This year we celebrated the seventeenth edition of Termatalia in Ourense, a city completely dedicated to the celebration of the event and that allowed us to know all the thermal offer offered by the city and its surroundings. In this occasion we were invited among other tour operators to know the thermal, health and wellness offer offered not only by Spain but also other destinations more distant like Argentina, Mexico or Colombia.
The organization also allowed us to know the Euro Ciudad del Agua, which is the only cross-border route of the European Union that brings together Spanish and Portuguese cities (Verín, Vidago and Termas de Chaves).
For us it has been an extremely enriching experience to be able to get to know from first hand the most innovative treatments, hotels in which the thermal and wellness experience make them a destination in itself and above all we have been able to learn from the best professionals: both doctor as tourist. Wellness and wellness tourism will increase in the coming years, and this is supported by data provided by the World Health Organization where stress is considered a global epidemic, on the other hand the World Economic Forum believes that it is one of the most costly chronic diseases in terms of medical care.
Therefore Wellness or wellness tourism moves millions worldwide and data indicate that the sector does not stop growing. We have been able to prove in Termatalia that we will be working more and more to create a product where well-being is understood as an integration between physical, mental andspiritual well-being. The environment, and the possibility of performing, in that environment, all the physical and mental activities take special relevance. In addition, a trend that is increasingly fashionable, which is healthy food, in all its versions (macrobiotics, vegans, etc.) takes particular relevance, and is already present in many of the hotels and resorts that have been presenting their offer. Spain has a privileged environment, endowed with thermal waters and surrounded by various types of seas, with unique landscapes and first-class hotel offerings, therefore we have to value our resources and merge it with the high medical quality we have in our country, in order to create and promote new forms of medical tourism.
Another trend that we have been able to see at Termatalia and that this time comes from Europe, is the concern for prevention in all matters relating to health. Preventive medicine is undoubtedly one of the aspects that we must work on health tourism, and so are some communities such as Murcia, which presented its health tourism preventive and curative offer turning the region into an ideal destination for receiving the best health and therapeutic treatments.
Therefore we have to continue working in this line, creating a product where medical check-ups, or wellness treatments along with the stay in our country is a benchmark, and we can compete with other destinations that are already doing it.
Next year, the organizing country of Termatalia 2018 is Brazil, in the area of Foz de Iguazú, we hope that this time will come, so that we can continue to learn and share experiences related to medical, thermal and wellness tourism.
