Modelling spa-goers' choices of therapeutic activities

Owing to the dearth of studies analysing choices of treatments in spa settings, this study drew on choice theory and Gesler's concept of therapeutic landscape to offer novel insights on spa-goers' choice of treatments. Evidence from 314 spa-goers in Ghana revealed that on average, spa-goers undertake three main treatments in varied combinations, with massage, beauty therapy and thermotherapy being the most patronised. Further, a multinomial logit and a zero truncated negative binomial regression showed that choice of type and number of treatments are both influenced by a multiplicity of factors including age, level of education, travel party size, spa experience, type of guest, length of stay and expected benefits. Given the increasing desire of governments and other policy makers in enhancing the health status of citizens, this information could serve as a valuable means for enticing participation in promotional health activities in spas. Much more, wellness service providers and destination marketing organisations can rely on these findings for segmenting patrons of wellness products and services.