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Health spa travel markets: Mexican long-haul pleasure travellers

Centre for Tourism Policy and Research, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada V7T 2G4 Telephone: 1-604-291-3074; e-mail: peter_williams{at}sfu.ca, The Centre for Tourism Policy and Research at Simon Fraser University in Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada

Gail Andestad

School of Community and Regional Planning at the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, British Columbia

Anna Pollock

The Strategy Group, an international consulting firm in Herefordshire, England

Karim B. Dossa

This research provides insights into the nature of the Mexican health spa tourism market. The overriding research hypothesis is that a comparatively strong long-haul pleasure market for health spa-related tourism exists in Mexico, and that this market can be differentiated from other more generic Mexican long-haul travel groups. Using information derived from the Tourism Canada-United States Travel and Tourism Administration (USTTA) long-haul market data sets, the paper begins by outlining the health spa affinity of travellers from several European, Asian and Latin American countries on their long-haul pleasure travel vacations. The research then describes the characteristics of Mexican health spa travellers. Using a long-haul market segmentation framework developed by Tourism Canada and the USTTA, it identifies how Mexican long-haul health spa visitors differ from other travellers to that destination in terms of their socio-demographic, attitudinal and behavioural traits. The paper then describes tivo distinct groups of Mexican health spa users that offer a particular opportunity for tourism businesses interested in attracting Mexican long-haul pleasure travellers. In the process of describing these Mexican health spa travellers, the paper also suggests an effective step-wise method for identifying high potential long-haul niche travel markets.

Key Words: health tourism • health spas • market segmentation • Mexican travel

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