Wellness Tourism in the Post COVID-19 Era in Blue Zones and Insular Areas. The Case of the Island of Ikaria

Abstract

This article presents a type of tourism, that of wellness tourism, which is developing rapidly in Greece and more specifically aims to examine how wellness tourism evolved during the COVID-19 pandemic, how it is located on the island of Ikaria, and also what is the perspective of potential and current consumers of tourist services on this island. The research indicated that although the pandemic damaged severely the tourism sector, tourists are willing to travel, showing also a preference in the country. The study also showed that the island of Ikaria is a well-known destination with a high percentage of the sample having visited it but without receiving any wellness services and a quite significant percentage not knowing about them. Moreover, the majority of the sample expressed their intention to visit the island and to promote the destination to others and also their strong belief that the staff in the tourism industry will meet the individuals’ needs regarding the measures taken due to the pandemic.