Developing Wellness Tourism Destinations and Customer Experiences
Dates: TUE 14–TUE 28.8.2018
Organizer: University of Turku & Turku University of Applied Science
Price: 720 € (inc. Social Programme)
Credits: 5 ECTS
Class size: minimum 10–maximum 30
The application period has closed
Are you studying business, tourism, hospitality, sports, event management or health promotion?
This course offers a unique opportunity to get an overview of the experience economy and the ever increasing global wellness trend in the context of tourism and leisure.
During the course, we will discuss and analyse wellness tourism experiences both at company and destination level. The learning approach is characterized by international and multi-disciplinary team learning. The theoretical knowledge will be applied in case studies conducted in the coastal towns of Turku and Naantali, which build the gateway to the largest archipelago in the world.
Implementation
- Pre-assignment; written essay based on relevant literature
- Contact learning; key notes, learning cafes, case studies/group work, tutoring and presentations at Turku University of Applied Sciences/Lemminkäisenkatu 30 and University of Turku /Rehtorinpellonkatu 3,
- Excursion to Naantali, site inspections and case studies.
Course description
The course introduces students to the ever increasing global wellness trend by concentrating on the phenomenon of wellness tourism and its determinants and market trends.
The aim of the course is to enhance the understanding on the various factors that influence the success of wellness tourism destinations and service providers who operate within these destinations.
In addition to lectures and learning cafés that shed light to the theoretical understanding of wellness consumption, the course also has a strong practical content related to tourism destination management and customer experience management.
Students are engaged in group work and conduct various cases and assignments in close cooperation with the tourism industry.
Through the discussions and practical assignments, the students will understand the significance of various factors that influence the success of wellness tourism destinations and wellness tourism experiences. Moreover, they will learn to develop more holistic, sustainable, and competitive wellness tourism destinations as well as more emotional, memorable, and self-enhancing wellness tourism experiences.
Learning objectives
After completing the course you are able to
- explain the wellness and experience-based tourism phenomenon; determinants, drivers, and trends behind them
- identify occurrences of this megatrend in Finland and other countries at company and tourism destination level.
- classify the wellness concepts, identify the target groups, and analyse the main factors influencing the competitiveness of the wellness companies and destinations
- understand different service development process models in order to design new wellness tourism experiences or to improve existing ones.
Assignments and assessment
- Pre-assignment; based on selected articles and independent information search on wellness consumption, destination management and experience management. Marked 1–5, weight 40%.
- Active participation, case studies with written reporting and oral presentations. Marked 1–5, weight 60%
Teachers
Juulia Räikkönen, D.Sc. in Econ. & Bus. Adm., Post-doctoral Research Fellow, Turku School of Economics, University of Turku
Juulia Räikkönen holds a doctoral degree in economic geography and is interested in experiential consumption in its various forms, e.g. tourism, leisure, culture, well-being and retailing. Her doctoral dissertation focused on co-creation of tourism experiences in the context of package tourism and her recent research themes are related to the value creation in wellness tourism, the role of emotions in experiential consumption and the measurement of experiential consumption though alternative methods and technologies. Email: juulia.raikkonen (a) utu.fi
Telle Tuominen, M. Sc. in Econ. & Bus. Adm., M.A., Senior Lecturer, Turku University of Applied Sciences
Telle Tuominen is interested in wellness tourism, destination management, service design and tourism marketing. She is currently responsible for co-ordinating two ongoing EU financed projects with objectives of developing insular tourism destinations and lifestyle tourism products. She was also a core team member of the international projects Health and Well-being in Tourism Destination, and Innovation and Learning in Spa Management. Email: telle.tuominen (a) turkuamk.fi
Subject to change