Wellness, Well-Being... And What About Spa?

Recently I spoke at the Washington Spa Alliance Symposium in Washington, D.C. What drew me to participate was their theme: "The New Language of Spa". This is a topic about which I have thought a great deal over my many (don't ask how many!) decades in this industry. So I feel uniquely qualified to address what is now becoming an ongoing question: "What's the difference between wellness, and well-being...and where does that leave spa?" If you go by the book, here is how Merriam-Webster makes the distinction: "Well-being: the state of being happy, healthy, or successful" "Wellness: the quality or state of being healthy" "Spa: a place where people go to improve their health and appearance by exercising, relaxing, etc." Language evolves to reflect our culture. Certain words begin in the jargon of an industry, then grow in colloquial usage, then become part of the vernacular. This is true in our industry, which began with "spa" as an all-encompassing term; then came "wellness", though it was not clearly defined; and then came "wellness tourism" which began to take hold as consumers were choosing travel with a healthy focus and we needed a way to talk about it...and measure it. And here is where it gets interesting: according to Global Wellness Institute research, the worldwide wellness industry is valued at over USD $3.4 trillion, with spa alone accounting for USD$60 billion. So you see, there is much to discuss. Today we stand at the threshold of another term entering the con...
Source: Healthy Living - The Huffington Post - Category: Consumer Health News Source Type: news