Queen Suthida scheduled to open Global Wellness Summit in Phuket

Queen Suthida is scheduled to preside over the opening of the Global Wellness Summit 2026 at Angsana Laguna Phuket on 11 November, with preparations under way for her visit.

The summit will run from 10 to 13 November and is expected to bring global wellness leaders and industry experts to Phuket as Thailand seeks to strengthen its position in international health and wellness tourism.

Air Marshal Phakdee Saeng-chuto, Assistant Principal Private Secretary to His Majesty the King, chaired a coordination meeting at the venue on 27 October. The meeting was attended by Phuket Vice Governor Romdon Hayiawae, Dr Thanis Sermkaew, Public Health Inspector for Health Region 11, and Dr Pongsathorn Pokpermdee, Director-General of the Department of Thai Traditional and Alternative Medicine, which represents the summit’s host agency.

Officials also reviewed security, transport, logistics, venue management and coordination between agencies. They inspected event and exhibition areas featuring traditional Thai medicine, alternative medicine and Thai herbal knowledge.

The displays are intended to present Thailand’s health and wellness expertise to international delegates, including its spa industry, herbal remedies and locally developed wellness products and services.

Susie Ellis, chair and chief executive of the Global Wellness Summit, described Queen Suthida’s scheduled attendance as an honour for the summit’s 20th-anniversary event. Jiří Dvořák, a 2026 summit co-chair and professor of neurology at Schulthess Clinic Zurich and Thailand’s BDMS Wellness Clinic, said the Queen was a role model in sports and training.

The summit is expected to give businesses and industry representatives opportunities to develop international partnerships and explore wellness tourism. For Phuket, the event provides an opportunity to promote the island as a destination for health, wellness and longevity-related services alongside its established beach tourism market.