Najdanović, Zoran; Palić, Mirko Destination Branding in Medical Tourism: Opportunities for Croatia // Proceedings of the 28th CROMAR Congress “Marketing in Multiverse: From Real to Virtual”. Pula i Zagreb: Juraj Dobrila University of Pula, Faculty of Economics and Tourism “Dr. Mijo Mirković”; Croatian Academy of Sciences and Arts, 2024. str. 123-141
Abstract
Medical tourism represents one of the oldest forms of tourism intended to provide health services that contribute to preserving the physical, mental and spiritual health of a person. During the last decade, it has become the fastest growing form of tourism at the global level, which indicates an increasing concern for one’s own health and an orientation towards a healthy lifestyle. In the highly competitive industry of medical tourism, branding is the future. The main goal of this paper is to explore the possibilities of branding Croatia as a medical tourism destination. Croatia has the potential to become a successful health tourism destination in the near future. It is necessary to analyze the potential that Croatia contains for the purpose of developing such form of tourism and to consider the elements that influence its development and recognition on the global market. When creating a brand, it is very important to create special, unforgettable feelings and experiences with potential consumers. Branding a destination means creating a certain awareness of that destination, in the eyes of consumers, making it recognizable. After detailed analysis of the factors contributing to health destination branding, recommendations for the future development of Croatia as a medical tourism destination have been provided in the summary of the paper.
Keywords: medical tourism, health tourism, destination branding, Croatia
Cite: Najdanović, Zoran; Palić, Mirko Destination Branding in Medical Tourism: Opportunities for Croatia // Proceedings of the 28th CROMAR Congress “Marketing in Multiverse: From Real to Virtual”. Pula i Zagreb: Juraj Dobrila University of Pula, Faculty of Economics and Tourism “Dr. Mijo Mirković”; Croatian Academy of Sciences and Arts, 2024. str. 123-141
