The Global Wellness Summit ™ (GWS), a gathering of leaders in the $6.3 trillion global wellness economy, recently announced the theme and co-chairs for its 19th annual conference set to take place in Dubai from November 18-21, 2025. The event will bring together CEOs of wellness companies, doctors and academics, investors, tech leaders and policymakers for four days of exploring the future for all eleven wellness sectors, including wellness tourism, physical activity, mental wellness, beauty, spas, and wellness real estate. The 2025 co-chairs are Michael Roizen, M.D., longevity pioneer and Cleveland Clinic’s chief wellness officer; Jeremy Jauncey, founder, Beautiful Destinations; Ömer K. Isvan, president, Servotel; and Anna Bjurstam, wellness pioneer, Six Senses.
With a shift toward longevity and health span now redefining the health and wellness markets and consumer mindsets, this year’s GWS will feature high-profile leaders in the longevity space, often with radically different points of view, having compelling debates about the future, the most promising innovations, and the state of the evidence. This is the first time the Summit will be held in the Middle East’s Gulf Region, a region experiencing growth in its overall wellness economy and wellness tourism market. The event will be held at the soon-to-open Mandarin Oriental Downtown Dubai.
“The speed at which longevity has shaken up the wellness, health, tech, and biotech industries is astounding; it’s a true inflection point for our industry and world,” says Nancy Davis, chief creative officer and executive director of the GWS. “We will convene the innovators from across the space, often embracing dramatically different approaches, to have an open, evidence-focused discussion on what’s ahead and why. High-level, bring-everyone-to-the-table conversations are what we do best. And we’re thrilled to bring the Summit to the UAE, a country making extraordinary investments in preventative health and wellness infrastructure and tourism.”
Michael Roizen, M.D., longevity pioneer and Cleveland Clinic’s first chief wellness officer, adds: “Wellness naturally evolves to longevity. I’m excited to help create a Summit that will powerfully portray, and help the industry understand, this evolution––and bring together the trailblazers and the most important new scientific research in longevity and health span.”
New Research
There will be a special focus at the Summit on the fastest-growing wellness market: Wellness real estate. The Global Wellness Institute (GWI) will present new research and global case studies for this market, which is expected to reach $1.1 trillion by 2029. Wellness real estate has seen especially explosive growth in the Middle East-North Africa, expanding from $710 million in 2019 to $2 billion in 2024. The GWI will also unveil the 2025 Global Wellness Economy Monitor, providing all new data and insights on the global wellness market and each of its sectors.
This year’s Summit will also feature a new collaborative element. In closed-door sessions, executives from different wellness segments (whether in hospitality or tech) will tackle the question, “What can we accomplish together that we can’t accomplish on our own?” The goal is to bring competitors together to find common ground and solutions that can move the industry forward.
“I could not be more excited to welcome leaders from the wellness industry to our home in Dubai,” says Jauncey. “We have so much happening here to share with you, across all areas of health, wellness, and, of course, hospitality, that I’m sure you’ll be impressed with the vision, and we hope to make this the biggest and best Global Wellness Summit yet.”
Registration is now open.
