An examination of demographic trends clearly indicates that the population is ageing. It can be stated that there is a growth of mature age market (over 65 year old) and semi mature age market (over 55 year old). These population changes have created the pleasure travel market for the elderly. This mature age market is, on average; better educated, more affluent and has greater expectations than the generation before them and forms a large and influential market sector. Tourism industry can expect to face changing demands, needs and opportunities as population ageing.
Medical tourism, where patients travel overseas for operations, has grown rapidly in the past decades. High costs and long waiting lists at home, new technology and skills in destination countries alongside reduced transport costs and Internet marketing have all played a role. Several Asian countries are dominant, but most countries have sought to enter the market, Greece is one of these with a new project HARMONY. Conventional tourism has been a by-product of this growth, despite its tourist packaging, and overall benefits to the travel industry have been considerable. The rise of medical tourism emphasizes the privatization of health care, the growing dependence on technology, uneven access to health resources and the accelerated globalisation of both health care and tourism. In the recent past, a trend known as medical tourism has emerged wherein citizens of highly developed countries choose to bypass care offered in their own communities and travel to less developed areas of the world to receive a wide variety of medical services. This phenomenon is driven by marketplace forces and occurs outside of the view and control of the organized healthcare system. Medical tourism presents important concerns and challenges as well as potential opportunities. This trend will have increasing impact on the healthcare landscape in industrialized and developing countries around the world. The objective of this study is to identify the size and importance of the mature age (senior) travel market and its implications for the travel and tourism industry. Furthermore to examine the strengths and the weaknesses of the new project of our team THE MEDICS.
8. 8
ζηφρνο ηεο παξνχζαο κειέηεο είλαη λα πξνζδηνξίζεη ην κέγεζνο θαη ηελ ζεκαζία
ηεο ηαμηδησηηθήο αγνξάο πνπ αθνξά άηνκα Σξίηεο Ζιηθίαο θαη ηηο επηπηψζεηο πνπ
απηή έρεη ζηελ ηνπξηζηηθή βηνκεραλία. Δπηπιένλ ζθνπφο είλαη λα εμεηάζεη ηα
δπλαηά ζεκεία θαη ηηο αδπλακίεο ηνπ θαηλνχξγηνπ project ηεο νκάδνο καο, “The
Medics”.
Abstract
An examination of demographic trends clearly indicates that the population is
ageing. It can be stated that there is a growth of mature age market (over 65 year
old) and semi mature age market (over 55 year old). These population changes have
created the pleasure travel market for the elderly. This mature age market is, on
average; better educated, more affluent and has greater expectations than the
generation before them and forms a large and influential market sector. Tourism
industry can expect to face changing demands, needs and opportunities as
population ageing.
Medical tourism, where patients travel overseas for operations, has grown
rapidly in the past decades. High costs and long waiting lists at home, new
technology and skills in destination countries alongside reduced transport costs and
Internet marketing have all played a role. Several Asian countries are dominant, but
most countries have sought to enter the market, Greece is one of these with a new
project HARMONY. Conventional tourism has been a by-product of this growth,
despite its tourist packaging, and overall benefits to the travel industry have been
considerable. The rise of medical tourism emphasizes the privatization of health
care, the growing dependence on technology, uneven access to health resources and
the accelerated globalisation of both health care and tourism. In the recent past, a
trend known as medical tourism has emerged wherein citizens of highly developed
countries choose to bypass care offered in their own communities and travel to less
developed areas of the world to receive a wide variety of medical services. This
phenomenon is driven by marketplace forces and occurs outside of the view and
control of the organized healthcare system. Medical tourism presents important
concerns and challenges as well as potential opportunities. This trend will have
increasing impact on the healthcare landscape in industrialized and developing
9. 9
countries around the world. The objective of this study is to identify the size
and importance of the mature age (senior) travel market and its implications for the
travel and tourism industry. Furthermore to examine the strengths and the
weaknesses of the new project of our team THE MEDICS.
1. ΔΗΑΓΩΓΗΚΑ ΣΟΗΥΔΗΑ
1.1 Δλλνηνινγηθή Πξνζέγγηζε ηνπ Σνπξηζκνύ
Ζ ιέμε «ηνπξηζκφο» πξνέξρεηαη απφ ηε γαιιηθή ιέμε “tour” θαη ηελ
αγγιηθή ιέμε “touring”, πνπ έρνπλ σο ξίδα ηελ ιαηηληθή ιέμε “tornus” θαη
ζεκαίλνπλ γχξνο. Με ηελ πάξνδν ησλ εηψλ θαη θπξίσο απφ ηελ απαξρή ηνπ 20νπ
αηψλα, δφζεθαλ πνιπάξηζκνη νξηζκνί πνπ πεξηέγξαθαλ ην θαηλφκελν απηφ.
Δλδεηθηηθά θαη γηα ηηο αλάγθεο θαηαλφεζεο ηνπ πεξηερνκέλνπ ηνπ φξνπ
παξαηίζεληαη νη παξαθάησ.
Σν 1993, ν Παγθφζκηνο Οξγαληζκφο Σνπξηζκνχ φξηζε ηνλ ηνπξηζκφ σο «ην
θαηλφκελν πνπ πξνθχπηεη απφ ηηο πξνζσξηλέο επηζθέςεηο ή παξακνλέο αηφκσλ
εθηφο ηνπ κφληκνπ ηφπνπ θαηνηθίαο ηνπο, γηα νπνηνδήπνηε ιφγν πέξα απφ ηελ
απαζρφιεζε ηνπο κε ακνηβή απφ ηνλ ηφπν επίζθεςεο» θαη ηνπο ηνπξίζηεο σο «ηα
άηνκα πνπ ηαμηδεχνπλ θαη κέλνπλ ζε κέξε δηαθνξεηηθά απφ ην ζπλεζηζκέλν
πεξηβάιινλ ηνπο, γηα δηάζηεκα φρη κεγαιχηεξν ελφο ζπλερνχο έηνπο, γηα αλαςπρή,
εξγαζία θαη άιινπο ιφγνπο, πνπ φκσο δε ζρεηίδνληαη κε ηελ εμάζθεζε
νπνηαζδήπνηε δξαζηεξηφηεηαο ακείβεηαη απφ ηνλ ηφπν επίζθεςήο ηνπο».
Έλα ρξφλν αξγφηεξα, ην 1994 θαη γηα λα απνζαθεληζηεί ε ηνπξηζηηθή
δξαζηεξηφηεηα, ηα Ζλσκέλα Έζλε πξνέβεζαλ ζε δηάθξηζε ηνπ ηνπξηζκνχ ζε ηξεηο
κνξθέο :
Δγρψξην ηνπξηζκφ (Domestic tourism) : ν νπνίνο πεξηιακβάλεη θαηνίθνπο
κηαο ζπγθεθξηκέλεο ρψξαο πνπ ηαμηδεχνπλ κφλν εληφο ηεο ρψξαο απηήο.
Δηζεξρφκελν ηνπξηζκφ (Inbound tourism) : ν νπνίνο έρεη λα θάλεη κε ηα
εηζεξρφκελα ηνπξηζηηθά ξεχκαηα πνπ επηζθέπηνληαη κηα ζπγθεθξηκέλε
ρψξα θαη ηαμηδεχνπλ κέζα ζε απηή.