Contributors to the discussion include Amit Arora, Chief Operating Officer, Hospitality and Entertainment, Arada; Jordi Sanchis, Senior Director of Development – Middle East, Meliá Hotels International; Christopher Sanderson, Co-Founder, The Future Laboratory; and Wael Al Sharif, Area General Manager, The Torch Hospitality.
Arora said wellness has evolved into a core driver of the global travel experience, with investors increasingly viewing it as a distinct real estate and hospitality asset class.“Guest expectations have shifted too, toward an ecosystem where wellbeing is integrated into sleep hygiene, functional nutrition, and bio-harmonized programming,” he says. “At Akala Hotel and Residences, Arada capitalises on this shift by pioneering a mixed-use model that combines ultra-luxury hospitality with preventative healthcare, precision diagnostics, and advanced therapeutics. Bytrea ting wellness as an integrated operational thesis, owners can capture premium ADR and drive sustained customer lifetime value.”
Sanchis said wellness is no longer limited to spas or relaxation and is increasingly associated with helping guests maintain longer and more balanced lifestyles. “It’s about helping guests live better, longer and with more balance,” he says. “Longevity science will increasingly become a credible pillar, particularly in premium and luxury segments, but it will enhance hospitality rather than replace it. From an owner’s perspective, wellness today is both a revenue enhancer and a long-term value creator, and, in certain destinations, is already evolving into a standalone asset class, especially when integrated into mixed-use projects and branded residences.”
Sanderson said available hotel-level data indicates stronger performance for properties with significant wellness offerings. He cited RLA Global and HotStats’ 2025 analysis of more than 12,000 hotels, which found that properties with major wellness offerings generated more than double the Total Revenue per Available Room of hotels without such offerings in 2024. He also referred to UBS projections on longevity and equity returns, saying that the investment case is being examined beyond conventional hotel performance measures.
“RLA Global and HotStats’ 2025 analysis of more than 12,000 hotels found properties with major wellness offerings generated more than double the Total Revenue per Available Room of hotels without such offerings in 2024. UBS separately tips longevity for above-average equity returns this decade. Traditional luxury chases occupancy; wellness tends to compound it,” he says.
Al Sharif said wellness can serve as a revenue enhancer for existing properties while also developing as a standalone asset class.
“Dedicated modern recreation facilities command premium pricing, but integrated wellness amenities also significantly boost the performance and valuation of traditional hotels,” he says. On value creation, Arora said the strongest opportunities sit between hospitality and integrated lifestyle programming, particularly in high-yield, mixed-use wellness real estate developments.
“Traditional spas typically operate on localised treatment margins, whereas a holistic destination ecosystem drives performance across the entire asset,” he says. “For a pioneering concept like Akala, value is unlocked by pairing luxury hospitality with medical wellness infrastructure, creating strong resonance and multi-season touchpoints with an affluent demographic. Performance evaluation must look beyond standard metrics like RevPAR towards success through ecosystem-wide KPIs such as total revenue per available room (TRevPAR), Wellness Capture Rates, and customer retention/lifetime value (LTV).”
Sanderson said value creation can increasingly be associated with membership access rather than accommodation alone. He cited the Surrenne private members’ club at The Emory in London, which charges £10,000 a year plus a £5,000 joining fee for longevity access.
He also referred to 2025 RLA Global and HotStats data showing that hotels classified as having “minor wellness” offerings recorded the strongest RevPAR growth compared with sprawling spa-led resorts. “The Surrenne private members’ club at The Emory in London charges £10,000 a year plus a £5,000 joining fee for longevity access. Yet 2025’ s RLA Global/HotStats data show it is lean ‘minor wellness’ hotels, not sprawling spa-led resorts, posting the strongest RevPAR growth. Diagnostics, not décor, are critical here. At this early stage of the longevity curve being able to deliver on a simple longevity framework is the metric that counts,” he says.
On whether longevity represents a new phase of wellness or a rebranding of the existing sector, Sanchis described it as a natural evolution of wellness and said it should remain human, accessible and lifestyle-driven. “Hospitality should not become clinical, but should create environments that encourage healthy living, connection, movement and recovery. As awareness around prevention grows, longevity-inspired hospitality will become increasingly mainstream.
Al Sharif said longevity represents an evolution of wellness based on measurable health optimisation and preventative healthcare. “Longevity represents genuine evolution, not rebranding – and, in time, will become mainstream. Traditional wellness offers relaxation and temporary fitness gains; longevity provides measurable health optimisation through biometric tracking, personalized nutrition, sleep science, and preventative healthcare. As populations age and healthcare costs escalate, preventative longevity travel will achieve mainstream status. It’s transitioning from luxury indulgence to health necessity.”
Industry expectations around wellness stays have also changed over the past five years. A standard wellness offering was previously described as a fitness centre and a general spa menu, while current programmes are increasingly focused on broader health and personalised experiences.
Al Sharif said today’s traveller expects a results-oriented and holistic programme combining mental, physical and nutritional health with personalised data tracking, moving beyond a standard spa menu toward a more curated health-focused stay.
Arora said affluent travellers are increasingly seeking data-driven personalisation and customised programming, including circadian optimisation protocols for sleep, functional nutrition tailored to metabolic needs and stress-mitigation spaces.
He said travellers also expect flexibility and autonomy, including the ability to combine performance recovery sessions, advanced regenerative PRP treatments and culinary experiences within the same stay rather than following a rigid clinical protocol.
The role of technology versus authenticity and local culture was another area addressed by the contributors. Sanderson said both elements can be incorporated within wellness hospitality.
“As an example, Soneva layers Ayurveda and yoga onto cryotherapy and stem-cell therapy, yet, to keep it real, hires only yoga teachers who have lived in ashrams, to keep it real,” he says. “SHA’s Mexico clinic pairs gene therapy with shamanic temazcal ceremonies; and Mia Kyricos counters that the experiences with the strongest return on wellness carry the least tech behind them. As Scorpios’ Thomas Heyne puts it, ‘belonging cannot be bottled’.”
Sanchis said authenticity remains an important differentiator, with technology supporting diagnostics and personalisation while cultural and emotional elements connect wellness experiences to their destinations.
“Technology supports diagnostics and personalisation, but the emotional and cultural layer creates lasting impact. In our spa and wellness approach at Paradisus resorts, for example, we integrate local traditions, nature and rituals, ensuring that wellbeing is deeply connected to the destination,” he says.
Industry participants also identified misconceptions around the profile and use of wellness hospitality. Al Sharif said one major misconception is that wellness is primarily women-centric or limited to leisure travel.
“Our data shows 48% male participation, with business travellers increasingly prioritising wellness facilities for stress management and performance optimisation. Wellness is becoming essential business infrastructure, not leisure amenity. Wellness guests spend significantly more per stay, return more frequently, and generate powerful word-of-mouth awareness”, says Wael.
Arora said wellness hospitality is also sometimes viewed as a niche service for fitness enthusiasts or health-focused travellers, while the addressable market can include the wider luxury travel demographic because wellness needs vary by individual.
“For one traveller, it might mean a regimented, high-tech longevity protocol; for another, it may simply mean an environment designed for mental decompression and deep rest. Our Inaura lifestyle concept, by design, integrates kinetic wellness into the broader lifestyle of the property. Physical and mental optimisation happens naturally throughout the stay, shifting wellness from an isolated retreat into an everyday reality,” he says.
Asked to describe the future of wellness and longevity tourism and hospitality investment in one sentence, Arora said:“The future belongs to an integrated asset model where wellness is no longer treated as an amenity, but is structurally embedded into wellness real estate design, operational DNA, and the long-term compounding value of the destination.”
Sanchis described the future as the creation of integrated lifestyle ecosystems combining preventative wellbeing, community, destination authenticity and real estate value to deliver long-term performance.
Sanderson said the Global Wellness Institute forecasts wellness tourism to grow 9.1% annually through 2029, while longevity travel is projected to nearly double from $27 billion in 2024 to $44 billion by 2030. He said investors continuing to treat wellness as a spa line item rather than a significant driver of hotel revenue could face the need to retrofit assets as the sector develops.
Al Sharif said wellness is moving from an amenity toward an asset class as preventative longevity science, personalised health optimisation and measurable outcomes become more integrated into hospitality.
The FHS World programme includes a dedicated Wellness content track with sessions including ‘Why Longevity is the Ultimate Luxury’, ‘Turning Health Science into Hospitality & Real Estate’, a TenX Leadership Talk on Building Health, Not Just Hotels, and ‘Building the Middle East’s Next Generation of Healthy Communities.’
Tags:Wellness Future Hospitality Summit – FHS
