Motives for Thermal Tourism: An Application to North and Central Portugal

Health and wellness tourism should be particularly valued in the post-pandemic phase. It has the potential to be a strategic product that enhances the population’s well-being and quality of life, on social, physical, and environmental levels. Different proposals for specialized experiences that comp...

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Autores principales:	Filipa Brandão, Dália Liberato, Ana Sofia Teixeira, Pedro Liberato
Formato:	article
Lenguaje:	EN
Publicado:	MDPI AG 2021
Materias:	thermal tourism health and wellness tourism motivations consumers’ profile COVID-19 Environmental effects of industries and plants TD194-195 Renewable energy sources TJ807-830 Environmental sciences GE1-350
Acceso en línea:	https://doaj.org/article/87c75ef404534279a32552023a4cf91d
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spelling	oai:doaj.org-article:87c75ef404534279a32552023a4cf91d2021-11-25T19:03:25ZMotives for Thermal Tourism: An Application to North and Central Portugal10.3390/su1322126882071-1050https://doaj.org/article/87c75ef404534279a32552023a4cf91d2021-11-01T00:00:00Zhttps://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/13/22/12688https://doaj.org/toc/2071-1050Health and wellness tourism should be particularly valued in the post-pandemic phase. It has the potential to be a strategic product that enhances the population’s well-being and quality of life, on social, physical, and environmental levels. Different proposals for specialized experiences that complement what the destination offers allow to position regions as health and wellness destinations. Thermal tourism should thus be encouraged as a specific product designed on the innovation and diversification observed in the related services and the benefits recognized for all ages. Considering the relevance of thermal springs and thermal tourists for the image, positioning, and development of touristic destinations, this research aims to identify the specific motivations of tourists that attract them to the practice of thermal tourism, to understand how the benefits for which thermal tourists search and their sociodemographic profile influence the motivations of tourists, and how those motivations determine the characteristics of travel. This research was developed on the North and Centre of Portugal for their relevance in the context of thermal springs and related touristic activities. To achieve the research objectives, a questionnaire survey was conducted among thermal tourists, through a non-probability by convenience sampling, using bivariate tests, such as Pearson’s chi-squared test, one-way ANOVA, and t-Student test. The results highlight that most respondents practiced thermal tourism due to leisure and relaxation benefits, such as the escape from daily stress, spend time with family, and being “pampered”; relaxation is the most valued motivation, followed by the search for psychological and physical well-being. The research found relations between the benefits expected by thermal tourists and their travel characteristics, such as the composition of the group, the general travel motivation, the chosen thermal destination, and the number of nights spent at the location. In thermal tourism, new challenges emerge, demanding the development of strategies, products, and services that respond to the needs of specific market sections.Filipa BrandãoDália LiberatoAna Sofia TeixeiraPedro LiberatoMDPI AGarticlethermal tourismhealth and wellness tourismmotivationsconsumers’ profileCOVID-19Environmental effects of industries and plantsTD194-195Renewable energy sourcesTJ807-830Environmental sciencesGE1-350ENSustainability, Vol 13, Iss 12688, p 12688 (2021)
institution	DOAJ
collection	DOAJ
language	EN
topic	thermal tourism health and wellness tourism motivations consumers’ profile COVID-19 Environmental effects of industries and plants TD194-195 Renewable energy sources TJ807-830 Environmental sciences GE1-350
spellingShingle	thermal tourism health and wellness tourism motivations consumers’ profile COVID-19 Environmental effects of industries and plants TD194-195 Renewable energy sources TJ807-830 Environmental sciences GE1-350 Filipa Brandão Dália Liberato Ana Sofia Teixeira Pedro Liberato Motives for Thermal Tourism: An Application to North and Central Portugal
description	Health and wellness tourism should be particularly valued in the post-pandemic phase. It has the potential to be a strategic product that enhances the population’s well-being and quality of life, on social, physical, and environmental levels. Different proposals for specialized experiences that complement what the destination offers allow to position regions as health and wellness destinations. Thermal tourism should thus be encouraged as a specific product designed on the innovation and diversification observed in the related services and the benefits recognized for all ages. Considering the relevance of thermal springs and thermal tourists for the image, positioning, and development of touristic destinations, this research aims to identify the specific motivations of tourists that attract them to the practice of thermal tourism, to understand how the benefits for which thermal tourists search and their sociodemographic profile influence the motivations of tourists, and how those motivations determine the characteristics of travel. This research was developed on the North and Centre of Portugal for their relevance in the context of thermal springs and related touristic activities. To achieve the research objectives, a questionnaire survey was conducted among thermal tourists, through a non-probability by convenience sampling, using bivariate tests, such as Pearson’s chi-squared test, one-way ANOVA, and t-Student test. The results highlight that most respondents practiced thermal tourism due to leisure and relaxation benefits, such as the escape from daily stress, spend time with family, and being “pampered”; relaxation is the most valued motivation, followed by the search for psychological and physical well-being. The research found relations between the benefits expected by thermal tourists and their travel characteristics, such as the composition of the group, the general travel motivation, the chosen thermal destination, and the number of nights spent at the location. In thermal tourism, new challenges emerge, demanding the development of strategies, products, and services that respond to the needs of specific market sections.
format	article
author	Filipa Brandão Dália Liberato Ana Sofia Teixeira Pedro Liberato
author_facet	Filipa Brandão Dália Liberato Ana Sofia Teixeira Pedro Liberato
author_sort	Filipa Brandão
title	Motives for Thermal Tourism: An Application to North and Central Portugal
title_short	Motives for Thermal Tourism: An Application to North and Central Portugal
title_full	Motives for Thermal Tourism: An Application to North and Central Portugal
title_fullStr	Motives for Thermal Tourism: An Application to North and Central Portugal
title_full_unstemmed	Motives for Thermal Tourism: An Application to North and Central Portugal
title_sort	motives for thermal tourism: an application to north and central portugal
publisher	MDPI AG
publishDate	2021
url	https://doaj.org/article/87c75ef404534279a32552023a4cf91d
work_keys_str_mv	AT filipabrandao motivesforthermaltourismanapplicationtonorthandcentralportugal AT dalialiberato motivesforthermaltourismanapplicationtonorthandcentralportugal AT anasofiateixeira motivesforthermaltourismanapplicationtonorthandcentralportugal AT pedroliberato motivesforthermaltourismanapplicationtonorthandcentralportugal
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Motives for Thermal Tourism: An Application to North and Central Portugal

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