Latest news with #wellnesstourism
Travel Daily News
26-05-2025
- Business
- Travel Daily News
Wego and Azerbaijan Tourism Board showcase Azerbaijan to MENA travelers
Wego partners with Azerbaijan Tourism Board to position Azerbaijan as a year-round MENA wellness, culture, and adventure destination through curated campaigns. DUBAI, UAE – Wego announce its latest strategic partnership with the Azerbaijan Tourism Board, spotlighting Azerbaijan as an all-season destination tailored for curious, culture-driven, and wellness-seeking travelers from the MENA region. With an increasing demand from Middle Eastern travelers for immersive, nature-connected, and wellness-rich holidays, this collaboration focuses on elevating Azerbaijan's appeal beyond the well known cityscapes of Baku. From the mineral rich thermal springs to the healing Naftalan oil, and alpine retreats in Shahdag, Azerbaijan is rapidly emerging as the region's best-kept secret for holistic getaways, cultural exploration, and thrilling outdoor adventures in lush nature. Mamoun Hmidan, Chief Business Officer at Wego, commented: 'This partnership comes at a time when MENA travelers are seeking experiences that combine authenticity, wellness, and natural beauty. Azerbaijan offers all of this, with an added layer of hospitality that feels like home. Through this collaboration, we aim to bring a fresh narrative to light and guide our users to discover the rich, untapped potential of Azerbaijan across all seasons.' The campaign will highlight key themes such as wellness tourism, cultural heritage trails, eco-luxury stays, and culinary adventures from tasting premium caviar to exploring the Silk Road routes that weave through Sheki. Wego and the Azerbaijan Tourism Board will drive content across multiple digital touchpoints, supported by storytelling, influencer led itineraries, and exclusive travel bundles designed for GCC travelers. Florian Sengstschmid, CEO of the Azerbaijan Tourism Board, commented: 'We are excited to partner with Wego to reposition Azerbaijan as a year-round destination full of surprises. With its proximity, great connectivity, and rich diversity of experiences from snow-covered mountains to subtropical forests Azerbaijan is a perfect match for travelers from the Middle East looking for something both close and captivating. Together with Wego, we'll ensure these stories reach the right audience at the right time.' This collaboration reflects Wego's commitment to redefining how travelers from the MENA region discover new and meaningful destinations. By combining Wego's real-time travel insights and consumer behavior data with Azerbaijan Tourism Board's in-depth local knowledge, the partnership will deliver curated experiences, dynamic campaigns, and data-driven storytelling. Together, both entities aim to unlock new travel corridors, amplify Azerbaijan's visibility among GCC and broader MENA audiences, and inspire a new wave of regional explorers seeking more than just a vacation and an unforgettable journey.
Zawya
21-05-2025
- Health
- Zawya
Jordan leads MENA medical tourism with 224,000 visitors in 2024
The Jordan Tourism Board (JTB) has reported a significant increase in international medical and wellness tourism visits to the Middle East and North Africa region. In 2024, the medical tourism sector saw 224,740 visitors, with 51,448 in Q1 2025. The country's comprehensive healthcare ecosystem, including 69 private sector hospitals with 5,500 beds, has made it a preferred destination for patients seeking advanced medical treatments, particularly from GCC nations and neighboring countries. Iraq leads the international demand at 257,396 visitations, followed by Saudi Arabia at 216,256. Kuwait received over 31,920 visitors, followed by Qatar at 15,524, Bahrain at 13,856, Oman at 8,828, and the UAE at 6,584. GCC visitors value Jordan's cultural resonance, shared language, and understanding of their healthcare preferences. Jordan's geographic features provide natural therapeutic sites that complement its advanced medical facilities. The Dead Sea, 400 meters below sea level, offers exceptional therapeutic benefits through mineral-rich waters containing 33% salt content and high levels of magnesium, sodium, and bromine. The country's atmospheric conditions, including year-round UVB radiation, increased oxygen content, and minimal pollution, contribute to an optimal environment for health treatments. Wellness offerings range from Dead Sea spa treatments to the therapeutic waters of Ma'in Hot Springs, offering traditional Arabian Hammam treatments alongside modern rehabilitation therapies. Jordan's medical tourism infrastructure is supported by state-of-the-art facilities and advanced medical technology, with significant investments in modern equipment and specialised units ensuring international standards of patient care and better outcomes. "Jordan's medical tourism sector has demonstrated remarkable growth, led by theworld-class healthcare services the country offers, the natural therapeutic sites with first class resorts, and our famed hospitality," said Dr Abdelrazzak Arabiyat, Managing Director of the Jordan Tourism Board. "Our healthcare facilities maintain international standards while providing cost-effective treatments, making Jordan an attractive destination for patients seeking high quality medical care." "The diversity of medical specialties available in Jordan, combined with the expertise of our healthcare professionals, who are trusted across the GCC, has created a strong medical tourism ecosystem," added Dr Arabiyat. 'The visitors are further energised by the natural therapeutic destinations that add to the well-being of all visitors.' -TradeArabia News Service Copyright 2024 Al Hilal Publishing and Marketing Group Provided by SyndiGate Media Inc. (
Trade Arabia
20-05-2025
- Health
- Trade Arabia
Jordan leads Mena medical tourism with 224,000 visitors in 2024
The Jordan Tourism Board (JTB) has reported a significant increase in international medical and wellness tourism visits to the Middle East and North Africa region. In 2024, the medical tourism sector saw 224,740 visitors, with 51,448 in Q1 2025. The country's comprehensive healthcare ecosystem, including 69 private sector hospitals with 5,500 beds, has made it a preferred destination for patients seeking advanced medical treatments, particularly from GCC nations and neighboring countries. Iraq leads the international demand at 257,396 visitations, followed by Saudi Arabia at 216,256. Kuwait received over 31,920 visitors, followed by Qatar at 15,524, Bahrain at 13,856, Oman at 8,828, and the UAE at 6,584. GCC visitors value Jordan's cultural resonance, shared language, and understanding of their healthcare preferences. Jordan's geographic features provide natural therapeutic sites that complement its advanced medical facilities. The Dead Sea, 400 meters below sea level, offers exceptional therapeutic benefits through mineral-rich waters containing 33% salt content and high levels of magnesium, sodium, and bromine. The country's atmospheric conditions, including year-round UVB radiation, increased oxygen content, and minimal pollution, contribute to an optimal environment for health treatments. Wellness offerings range from Dead Sea spa treatments to the therapeutic waters of Ma'in Hot Springs, offering traditional Arabian Hammam treatments alongside modern rehabilitation therapies. Jordan's medical tourism infrastructure is supported by state-of-the-art facilities and advanced medical technology, with significant investments in modern equipment and specialised units ensuring international standards of patient care and better outcomes. "Jordan's medical tourism sector has demonstrated remarkable growth, led by theworld-class healthcare services the country offers, the natural therapeutic sites with first class resorts, and our famed hospitality," said Dr Abdelrazzak Arabiyat, Managing Director of the Jordan Tourism Board. "Our healthcare facilities maintain international standards while providing cost-effective treatments, making Jordan an attractive destination for patients seeking high quality medical care." "The diversity of medical specialties available in Jordan, combined with the expertise of our healthcare professionals, who are trusted across the GCC, has created a strong medical tourism ecosystem," added Dr Arabiyat. 'The visitors are further energised by the natural therapeutic destinations that add to the well-being of all visitors.' -TradeArabia News Service
Trade Arabia
20-05-2025
- Business
- Trade Arabia
Florian Sengstschmid, CEO of the Azerbaijan Tourism Board and Mamoun Hmidan, Chief Business Officer at Wego
Wego, the top travel app in the Middle East and North Africa, has partnered with the Azerbaijan Tourism Board to promote Azerbaijan as an all-season destination for culture-driven, wellness-seeking travellers. The partnership aims to elevate Azerbaijan's appeal beyond its cityscapes, focusing on its mineral-rich thermal springs, healing Naftalan oil, and alpine retreats. The campaign will highlight wellness tourism, cultural heritage trails, eco-luxury stays, and culinary adventures. Wego and the Azerbaijan Tourism Board will drive content across multiple digital touchpoints, supported by storytelling, influencer-led itineraries, and exclusive travel bundles designed for GCC travellers. Mamoun Hmidan, Chief Business Officer at Wego, commented: "This partnership comes at a time when MENA travelers are seeking experiences that combine authenticity, wellness, and natural beauty. Azerbaijan offers all of this, with an added layer of hospitality that feels like home. Through this collaboration, we aim to bring a fresh narrative to light and guide our users to discover the rich, untapped potential of Azerbaijan across all seasons.'
Yahoo
11-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Scion of hospitality conglomerate Genting Group sees potential in wellness-based co-living spaces
'The Initial Sama,' from Singapore-based design and architecture firm Cover Projects, sits in a leafy part of Singapore, near the National University of Singapore's Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy and down the road from the city's botanic gardens. Yet while the almost-70-year-old building sits near a university, the co-living space, which opens in July, isn't targeting students, nor the executives that normally pick up serviced apartments. Instead, Lim Keong Wee, founder of Cover Projects, is focused on a different kind of clientele: medical tourists. 'We first were quite taken by the Evans Road building being a heritage building,' Lim says. 'Then we did our research and thought wellness tourism has the potential to grow even bigger and much faster.' Lim was so confident in his analysis that his company outbid all other competitors for the plot by almost 50%, offering to pay a monthly lease of 265,000 Singapore dollars ($201,000) to the Singapore Land Authority. Lim explains the building's proximity to private hospitals and a large botanic garden gives Cover Projects a strategic advantage when it comes to wellness tourism. 'The opportunity was very rare,' Lim says, 'hence we were quite aggressive with our bid.' In particular, he sees the space as adding capacity to two nearby private hospitals, providing a temporary living space for patients who still need post-op care, who can now live in the co-living space and free up hospital bed space. Lim first got the idea for 'The Initial Sama' when he noticed a rising number of medical tourists at one of his other properties, 'The Initial Residence'. Cover Project's other co-living spaces are targeted at the usual clientele of college students and expats. Yet Lim noticed that 'The Initial Residence,' based in the city's Balestier neighborhood, was reporting a rise in stays from people seeking treatment at a nearby medical hub. Some hospital brands in Southeast Asia have also partnered with hotels and serviced apartment providers to provide space for international patients who need post-op care, and in the city-state, hotels and serviced apartments are also often located closeby to major popular medical facilities. While Singapore is a popular destination for medical tourism in Southeast Asia, the industry has not grown to the same extent as neighbors like Thailand and Malaysia. Medical providers argue the strong Singapore dollar is increasing costs—including for accommodation. Lim positions his developments as part of an approach he calls 'context-driven design,' which leverages heritage buildings in Singapore. Cover Projects' first development was 'Eighteen by Three,' which restored a shophouse in Singapore's Chinatown and turned it into an international student hostel. That was followed by 'The Initial Residence,' a newer building located in one of the older and grittier neighborhoods on the fringes of the city center. 'The Initial Sama' is housed in a building that dates from 1958, five years before Singapore left the British Empire. The building was once a former college under the then-University of Malaya. 'Our general approach to any building from a design standpoint has to be what we call context driven. Understanding a building's history gives us a glimpse of why the building was here,' Lim says. Lim hopes to use design to draw people into spaces, which is perhaps why he's focused on hospitality projects for his redevelopments. 'When we first started with shophouses, we found them to be very rich in culture, and history. We started to look at them from a lens of how design can rejuvenate spaces and ultimately allow people to discover the locale, or if not the building itself,' Lim says. 'We started looking into multi-use spaces that's very driven by experiences.' Lim is part of the founding family behind the Genting Group, No. 54 on the Southeast Asia 500. The company opened its first casino in Malaysia in 1971, and now operates resorts in Las Vegas, New York, and Singapore. His father, Lim Chee Wah, is the youngest son of the founder of the Genting Group and formerly deputy managing director of Genting Berhad. Chee Wah's brother is currently the chairman of Genting Group. Lim explains that he had been exposed to the hospitality business from a young age due to his family ties. He subsequently moved to the U.K. to pursue a degree in architecture. He later co-founded PAC, a design-focused firm, with fellow architect Victoria Loh in 2009. The firm was one of the master planner designers for Genting Secret Garden in Zhangjiakou. That resort was used to house a media centre, athletes, and delegates for the Beijing Winter Olympics in 2022. The two then founded Cover Projects in 2015 and focused on 'boutique spaces,' as well as consulting for clients. Those connections helped them get started in the wellness co-living space. 'Working with other clients allows us to be nimble and explore other concepts. We've had clients in the wellness space and that gave us insights, which is why we then took the plunge and made a bid for Evans Road,' Lim says. This story was originally featured on
