Bulgarian Health Tourism Competitive Advantages Opportunity For Foreign Investors

Proceedings of The 3rd International Conference on Research in Management

Year: 2021

DOI:

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Bulgarian Health Tourism Competitive Advantages Opportunity For Foreign Investors

Assoc. Prof. Dr. Mariana Ianeva, Dr. Stiliyana Basmadzhieva

ABSTRACT: 

According to the Concept for the tourism regions in Bulgaria, seven out of nine tourism regions have an extended specialization in the field of health tourism, and for one of them health tourism is its main one. Based on that we can make the conclusion that health tourism is one of the leading specialized types of tourism in the country. Taking into account the current health and economic world situation, Bulgaria needs to aim sustainable tourism management, in particular in health tourism field.  In the current global health crisis, priority for Bulgaria should be health tourism in its three subtypes – balneology, spa and wellness and medical tourism. The purpose of the article is to shed light on opportunities for local and foreign investments in the field of health tourism in Bulgaria. The methodology of the research is based on systematic and holistic approaches, and it covers: analysis and synthesis; induction and deduction; analogy; abstraction; comparative analysis; statistical and descriptive methods. Sustainable tourism management could include several measures related to the destination’s external marketing, product policy, and other activities for encouraging investments, supporting the development of health tourism in the country and attracting international tourists. The main results of the article are related to the prove of the main thesis –attracting potential investors from all over the world based on identifying the potential of Bulgaria as a destination for health tourism and its competitive advantages. Bulgaria is a favourable country for investments in the health tourism field and in particular the investment processes could be directed in two main directions – in products and sites for health tourism, considering the specifics of each region and the level of development in the specialised superstructure.

Keywords: health tourism, investments, competitive advantages, marketing management, innovative approach.