EVALUATION OF THE POTENTIAL OF THE CROSS-BORDER REGION BULGARIA-SERBIA FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF WELLNESS, MEDICAL SPA AND SPA TOURISM – POSSIBILITIES AND PERSPECTIVES

The aim of this study is to analyze the potential of the Bulgaria-Serbia cross-border region for the development of balanced Wellness and SPA tourism concerning the medico-biological and medico-social assessment of tourism resources and professional competencies of the employees. More than 30 mineral springs and 21 tourist sites have been studied. There are good medico-biological conditions for the development of intensive medical SPA, Wellness and SPA Tourism. The combination of free spring flow and specific climate conditions is a big advantage for the development of highly specialized tourism as the medical SPA. On the other hand, the lack of a working model to control health risk, environmental and safe working conditions in SPAs is one of the obstacles for the development of this kind of tourism. The obtained results show the need to develop specific skills and professional competencies of the personnel. A new model for management of Wellness and SPA Tourism, based on competency modeling is presented. The core idea of this model is to find a good balance between indoor and outdoor environment, highly qualified personnel and quality services. The necessity of establishing a competency framework and certifying the medical SPA and SPA services, implementing the quality management system (QMS) and health risk assessment system (HSE) is outlined with the view of promoting the specialized tourism product on the international market