Health-Oriented Tourists and Sustainable Domestic Tourism

Timothy J. Lee, Ji-Sook Han and Tae-Gyou Ko
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Timothy J. Lee: Sustainability Research Centre, School of Social Sciences, University of the Sunshine Coast, Maroochydore DC Queensland 4558, Australia
Ji-Sook Han: Navi Wellness Tourism Research & Development, Saechang-ro, Mapo-gu, Seoul 04168, Korea
Tae-Gyou Ko: Department of Business Management, College of Business, Hallym University, Chuncheon 24252, Korea

Sustainability, 2020, vol. 12, issue 12, 1-16

Abstract: Health-oriented tourism has emerged as one of the fastest-growing niche tourism fields worldwide. Although there have been studies on the relationship between health and travel behavior, most have been from the perspective of travel motivation and have rarely examined the impact of travel on health. This study explores those travel elements that have a positive influence on health in the domestic health tourism industry, with health being viewed across three domains: psychological, physical, and social. A total of 28 health-contributing travel items reported by 862 package tour participants were analyzed. On the psychological health dimension, experiencing good feelings and escaping bad ones is important. On the physical wellness dimension, natural patterns of food intake during the day is strongly recognized, including the results of increased appetite and improved digestion. On the social health dimension, relationship improvements were experienced, along with a greater understanding of partner(s). These findings add to our understanding of traveler wellness, a significant step towards having the right information to enhance the quality of travel services, especially in the domestic health tourism industry.

Keywords: health-oriented tourism; travel elements; sustainable health; package tourists; domestic tourism; wellness tourism (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (9)

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