Wellness tourism in Romania

Wellness tourism is an important part of Romanias tourist offer. Mineral and thermal waters, mud with therapeutic properties, gas therapy, and the Black Sea Coast with its benefits for health are all powerful arguments for the Romanian wellness tourism

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Daniel Onea, 17.05.2018, 14:34

Most Romanian resorts have a long and well-known tradition in treating various ailments and are located in scenic environments. Romania is one of the first countries in the world to have created a scientific society of balneology and climatology. Nicu Rădulescu, the President of the Employers’ Association in the Romanian Wellness Tourism tell us if the current offer in Romania is competitive: “It is a very attractive offer from a wellness point of view, given that Romania holds about one third of the natural, mineral water resources of the whole European continent. These data are confirmed by the World Travel & Tourism Council. At present, Romania boasts all the natural elements for cure and treatment of almost all existing ailments, among which the classical mineral and thermal waters and some unique natural elements. All of Romania’s regions, be they located in the mountains or on the Black Sea Coast, have wellness resorts where people can spend quality time while taking care or their health and well-being.”

In the past, the foreign tourists who came to Romania used to compare its resorts with Karlovy Vary. There is now a trend aimed at advertising wellness tourism in Romania, given that the infrastructure, the hotels and treatment bases have been upgraded and refurbished in many resorts. Romania holds some of the largest resources of waters with curative properties, and their quality and efficiency has been indeed confirmed.

Nicu Rădulescu: “There are spas and wellness resorts of national and international interest where lots of investments have been made of late, such as Băile Felix, Sovata, the resorts in the heart of Transylvania, Tuşnad and Covasna, the resorts in the region of Oltenia such as Govora, Olăneşti, Călimăneşti, Căciulata, Amara – in the south of the country, those in the west among which Buziaş and the resorts in the region of Moldavia among which Slănic Moldova. In many of these resorts the 2-star hotels have been refurbished and turned into 3 and 4-star hotels. Also Băile Felix boasts the first 5-star wellness compound in Romania, an investment made last year that can compete with any other such compound in Europe. Furthermore, there are these traditional treatments specific to Romania such as those using an anti-rheumatic cream named Boicil after its creator, physician Vasile Boici, or the anti-aging treatments created by the famous Romanian academician Ana Aslan. Romania is a much sought-after spa destination for foreign tourists who come from all over the world, and this sector is growing by the day. Thanks to investments, the spa and wellness domain in Romania has grown by 10-12% in the past 3 or 4 years.”

Spas and wellness resorts are usually viewed as a destination for elderly people. However, this is a preconceived idea, and there are many arguments contradicting it, for instance, prophylactic treatment is always beneficial, irrespective of age, then many resorts offer entertainment options not necessarily tailored for third-age people.

Nicu Radulescu: ”In recent years, wellness companies provide their own packages, a mix of services including the treatment option proper (which includes, mineral water baths, sapropelic mud wrappings, fresh air cures) and many other types of offers. Since most of the resorts lie either in nature parks or in beautiful areas, tourists can also go fishing, hiking, and the like. There are service packages on offer, which include not only the treatment option but also the leisure option. For instance, the spas and wellness resorts in the region of Tusnad, central Romania, have bear-watching towers for tourists to watch the animals in the wild. There is quite a wide range of offers and adjacent services provided through the joint effort of hotel mangers and travel agents.”

Romania boasts an incredible number of spas and wellness resorts spread across the whole of its territory. Most likely than not most tourists are now focusing their attention on the Romanian Black Sea Coast. There, there are all sorts of wellness and treatment centers which take advantage of the therapeutic qualities of the mud in Techirghiol Lake, some 15 kilometers south of Constanta. Apart from the mud in Techirghiol, wellness centers on the Romanian Black Sea Coast also use other natural cure factors in the area, such as seawater, mesothermal sulphurous waters and peat mud, extracted near the town of Mangalia.

However, visitors should not limit themselves to traveling to the Black Sea Coast, says Nicu Radulescu, the President of the Employers’ Association in the Romanian Wellness Tourism: ”All our spas and resorts are truly special. All have something extraordinary on offer. Most of them have a rich history. Also, visitors stand the chance of talking to people and discovering the stories of the places. Yesterday I ran into two Portuguese nationals, from Lisbon, whom I asked why they came to Tusnad. They told me that they felt really fine, that waters were extremely good. Both of them suffered from rheumatism and chose to come here every year to treat their condition. They always leave Tusnad with a ravenous appetite for life. We can provide loads of examples as there are people who come here with a lot of joy and great satisfaction. We do not use any medication, the head physician of the resort is the one prescribing the procedures. We are a wellness center and we don’t use medicines. Wholeheartedly, with all my love and completely open I invite any Romanian or foreign tourist who is interested, to come to Romania. Extending the invitation, I tell everyone there are extraordinary things to be seen here. We assess the tourists’ condition upon arrival as well as upon departure. The results are spectacular. There are surveys showing that the treatment based on natural cure factors is really working wonders in Romania. “

We have already extended the invitation! Join us again next week to discover another travel destination in Romania.