Pärnu spas have strong first day after reopening but need Finns to return
While business at bigger spas in Pärnu has restarted in quite a strong fashion, it is not yet up to the level it was before the emergency situation. Estonians mostly visit on weekends and spas are desperately awaiting the arrival of Finnish tourists.
Head of Estonia Spa Hotels Andrus Aljas said it had been a long time since it was fun to go to work. He also added it is pleasing to see people had not forgotten about spas over the emergency situation.
"It is looking better now, we're getting quite a lot of bookings from Estonia, Latvia, and Finland. I can't say that the situation now is anything like last summer, but there's some hope now," said Aljas on ETV's "Aktuaalne kaamera".
He called the people of Estonia "spa people", but added Finns are needed to cope with losses sustained during the emergency situation.
"In the case of overnight accommodation, weekends are starting to be rather fun, the building is more than half-full. On weekdays, it's more complicated. We're still hoping on the Finnish market," Aljas added.
The most anticipated opening has been that of Pärnu Tervise Paradiis, which has already seen a surprising amount of visitors.
Head of Tervis Spaa Group Jaan Ratnik said the water park is one of the more critical parts of their business and the opening was of utmost importance.
"It was a pleasure to see that our first clients had already but queued behind our doors first thing in the morning. We're hoping that this will also lead to more visitors in our hotel," he said.
"It doesn't matter that we've been in business for decades, the situation is completely unique. How the market will respond, in what volumes clients will move," Aljas said of the future, emphasizing on the need to completely re-learn the market itself.
Spas closed at the beginning of the emergency situation in March and reopened on June 1.
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Editor: Kristjan Kallaste