Lithuania is the largest of the three Baltic states, covering 65,200sq km (25,150sq mile) and with a population of 3 million people. Tourists are attracted by its beautiful unspoilt landscape of coniferous forests, lakes and the sand dunes of the Curonian Spit, its medical heritage and the affordability of its integrative health services which are intrinsic to the national culture and a core part of its healthcare system. A 70-minute massage, for example, costs only €38 (US$51, £32).

In 2011, 26 per cent of tourists stayed in a dedicated spa resort or old sanatorium according to figures from the Lithuanian Association of Hotels and Resorts (LAHR). They came to drink and bathe in the country’s famous mineral waters and sample its therapeutic mud baths and treatments that are frequently prescribed to improve health and wellbeing. Lukas Mackevicius, president of the National Spa Association of Lithuania, explains the appeal: “Lithuania had been, and remains, rich in its wellness culture. In the late 18th century, mineral waters in the southern town of Druskininkai were found to have health benefits and so its usage in the medical treatment of asthma and other ailments began. The practice became increasingly more popular as the word about them spread.

“Then in the early 19th century, Ignatius Fonberg, a professor at Vilnius University [in Lithuania’s capital], analysed the chemical composition of the water to find it contained large amounts of calcium, sodium, potassium, iodine, bromine, iron and magnesium. He recommended that the government declare the town an official health resort and today it’s widely known as the spa capital of Lithuania.”

Tourism growth
In March 1990, a year before the break-up of the Soviet Union, Lithuania stunned the world as the first country to stand up to the powerhouse and declare its independence.

In the years that followed, Lithuania struggled greatly in the transition from a planned communist economy to a free market one, yet prior to the global financial crisis of 2007 it reportedly had one of the fastest growing economies in the European Union. And in 2011, it was categorised in the highest category in the United Nations Human Development Index, a composite measure of health, education and income levels, alongside countries like the USA, Japan and UK.

In 2011, LAHR statistics show that tourism generated €1.3bn (US$1.7bn, £1.1bn) or a 4.6 per cent slice of GDP. A significantly larger proportion of revenue was generated by foreign visitors compared to domestic visitors – €960m (US$1,281m, £804m) versus €356m (US$475m, £298m).

Despite the austerity backdrop, the number of visitors to Lithuania is growing significantly. The most recent figures available from Statistics Lithuania, a government department, show visitors rose by 27 per cent from 2010 to 2011 and by 12.2 per cent in the first six months of 2012 compared to the same period in 2011 (see Table 1). From January to June 2012, the trend of slightly higher foreign visitor numbers also continued with 484,000 tourists (56.9 per cent) from abroad compared to 370,000 (43.1 per cent) from Lithuania. The foreign tourism comes mainly from the European countries of Russia, Poland, Germany, Belorussia and Latvia.

Spa tour
During my short trip to Lithuania, I covered almost 1,000 miles visiting seven spas from traditional wellness sanatoriums, to those focused on pampering and even one, Etno Spa, which offered beer baths! In the spa town of Druskininkai there were spa and wellness venues everywhere you looked from small outlets to those of bewildering vastness – the Grand Spa Lietuva which I was shown around had 500 bedrooms and offered more than 160 treatments. It was created in 2009 from a huge €53m (US$70m, £44m) investment party funded by the European Union.

Most of the spas concentrate their offerings around the mineral water and mud treatments administered by medical staff. Mackevicius says: “Our spa culture is medically-orientated and results-driven, generally with no frills. We’re not so biased towards pampering, as 95 per cent of spa visitors have therapeutic experiences and come to prevent or treat illnesses.”

Unfortunately, high standards of delivery, comfort and service were a little harder to find. Years of suppression following the split from the Soviet Union has meant the readiness of a smile or a naturally relaxed demeanour is not yet common. Another generation or two and I think things may look a lot different.

In addition, very few facilities are profit orientated. “Most spa venues are busy, however, the commercial success is not as prevalent in all of them,” says Mackevicius pointing out two extremes. Energetikas, like most old-style sanatoriums, has a large number of guests (70 per cent) who are government-funded patients he says, with only 30 per cent of its customers actually paying for services direct (see Case Study 1). And from my visit to Grand Spa Lietuva, I can confirm that no value is usually given to even simple commercial additions such as retail. In comparison nearly all guests at Spa Vilnius Sana – a high-end hotel spa that opened in 2004 – are private customers (see Case Study 2).

This was my first visit to Lithuania and I know it won’t be my last. It surprised and thrilled me in equal measure. Not least, the preventative and pro-active health traditions that are so ingrained in everyday living, but also the immense potential to further develop the wellness offering.