The Market

You need only to review the media to know that the world is changing at an ever-increasing pace. Tourism, as we know it, shows marked differences from the way it was. The Travel Industry Association of America estimates a huge market of over 43 million - in the United States alone - is ready, willing and anxious to pay a premium to stay in environmentally sensitive, less structured resorts.

An ever increasing number of tour companies now offer adventure travel or eco-tourism to the many who want to do more than lay in the sun. In fact, eco-tourism is currently the fastest growing travel sector worldwide with earnings in the billions. With increasing concern about the environment and themselves, travelers join special tours devoted solely to such pursuits as trekking, mountain climbing, sailing, tennis, biking, walking and self-improvement. They are sophisticated, educated, affluent travelers who enjoy mentally and physically active lives. And their numbers are growing all the time.

Over the past ten years, corporations have also spent many millions of dollars annually on employee workshops and courses to improve trust and understanding in the workplace. These are always held in natural surroundings outside of their normal business environment.

Reputable tourism publications like Travel & Leisure, Conde Naste Traveler and news publications like Newsweek have all recently included features on balancing body, mind and spirit in a resort environment; recognizing that this emerging trend in lifestyle and vacation will be more then just a fast fading fad.