해양치유관광 활성화 방안 연구

A Study on the Strategies for Activating the Marine Healing Tourism: Focused on the Analysis of the Marine Healing Tourists’ Needs and the Current Situations

WHO(World Health Organization) defines health as the state of being physically, psychologically, socially, and mentally happy and sound. Accordingly, human health can be improved by being in a psychologically, socially and mentally sound relationship with others. Because of this change in the perspective on health, social changes due to aging, and stress resulting from highly civilized societies, people in modern society have begun to recognize the importance of preventing mental and physical illnesses and begun to pay attention to mental cure. As aging is becoming an important social issue, medical costs needed to address geriatric illnesses are sharply rising and social costs are also rising, which is due to mental and psychological illnesses such as stress, depression, and sociophobia common in the rapidly changing modern society. To address these problems, the government has presented the concept of healing as one of the core government projects. Despite these government efforts, the marine healing tourism, to which many provincial governments have recently paid attention, has not taken shape in its concept and scope. This study provides an understanding of the concept and background of marine healing tourism which is drawing attention in the midst of the changes in tourism industry. This study also intends to provide ways to invigorate marine healing tourism by providing analyses of resources for marine healing tourism, marine healing tourists’ needs, marine healing tourism-related policies and marine healing tour programs.