How Wellness Tourism Will Flourish in 2021
Demand for Wellness Tourism Post COVID-19
Like every other industry, wellness tourism also heavily felt the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. With travel restrictions and other strict regulations, wellness centres had to temporarily close shop like most other businesses. The situation began improving slowly with every nation aggressively implementing vaccination programmes. People also became aware of the significance of maintaining their physical, mental, and emotional health to prevent infections.
Capitalizing on this changing attitude of people, wellness centres began offering various kinds of therapies to help people build immunity and speed up the recovery of those suffering from Covid-19 fatigue. Gradually, the wellness industry is now making a comeback, taking small steps at a time. However, since most travel restrictions are still in place, spas and wellness centres are banking more on domestic travellers to drive revenues.
What Experts Predict for Wellness Tourism
Experts predict that the wellness tourism industry will be worth around 1$ trillion by 2022. Even though it got badly hit by the pandemic in 2020, there are clear indications that the sector is going to receive a boost in the coming years. With restrictions on international travelling still in place, people are rediscovering the joys of visiting local beauty spots. Wellness centres will benefit significantly from this increase in domestic tourism. Governments are slowly easing restrictions, which will increase international tourism and further boost the wellness industry.
Homer Lim, medical director of The Farm, Sam Benito, says that people are making major lifestyle changes to boost their immunity and improve their mental health. They realize the impact that health-focused vacations can have on their overall well-being. As per surveys, many people have begun planning their wellness vacations. This is a significant development that will lead to a growth in wellness tourism,
Why Is There More Demand for Wellness Vacations Today?
People recovering from infections are known to continue suffering from symptoms like loss of smell, mental fog, tiredness, or breathing difficulty. Also, those with existing ailments like diabetes or heart issues know that they are more vulnerable to developing serious complications of the infection.
Such people want to improve their chances of survival by enhancing their physical and mental well-being at wellness centres and health spas. Also, people who lost their close relatives to the disease are looking for ways to cope with their losses and get on with their lives. Besides, there are many people who want to get away from all the COVID-related stress, connect with nature, and relax at a peaceful destination where they can recharge their bodies and minds.
How Are Wellness Centres Reinventing Themselves Post Covid-19
The change in people’s mindsets towards health has given a wonderful opportunity for wellness centres to reinvent themselves and revive their sector. To cater to such people, these centres are offering recovery packages that include nutrient-rich meals and alternative healing methods like energy healing, acupuncture, detox programs, ozone therapy, meditation, and yoga.
These centres are also trying to widen their customer base and reaching out to people from countries all over the world so that when the situation improves, more people will want to try out their on-campus programs. They are providing virtual well-being sessions on social media that focus on fitness, meditation, immunity-boosting techniques, and other self-care practices to increase their awareness.
Wellness spas have become more holistic in their approach than before. Earlier, a wellness vacation used to mean a full body treatment or a facial massage. But, now these centres are stressing more on the overall well-being and including programs like meditation, yoga, and spirituality to heal the mind, body, and soul. Visitors can rejuvenate themselves in beautiful natural surroundings and participate in healing practices and consultations with health experts.
People can spend valuable time in natural surroundings, discovering the healing power of nature to boost their mood and relieve stress. There will be more stress on outdoor activities since occupying the mind in constructive activities is excellent for improving mental health.
Are These Health Centres Following Safety Guidelines?
Health centres are trying to gain back visitor’s confidence by following safety protocols and vaccinating all their staff members. They are providing their staff with training in hygiene practices and ensuring that they stay at the centre itself, and avoid unnecessary travelling. Any visitor coming for treatment will have to produce a negative Covid-19 test report on arrival. To ensure better safety and control, they are catering to only a limited number of visitors at a time. Some centres are even offering free antibody testing for visitors on arrival.
Following the pandemic, people are more health-conscious than before and are more willing to explore holistic approaches to maintain their physical and mental well-being. Instead of focusing only on aspects like beauty treatments or weight loss techniques, wellness centres today offer experiences that provide more holistic healing on the physical, emotional, and spiritual levels. With this shift in people’s attitudes towards mental and physical health, industry experts are confident that global wellness tourism will make a strong comeback in the near future.
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