Resumen de Opportunities and Issues in the Health Tourism Industry: Deep Sea Water Development in Taiwan

Kuan-Huei Lee, Timothy Jeonglyeol Lee

• The deep sea water (DSW) industry has a great commercial potential for the global health tourism market. This study aims to investigate the successful relationships between stakeholders with a focus on the role of the government. Two surveys were conducted on the east coast of Taiwan to discover if the local governments were willing to give any assistance of the development of the DSW industry. The results of the study revealed that the first priority was the installation of a thalasso spa in Hualien, eastern Taiwan. Taiwan Government must consider that the opening of three similar facilities close together will need careful planning and study of the market size. The study suggests establishing a government-owned DSW Research & Development Park and thalasso spa near the three private sectors to balance the fierce competition among the three private companies.