Investigation of the effects of tourists' hydrotherapy awareness levels and customer quality perceptions on their quality of life

Hydrotherapy includes in-water exercises applied in the pool at different temperatures. Hydrotherapy is a therapy method that has been used for centuries in the development, protection and healing of diseases. Hydrotherapy is becoming a need for individuals to rest and relax. It contributes to the transformation of stress and negative emotions in individuals into positive. Hydrotherapy practices contribute to meeting the physiological and psychological needs of individuals, making them feel themselves, and improving social behaviors. The increase in the well-being of individuals positively affects their quality of life. In the process of holiday experiences in tourism, hydrotherapy applications contribute to the well-being of tourists. The main purpose of the study is to reveal the effects of hydrotherapy awareness levels and customer quality perceptions of tourists participating in hydrotherapy practices on their quality of life. Quantitative research method was used in the study. A questionnaire was applied to collect the research data. The questionnaire was translated and applied by experts in four languages: Russian, English, German and Turkish. The questionnaire form consists of four parts. In the first part, questions about the personal information of the participants were included. In the second part, hydrotherapy awareness levels of tourists, in the third part, customer quality perceptions and in the fourth part, the quality of life scales are included. As the application area of the research, hotels, SPA businesses and hydrotherapy centers where hydrotherapy is applied in Antalya were selected. In the study, convenience sampling method was used in the selection of the sample. Data were collected between 2022 and 2023. As a result of data collection, 540 participants were reached. As the obtained data showed normal distribution, parametric tests were preferred. The data obtained with the questionnaire form were analyzed and interpreted with the SPSS statistical data analysis package program. In addition to descriptive statistics, parametric tests, t-test, ANOVA, correlation and regression analyzes were used in data analysis. As a result of the research, tourists' awareness of hydrotherapy differed according to marital status, age, educational status and income status, but not according to gender, intercultural differences and reason for choosing hydrotherapy activity. Tourists' perception of customer quality differed according to gender, marital status and income status, but not according to age, intercultural differences, education level and reason for choosing hydrotherapy activity. Tourists' quality of life differed according to marital status, intercultural differences, educational status, income status, reason for choosing hydrotherapy activity, but not according to gender and age. Tourists' hydrotherapy awareness and customer quality perceptions positively affect their quality of life. There is a positive relationship between tourists' hydrotherapy awareness, customer quality perceptions and quality of life, and the average quality of life of tourists is higher than hydrotherapy awareness and customer quality perception. Keywords: Hydrotherapy, Awareness, Customer Quality Perception, Quality of life.