Did you apply...?

... maybe you or your hotel / spa applied for the EUROPEAN HEALTH & SPA AWARD, then you have chances to win prizes about 30.000 EURO.

Interested in, what we are talking about? Have a look here and watch the video.

The Austrian WelDest team is proud to be part of the jury of the Award. Dr. Eva Adamer-König and Prof. Dr. Kai Illing are members of the jury team. At the moment they are testing facilities in and outside of Austria but they are also judging many many pages of application papers.

The results you can see at the SPA EVENT 2013 from 12th to 13th Nov. 2013 in Vienna. Further information to that event, you will find here. The Spa Event is one of the biggest Spa Industry related events in German speaking countries.

You can also find some information about the Spa Event 2013 and the EUROPEAN HEALTH & SPA AWARD on Facebook.

May be the next winners? 

New ways of thinking: Innovation in health tourism education

FH JOANNEUM Bad Gleichenberg offers a part-time MBA program in International Hospitality and Spa Management as from March 2014, breaking new ground in the field of tourism education.

Info: www.fh-joanneum.at/hsm 

This innovative and unique MBA program is designed both for people presently working as managers in the hospitality and spa industry or in health tourism and for those planning to do so in the future. The part-time international master program is taught in English and is structured on a flexible, modular basis. It includes extensive e-learning components, which allow students to apply what they have learned directly in their professional practice.

 “There are many degree programs in the field of tourism, but our special focus is on the practical requirements at the interface between hotel and spa management. We place particular emphasis on market and employee-oriented management in this context. ” Eva Adamer-König, Head of the MBA program

The degree program has been developed by hotel and spa managers from Europe and Asia together with experts from European universities and the internationally renowned tourism and hospitality vocational schools of Bad Gleichenberg under the coordination of FH JOANNEUM Bad Gleichenberg.

"Today's hospitality industry leaders require a better understanding of the new competitive landscape, such as dealing with institutional owners, developing e-commerce strategies, revenue management, international law and strategic management, rather than just tactical operational issues. The newly established Master in International Hospitality and Spa Management covers exactly these and other important topics to ensure its students are well equipped with the latest industry knowledge to further enhance their career opportunities in the future. The combination of e-Learning and interactive participation at the campus builds an ideal learning environment which I can only highly recommend." Markus Platzer, Area General Manager InterContinental Bangkok and Holiday Inn Bangkok

Interface management in hospitality and spa business

The graduates have an integrative understanding of the diverse requirements and operative and strategic tasks in hospitality and spa management and continually expand this expertise through their professional activities.

The graduates work as managers at the interface between health and tourism, in jobs such as:

• Spa managers with interdisciplinary responsibilities ranging from finances and marketing to human resources management through to customer relationship management and day-to-day business, e.g. monitoring of technical equipment.
• Marketing and sales managers in hotels with/without health tourism facilities.
• Strategic corporate planning experts in companies operating health tourism facilities (spa chains, wellness hotels, destination spas, day spas, etc.)
• Coordinators of human resources development projects in hotels and spas
• Project managers responsible for budgeting, financing, personnel and  business planning in companies involved in the development of spa and hotel projects.
• Self-employed consultants in operative and strategic spa management.
• Operators/managers of hospitality businesses with a health tourism focus (e.g. wellness hotel) or (independent) managers of facilities in the spa industry (day spas, spas, etc.)

"Our graduates can manage a spa as a business unit or as an independent company, but they are also prepared to manage hotels and in that context to make spa-related business decisions." Daniel Binder, MBA program coordinator

People who are interested in the program will find more information here:

International Hospitality and Spa Management or here.

FH JOANNEUM University of Applied Sciences

International Hospitality and Spa Management
Kaiser-Franz-Josef-Strasse 24
8344 Bad Gleichenberg, AUSTRIA
Program coordination and information
Mag.(FH) Daniel Binder
E-Mail: daniel.binder(at)fh-joanneum.at
Tel.: +43 (0)316 5453-6724
Fax: +43 (0)316 5453-9 6724

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Balinese wellbeing - "eat, pray,love" way

Art by Ayung Resort, Ubud.
 

Bali is considered to be a world leader in spas and wellness. I had the opportunity to visit this magical island during May 2013. The month of May brings the islanders to the end of the wet season when the coulds scurry across the skies, the wind is little fresher and the rice in the fields is being harvested. A perfect time to visit.

Mandara Spa Villas

 



NUSA DUA AREA

My trip started at Nusa Dua area in Nikko Resort and Spa , which is set in a unique area overlooking the sea from a 40 meters high cliff edge. As I was participating a congress, I did not have that many opportunites to enjoy the many services they offered, but did take the time to sample their Mandara Spa once. The spa itself is down by the beach and offers a wide range of Balinese massages and body treatments that can be enjoyed in one of eight well-appointed Balinese spa villas or at the beach-side bale. The girl at the reception was very polite. The treatment in one of the villas was very pleasant and relaxing. I can really recommend a visit at this resort and the spa. 







UBUD AREA

After the busy congress it was time to travel uphill to an area called "Ubud". If you ever saw the movie by Julia Roberts "Eat, Love and Pray", you know the place. Rice paddies, lush and green forests, narrow roads, people, cars, animals - all in a peacefull harmony. In the middle of all this I found an oasis for body and soul. It is called the Ayung Resort.



Entrance to one of Bali's best kept secrets: Ayung Resort

The Ayung Resort Ubud is a luxurious blend of natural surroundings, an eclectic art collection and traditional Balinese hospitality located in the lush tropical rain forest along the banks of The Ayung River - Bali’s most sacred and important waterway. Their slogan "Hear the Silence - Feel the Peace" is very true. The five nights spent at this resort have been one of the best ever - and I have travelled a lot. This place is so new you could almost call it a secret. The hotel has several builings and private villas to choose from. I stayed at the Laksmana Bedrooms overlooking a stunning infinity pool and wild jungle.


Infinity pool overlooking wild jungle.

My days were leisurely spent reading a book by the pool, visiting Ubud village, dining at the hotel restaurant and enjoying the spa treatments. A perfect holiday for body and soul! The Dewi Sri Spa is small in size but has excellent facilities for different treatments both indoors and outdoors. I sampled two different treatments. The first treatment was a Thai massage by a young male therapist. The combination of oils and herbs was a bliss and I felt completely relaxed after the hour and a half. On my day of departure I decided to pamper my feet with a complete pedicure. The young female therapist was very thorow and did such a good job the nail polish lasted a month and my feet were as good as new!

 

My sincere thank you goes to Hotel GM Frits Henskes and the lovely Marketing Manager Elisabeth(Elle) Siboro and their beautiful staff for making my stay so special - I shall return!

 

 

(Text and all photos: Susanna Saari)


Sink or Swim?

Changes in the Czech Health Care System

 Spas in the Czech Republic

The Czech spa industry has a long tradition. Quality spa care in the Czech Republic is based primarily on natural medicinal resources associated with the use of highly specialized medical science. Spa towns have been creating unique architecture for many years, and have supported and continue to support culture and the arts. The best known Czech spas are part of the West Bohemian spa triangle, which includes Karlovy Vary (Karlsbad), Marianske Lázně (Marienbad) and Františkovy Lázně (Franzensbad) and aims to be a UNESCO World Heritage Site. 

Františkovy Lázně

At present, however, the spa industry is undergoing very significant changes and some spas are literally fighting for their existence. The situation is caused by changes in the List of Indications, a decree by the Ministry of Health which regulates the diagnosis and under what conditions a patient is eligible for treatment stays covered by health insurance. The new list was made effective in October 2012 and now the first effects of the changes are beginning to show. According to the Association of Spas "... through this adjustment the number of of insured residential days at spas has decreased by more than 50%. This is due to a combination of these restrictions and shortened lengths of patient's stays. One has to consider that policyholders made up an average of 56% of all overnight stays and in spa locations outside the West Bohemian spa triangle even up to 90%.“

Janské Lázně

Czech spas are now in a situation where they have to rethink their strategies. There are certainly a number of strategies they can apply, whether it be penetration of new markets in geographical terms or in terms of market segment, or the creation of new products, focusing for example on medical tourism, which is a new trend, and not only in Europe. A recent example is Janské Lázně, which has always been focused primarily on children and treatment of the musculoskeletal system. Now, however, parts of the Vesna children's treatment center are being rebuilt for accommodation facilites even for adult patients. Time will tell whether the changes in the List of Indications from the Ministry of Health will lead to the promotion of the Czech spa industry in terms of its further development or will ultimately harm Czech spas.

Great Spas of Europe

Karlovy Vary (also Karlsbad or Carlsbad) in the Czech Republic, one of the most well-known spa towns in the world, is leading the way as the project coordinator in a bid to be recognized by UNESCO along with other spa towns from France, Germany, Austria and Italy. The nominations will be submitted in 2015 for World Heritage status for the trans-national  „Great Spas of Europe“ group.

Karlovy Vary

Four spas towns in the Czech Republic are involved in the project group. Three of the towns – Karlovy Vary, Františkovy Lázně and Mariánské Lázně –  lie relatively close together and make up what is known as the West Bohemian Spa Triangle. The fourth spa town is Luhačovice in East Moravia, which is currently cooperating with the WelDest project team in their research on Health and Well-being destinations. In 2008 the West Bohemiam Spa Triangle submitted their own application to be recognized as a World Heritage site, but was placed on a tentative list with UNESCO as they requested further studies to look at other spas.

It remains to be seen whether the bid will be accepted, but throughout this complex process the Great Spas of Europe group continues to work toward ensuring that each of the project members fulfill the criteria necessary to be granted World Heritage status and determining the details of the management plan should they be accepted.