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What is Spa and Wellness?

Similar to most hospitality careers, the spa and wellness industry is a service-oriented industry focusing on improving the guests well-being. Spa and wellness industry careers offer the opportunity to enhance customers and colleagues lifestyles on a daily basis.

What is a Spa?

According to the Global Wellness Summit, a spa is an "establishment that promotes wellness through the provision of therapeutic and other professional services aimed at renewing the body, mind, and spirit."

Types of Spas, as described by ISPA

Resort or Hotel Spa

A spa located within a resort or hotel providing professionally administered spa services, fitness and wellness components.

Destination Spa

A destination spa is a facility with the primary purpose of guiding individual spa-goers to develop healthy habits. This lifestyle transformation can be accomplished by providing a comprehensive program that includes spa services, physical fitness activities, wellness education, healthful cuisine and special interest programming.

Mineral Springs or Thermal Waters Spa

A spa offering an on-site source of natural mineral, thermal or seawater used in hydrotherapy treatments.

Day Spa

A spa offering a variety of professional administered spa services to clients on a day-use basis.

Club Spa

A facility whose primary purpose is fitness and which offers a variety of professionally administered spa services on a day-use basis.

Medical Spa

A facility that has a full-time licensed health care professional on-site, which is further defined as a health professional who has earned a degree of Doctor of Medicine (M.D.) as defined by the American Medical Association.

What is Wellness?

According to GWS and consistent with the World Health Organization, wellness is a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being. "It goes beyond mere freedom from disease or infirmity and emphasizes the proactive maintenance and improvement of health and well-being."

Wellness Tourism is comprised of tourists who seek to improve or maintain their well-being during or as a result of their trip, both internationally and domestically.

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