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UAE: Wellness to boom in region, drive travel, experts say
A senior vice president at Visa said that the company has found that wellness and lifestyle now falls in the top 3 things that 'people want discounts for'
- PUBLISHED: Tue 29 Apr 2025, 7:53 AM
Wellness has become one of the most important factors that has been driving travel across the region and the world, according to commentators at the Arabian Travel Market (ATM) that began in Dubai on Monday. Some noted that it was a segment that would boom in the region.
“The main feeder market to Europe and the US is the GCC,” said Hala Matar Choufany, President of hospitality consulting company HVS. “It is a segment that is set to grow in this region.”
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Another pointed out that wellness was an industry their customers were increasingly spending in. “We see more and more cardholders asking for experiences,” said Leila Serhan, Senior VP at Visa. “In our market survey we have found that wellness and lifestyle, which used to be in the top ten is now top three things that people want discounts for.”
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They were speaking at a panel discussion on the first day of ATM, which features a record 2,800 exhibitors from 166 countries at the Dubai World Trade Centre. Taking place from April 28 to May 1, the event is often considered the hub of travel ideas in the Middle East.
Therme Dubai
Also at the conference were spokespersons from Therme Dubai, the elaborate wellness concept that is expected to be completed in the emirate by 2028. With hanging botanical gardens and hot springs, it is going to be the world’s tallest wellbeing resort. In a video shown at an ATM conference, the renderings showed the 500,000 sqft. facility located in the middle of a lake in Zabeel Park.
Expected to cater to 1.7 million visitors every year, the wellness resort is a “social wellness infrastructure” according to Irina Matei, the CEO of Therme Dubai.
“We create ecosystems,” she said. “We move from old days to new infrastructures. And our guests, they have an amazing journey. They can easily move from a thermal bath to a music performance from a child, wellness programming to a plant-based meal, all in one space. So this is how we engage communities and this is how we see a real shift when it comes to wellness.”
A wellness infrastructure company, the Therme Group has a location in Bucharest, with more facilities expected to open across the world. Irina added that the company has been successful in “democratising wellness” with its offerings. “Wellness is a force of good,” she said. “It builds communities and works a lot on the preventive side of things."
