Well-being and healing and characteristics of demand for spas in Hungary
Flórián Strack, Ágnes Raffay-Danyi
Abstract
The study focuses on the demand for and success criteria of certified Hungarian spas. According to the latest official records there are 98 certified spas in the country (Government Office of the Capital City Budapest). These service providers are very important because their operation is a key determinant of the success of one of the country’s most important tourism products, health tourism. The main objectives of the research are to analyse the characteristics of demand for spas, the most frequent guest types, and to discover the criteria for success of spa operation. Furthermore, the study aims to assess the current trends and the challenges spas face. The research uses multiple methods including an online questionnaire survey designed for spa managers, content analysis of comments on Hungarian spas on Google Maps, and structured interviews with Hungarian spa tourism experts. The findings indicate that families, senior citizens and empty nesters are the key market for the Hungarian spas, which are also popular by international visitors, the three main generating countries are Germany, Romania and Slovakia. While Hungarian visitors prefer medical services financed by social insurance most, followed by wellness services; international visitors opt for wellness services primarily, followed by self-financed medical services.