination, well-being tourism, health tourism, tourism servicesAbstract
The aim of this study was to define criteria for a health and well-being tourism destination and by applying these criteria to find out the Finnish health and well-being destinations. The qualitative data analysis was used to analyze the opinions of the Finnish health and well-being tourism clients (2066 respondents). Based on the clients’ vision and the literature review, the criteria for the destination mapping were created. The document analysis was used to study the Finnish websites of different destinations; the aim was to search for factors determined by the criteria. The interviews were conducted with the representatives of selected tourism destinations to gather more information. The criteria used were marketing the destination as a health and well-being tourism destination, specialized facilities, the presence of nature, opportunities to exercise and different kinds of treatments and restaurant services available. According to the criteria, the tourism destination could be smaller or wider than a town or city and there had to be a coordinating tourism organization and more than one health and wellbeing tourism service provider. As a result, Levi, Ylläs, Vuokatti, Kuopio-Tahko region, Mikkeli, Lappeenranta and Imatra region, Heinola and Naantali proved to be Finnish health and well-being tourism destinations.
