Competing Customers' Expectations of Geothermal Spas in Tourism: The Case of The Blue Lagoon, Iceland

• Main Authors: PHUA, Voon Chin, ŞEREMET, Mehmet
• Format: Book Part
• Language: English; Turkish
• Published: TAM Yayınları 2024
• Subjects: Termal SPA; Turizm; İzlanda; Mavi Lagün; Kitle Turizmi; Thermal Spa; Tourism; Iceland; The Blue Lagoon; Mass Tourism
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.12685934

In this paper, we examine the impact of mass tourism on tourist venues that are marketed for their dual attraction as a place for wellness and unique environment. We use The Blue Lagoon as our case study. The Blue Lagoon in Iceland is a geothermal spa marketed as a unique experience for tourists. The U.S. News reports it as the #5 in Best things to do in Reykjavik and that it receives more than 700,000 visitors annually, about double Iceland’s population. As a site for both personal wellness and tourism, the Blue Lagoon has to contend with the potential conflicts between the dual roles it plays. It is in this light that we examine tourists’ complaints about the Blue Lagoon on TripAdvisor website. Using the 281 reviews between 2018 and 2022, we focus on the issues that address the site as a popular tourism attraction and a geothermal spa. Our thematic analysis suggests three major challenges the operation of the Blue Lagoon faces. The first is how the Blue Lagoon is marketed and the extent the image created is in congruence with tourists’ experiences. The second is the challenge brought about by the Blue Lagoon’s popularity as a tourist site, such as overcrowding. The increased footprints and associated ills are not in accord with the concept of wellness that a spa promotes. The third surrounds the issues concerning how to balance the profitability of spa for tourism and the promotion of wellness. The findings have implications for other thermal spas that are also promoted for tourism . Bu çalışmanın temel amacı, kitle turizminin, sağlık ve eşsiz bir çevre gibi ikili çekicilik özellikleri bulunan ve bunu temel alarak pazarlanan turistik mekanlar üzerindeki etkisini incelemektir. Örnek saha olarak İzlanda’da bulunan Mavi Lagün seçilmiştir. İzlanda'daki Mavi Lagün, turistler için eşsiz bir deneyim olarak pazarlanan jeotermal bir kaplıca özelliği göstermektedir. U.S. haber, Mavi Lagün’ü deneyimlemenin Reykjavik'te yapılacak en iyi şeyler arasında 5. sırada olduğunu ve yılda 700.000'den fazla ziyaretçi çektiğini, ...