Due to the improvement in the quality of life and the global aging trend, health tourism has been rapidly growing in recent years. The increasing demand for wellness and recreation has created opportunities for the global wellness tourism market. Hot spring tourism is an important sub-sector in the health and wellness tourism domain. Hot spring establishments in China provide more wellness-focused services, such as massage, hydrotherapy, and traditional medical treatment. However, there is a significant lack of discovering the development of the hot spring tourism industry in China in the literature. To fill the current research gap and contribute to the emerging trend, this chapter uses a case in Guangdong Province to introduce and analyze the largest hot spring tourism market in China and aims to (1) introduce the current situation and development of the hot spring tourism market in China, (2) explore the sustainability attributes in Guangdong hot spring tourism destinations, and (3) provide recommendations to the local tourism destination management office. The implications of this study will enrich the literature on sustainable hot spring tourism and assist in drawing the profiles of domestic tourists’ preferences in China.

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Hot Spring Tourism Destination Sustainability Performance and Competitiveness: A Case in Guangdong, China

  • Caifen Jiang,
  • Li Ding

摘要

Due to the improvement in the quality of life and the global aging trend, health tourism has been rapidly growing in recent years. The increasing demand for wellness and recreation has created opportunities for the global wellness tourism market. Hot spring tourism is an important sub-sector in the health and wellness tourism domain. Hot spring establishments in China provide more wellness-focused services, such as massage, hydrotherapy, and traditional medical treatment. However, there is a significant lack of discovering the development of the hot spring tourism industry in China in the literature. To fill the current research gap and contribute to the emerging trend, this chapter uses a case in Guangdong Province to introduce and analyze the largest hot spring tourism market in China and aims to (1) introduce the current situation and development of the hot spring tourism market in China, (2) explore the sustainability attributes in Guangdong hot spring tourism destinations, and (3) provide recommendations to the local tourism destination management office. The implications of this study will enrich the literature on sustainable hot spring tourism and assist in drawing the profiles of domestic tourists’ preferences in China.