October 14, 2019 - The 3rd Adriatic Health, Sport & Tourism Forum gets underway in Zagreb next week with a rich field of international speakers, including Lutz Lungwitz, President of the German Medical Wellness Association. TCN caught up with Lungwitz ahead of the conference.
The story of the excellence of Croatian medical tourism is slowly making its way into international channels. One key channel to connect the international medical tourism community to the opportunities within Croatia is the Adriatic Health, Sport & Tourism Forum, which will meet for the third year at the Westin in Zagreb on October 21-22, an event which TCN will be attending. As with previous years, this year's event has brought together some of the leading figures in the world of medical tourism, and TCN managed to catch up with one of the key speakers recently, Lutz Lungwitz.
Lutz Lungwitz has been President of the German Medical Wellness Association (www.dmwv.de) and of the International Medical Wellness Association, both based in Berlin, since 2004. He was kind enough to find time in his busy schedule to answer a few questions about the forum and Croatian health tourism in general.
1. You are a regular speaker on the Croatian medical tourism circuit. Tell us about the Adriatic Health, Sport and Investment Forum - what makes it a little different than the rest?
The first two Adriatic Health and Tourism Investment Forum in 2017 and 2018 showed us very clearly, how important it is to initiate new tourism projects in the field of health and medical wellness and to discuss as one of the main points investment opportunities at the same time. This is the main and important difference to some other, although very nice, conferences in Croatia for the development of health tourism. We have to discuss about financing strategies; without a budget all of us will lose and the dream of development in health tourism is just a dream.
In addition, the high professionality of Dr. Bura and his team, his warm-heartedness and his great hospitality plays a very important role to come to Zagreb for the forum. Dr.Miljenko Bura helps considerably with this conference, and he has created a feeling that we are a great "family" for the development of various health tourism projects. It is fascinating how good Dr. Bura's network is for all of us. I get a lot of input from him and believe me, the conference is on a very high level, including speakers, translators and program.
2. A lot is written about wellness tourism in this region. Slovenia seems to have developed this sector well, with 40% of all overnights related to wellness, while it barely figures as a sector in Croatia, despite a proud history and large potential. Why do you think that is, and what are the main areas we should be focusing on?
In the field of health and wellness tourism, I don’t like to speak about the word competitors, I like more partners. The market is big enough and we will continue to rise in the future due to the age pyramid in Europe. The target groups and the respective country structure are different. I think Croatia should develop a modern young health tourism, that will especially contribute to the extension of the season on the coast, making the hinterland more famous and meaningful as a destination, as well as the capital Zagreb. Croatia can benefit from the numerous inputs from Slovenia. In Central Europe, the target markets are Vienna, Munich, Zagreb, Bratislava, but although Berlin if you look to the time schedules of the possible flights. If you look although to the flight schedules at Zagreb airport, you will find a lot of international flights, more than nice for the development of health tourism. However, the potential can only be achieved, if the service and the quality of the offers are correct. The importance of Croatian seaside resorts, for many decades, should be pointed out in a modern way. This history confirms wellness and health holidays in Croatia and is not artificial.
3. You are actively watching the Croatian medical tourism industry, and many experts say it has the potential to be in the top 10 in the world. Do you agree with that assessment? What is the potential of the industry in Croatia and what should the key focus of the stakeholders be to develop that industry?
Personally, the potential for the further development of medical and health tourism to Croatia seems very, very high. Croatia has a unique nature, both with the Adriatic, as well as the hinterland. Croatia is easy to reach and Croatian hospitality is world-famous. It is always hard for me to speak of a ranking, because it is not clear which scale is used. What is certain, however, is that Croatia has the potential to become a major and leading country for the promotion of health and therefore health tourism. For health tourism I feel, that Croatia can be a big player in the field of dental and rehabilitation tourism. For surgeries, the main important point is in my view, to get international accreditations, to show the customer the high level of medical solutions in your country. In my mind at the end of all will be good customer care and tourist program.
4. Germans have been an important source of tourists of Croatian tourism in general for decades now, and many Germans indulge in wellness tourism. Is Croatia even on their radar for wellness tourism, and what should be the focus to make it so if not?
Germany and so the German tourist are certainly one of the important source markets for the development if tourism to Croatia. Like other nations, the German guests travel directly to the Adriatic Sea in the summer months. The term wellness is not immediately associated with Croatia until now, which is certainly wrong. I think we should make a joint effort to all of our partners, also with the involvement of the German Medical Association and its brands: "The Leading Medical Wellness Hotels & Resorts" and "The Leading Medical Clinics & Spa" to present a new image to the public. So you have, as one example, in Rijeka, Opatjia or in Sveti Martin, very nice Thermal Resorts. Croatia is much more, as we currently offer only beach holidays in the summer! Important is the development of an umbrella budget to be used together, because for one hotel or resort it costs too much money to be present in the German or international market alone. Through targeted spa services, the hotels can generate good sales in the off-season. What could be better to enjoy having a massage or similar in the colder winter months by the sea or in the hinterland, with a view of nature or the sea, or just spend time together in Croatia? Croatia could be a very nice wellness and health-tourism country.
5. What would you say are the key strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats for Croatian medical tourism?
Croatia should clearly show its uniqueness and the very good care of the guests and patients, the Croatian hospitality and the Croatian specialties, such as wine and prsut in the foreground, as well as its excellent locations such as the coast, the capital Zagreb and the hinterland - places such as Sveti Martin. It’s important to constantly reflect on oneself, evaluate and set new impulses. Likewise, the international market must be constantly monitored. Croatia's neighbors can become tough competitors. The goal, however, cannot be to reach patient groups, with low prices and the result is the poor quality. One positive opportunity for Croatia in this way, is that it is a small country, so I hope that all stakeholders will work on a ground level together. It gives the chance to meet everybody regularly and can show how important the market is. It starts from the government and will include hotels, resorts, clinics and spas. For the customer it’s important to have a very friendly service and true photos and true facts from the promoting websites.
6. Improving infrastructure and developing projects are key themes of this conference. How attractive is Croatia to the German investment market, and what types of medical tourism investment projects do you think should be the focus?
Croatia, as a "new" member of the European Union with high potential and secure laws, is certainly interesting for investors. Although, as we all know, it’s generally very difficult to address investors or to win them on a short-term basis. In my mind the main goal of medical tourism investment projects, is the developing of Medical Wellness hotels & resorts, with high comfort and with extraordinary treatments and rehabilitation Projects. Medical Wellness is the combination of conventional medical services, like: plastic surgery, dental, eyes, hair, beauty and cosmetics, alternative therapies and offers the relaxation in the traditional spa, as well as massage and sauna treatments, Thalasso-Therapies, Ayurveda, TCM, Kneipp-Treatments, Physiotherapeutic, Detox and more.
The future investment projects should be a mixture of the development of existing buildings and the development of new projects on a very high, modern and sustainable level for medical wellness. I hope that we can develop a common education system for hotels, resorts and clinics.
As a conclusion of this interview let’s say: “Let’s work together and develop Croatia as a Leading Medical Wellness, Wellness and Health Destination, with a high standard of Wellness, Medical Services and Rehabilitation Programs” for its own population and the guests from abroad.
For more details about the 3rd Adriatic Health, Sport & Tourism Forum in Zagreb on October 21-22, check out the full programme here.
To learn more about the forum organisers, including their other initiatives to develop medical tourism in the Adriatic, visit the Medical Group Ltd website.
To follow the latest in the Croatian medical tourism story, follow the dedicated TCN section.
