Emirates Airline has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Medical Tourism Association (MTA) to expand its expertise in the growing sector of medical, wellness and longevity travel. Formalized at Arabian Travel Market (ATM) 2026 in Dubai, the strategic partnership combines Emirates’ global network to more than 140 destinations with MTA’s international network of healthcare and medical tourism professionals to open new opportunities for international medical travel.
The partnership will focus on identifying key medical travel markets; developing tailored travel solutions to meet the needs of these growing markets and enhancing the overall travel experience of those who fly abroad to access healthcare and related services.
Emirates Sees Rising Medical Travel Demand
This partnership builds on Emirates’ efforts to develop medical tourism as a specialty travel segment, and complements its established presence in leisure and business travel. As part of the partnership, Emirates and MTA will identify key medical travel corridors in Africa, Asia and the Middle East, and look to better connect international patients with healthcare and wellness destinations and providers. The two organizations will also explore how to integrate evolving traveler needs into future offerings as the medical and wellness tourism sector develops.
Adnan Kazim, Deputy President and Chief Commercial Officer, Emirates commented, “Healthcare is an increasingly important driver for international travel, and we believe this partnership will enable us to understand the end to end experience of medical travellers and shape our products and services accordingly.”
Dubai And Emirates Network Positions As Key Connectivity Hubs
Emirates will act as the preferred airline partner for MTA, leveraging its international network and Dubai’s position as a global healthcare and medical tourism destination to facilitate international medical and wellness travel. Emirates’ global route network of more than 140 destinations spans the world’s major commercial centres, connecting international patients and medical travellers to life-saving and life-enhancing treatments and procedures available in the city.
The partnership will focus on understanding the distinct needs of patients, referring physicians, employers and insurers, and developing relevant and integrated solutions to support travelers throughout their journeys. Emirates and MTA will also collaborate with Global Healthcare Accreditation (GHA) accredited healthcare providers on industry engagement, market intelligence and thought leadership initiatives to drive improvement in international medical travel standards and practices.
Partnering To Develop More Integrated Travel Journeys For Medical Tourism
In addition to identifying new markets, the partnership will also look to make international medical travel more integrated, from initial planning through to treatment and post treatment care. Emirates and MTA will explore ways to facilitate the discovery of accredited healthcare providers, streamline treatment and travel planning, and introduce secure payment options, creating a more end-to-end experience for travelers seeking medical and wellness care abroad.
MTA’s global network spans more than 500,000 healthcare providers, employers, insurers and industry stakeholders, and its digital platforms engage millions of prospective medical and wellness travelers every year. The association also maintains direct government level relationships in more than 100 countries, supporting its ability to identify and enter new medical tourism markets and corridors.
Partnership Sets Stage For Future Medical Tourism Growth
Jonathan Edelheit, CEO and Founder, Medical Tourism Association commented,“We are excited to partner with Emirates to connect international patients with the healthcare providers they need. This collaboration will also include ongoing industry engagement and the exchange of market intelligence as the healthcare, airline, tourism and related sectors continue to evolve in response to the rising demand for international medical and wellness travel.”
For Emirates, the partnership represents an opportunity to build on its leadership in international medical travel and advance its position as a premier business aviation provider for medical tourism. The airline stated that the partnership reinforces Dubai’s position as an international healthcare and medical tourism destination, and expands its presence in the high growth, high value medical travel sector. Emirates added that the agreement supports its aspiration to become the world’s first GHA accredited airline, and could create new linkages between aviation, accredited healthcare and medical tourism.
