Sustainable rural development in Northwest Iran: proposing a wellness-based tourism pattern using a structural equation modeling approach

Today, wellness tourism has become a thriving industry. In wellness tourism, the tourists travel to relieve the pressures of ordinary life and become refreshed with no medicinal intervention. In wellness tourism, tourists seldom have any specific physical illnesses; rather, they are interested in enjoying the healing properties of certain regions. In this non-experimental research, a structural equation model was used to analyze the data to explore various aspects of well-being and identify the variables that influence wellness tourism. The statistical population included 237,415 tourists who visited the tourist attractions of Sarab County in Iran. The sample size was determined 384 subjects. The results showed that destination location in terms of climate, positive image of the region, excellent food, as well as physical, traditional, and historical appeals of the region, were the factors that had the highest effect on determining the destination of wellness tourism. In general, this study contributed to the development of wellness tourism in the world including Iran. The practical steps were taken based on the strategies, and approaches presented to reduce stress which enhances well-being during the COVID-19 outbreak.