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During a vacation in the Tyrolean Alps, guests experience a significant improvement in their well-being and sleep quality, while their stress levels decrease.
Some of the health improvements measured are still detectable two weeks after returning from vacation.
The length of the stay has no impact on the health effects, so short getaways of up to four nights are no different from longer vacations.
Well-being during vacation is positively correlated with the perceived naturalness of the surroundings, while the mere frequency of time spent in nature and the level of physical activity do not play a statistically significant role.
Abstract of this study
Although alpine regions are popular travel destinations, the relationship between leisure vacations and subjective mental health indicators has been little studied to date. This study examined changes in self-reported health indicators during a vacation in Tyrol, as well as the role of vacation duration, physical activity, and time spent in nature.
In a long-term study, 104 vacationers (age: 47.20 ± 11.99 years) were surveyed before, during, and after their stay regarding well-being, quality of life, perceived stress, and sleep quality; physical activity and time spent in nature were also recorded.
The analyses show improvements across all health parameters, with some positive effects persisting even two weeks after the vacation. While vacation duration was not associated with the health parameters, a positive association was found between the naturalness of the environment and well-being.
Vacations in the Tyrolean Alps can thus serve as an effective, low-threshold strategy for health promotion, with the duration of the vacation appearing to be of secondary importance. Stakeholders in the tourism sector should develop nature-based offerings that emphasize the qualitative characteristics of the mountain landscape.
Key Findings of This Study
- Improved Well-Being: During a vacation in the Tyrolean Alps, guests’ psychological well-being improves significantly from the day of arrival through the day of departure.
- Improvement in all areas of quality of life: Subjective quality of life increased significantly during the stay in all four domains examined—physical health, mental health, social relationships, and the environment.
- Improved sleep quality: Respondentsreported significantly better sleep quality on the day of departure.
- Significant reduction in stress: Reported stress levels decreased significantly during the vacation.
- Sustained recovery effects: Some of the health improvements—including well-being, mental quality of life, and sleep quality—remained significantly above pre-vacation levels even two weeks after returning home.
- Independence of vacation duration: The number of nights spent onvacation did not correlate with any of the measured health parameters at the end of the vacation. No significant differences in health parameters were observed between short vacations and long vacations.
- Importance of environmental quality: The perceived naturalness of the vacation environment proved to be a significant positive predictor of well-being.
- Minor role of physical activity and frequency of nature exposure: Neither the level of physical activity nor the mere frequency of time spent in nature showed a significant influence on well-being.
- Practical recommendations for recreation and tourism: Since even short stays have a restorative effect and the quality of the landscape is crucial, taking several short breaks throughout the year and protecting intact natural areas are particularly recommended.