RELAXATION FROM NATURE, SAUNA AND POOLS
Finland is a sparsely populated country with 5.5 million inhabitants. Around 65 per cent of Finland's total land area is covered by forest and 10 per cent by lakes. The on-going WelDest consumer research
in Finland has got 2,177 respondents so far. Almost 80% of the respondents are
female aged between 40 and 60 years.
According to preliminary results, the
most important factors which influenced the latest choice of a health and
well-being destination of the Finnish respondents were in order of importance:
possibility to relax, opportunities for outdoor and indoor sport activities,
spa treatments available, nature, and nice scenery. Sauna and pool offerings
are also highly valued. When choosing a
health and well-being destination, the Finns seem to rely on their earlier
positive experiences in a destination. The Internet is the second most
important source affecting the choice of a health and well-being destination.
The Finns seem to take nature almost for
granted. The WelDest survey in Finland didn’t have any foreign respondents, but
according to earlier tourism surveys conducted for foreign tourists in Finland,
nature is the most important pull factor of the country. Forests seem to be an
immense source of health, which could be productised to larger extent in
Finland. According to research carried out in Finland, Japan and the
Netherlands, e.g. green surroundings, silence of the forest, hiking and other
activities in the nature have several positive effects on health including
recovering from stress, positive effects on blood pressure, pulse rate as well
as immune functions.
If you want to dig deeper in the preventive health-related effects of
nature and forest, you can read the scientific article Nature Therapy and Preventive Medicine (link)
