Therme Dubai in Zabeel Park: a 100-metre, AED 2bn wellness resort due in 2028

On 4 February 2025 Dubai’s Crown Prince, Sheikh Hamdan, approved Therme Dubai, a AED 2bn (about $545m) wellness resort in Zabeel Park. It is being developed by Therme Group with the city and a consortium of local and international financing partners, and designed by the New York practice Diller Scofidio + Renfro. Construction is scheduled to start in 2026, with opening planned for 2028. The project sits within the Dubai 2040 Urban Master Plan and the city’s quality-of-life strategy.

What is being built

Therme Dubai is billed as the world’s tallest wellbeing building: about 100 metres high with roughly 500,000 sq ft of space. Inside are indoor and terrace thermal pools, waterfalls, saunas, spa areas, restaurants and a large indoor botanical garden with hundreds of plant species. The operator expects about 1.7 million visitors a year. Architecturally it is a stack of “islands in the sky”, planted tiers with water and greenery.

The real argument is climate. From May to September Dubai has few places to spend time outdoors apart from malls, and an indoor wellness destination answers that directly. Therme also says it will recycle about 90% of its water and use clean energy for cooling.

Why it matters for the neighbourhood

Zabeel is one of the least accessible central districts for buyers: little housing comes up for sale, and much of the land is taken by palaces, the park and government use. Two large projects are now converging on it: Therme in the park and the expansion of the financial centre into Zabeel. Together they turn a quiet area between Sheikh Zayed Road and Bur Dubai into another anchor of the centre.

• Owners of apartments in towers overlooking the park, including those in Zabeel and on the Downtown Dubai edge, gain a world-class attraction within walking distance.
• Short-let investors gain one more reason for visitors to stay in the centre rather than on the beach.
• Families choosing where to live gain a year-round leisure option that does not depend on the season.

A sober view

A single leisure attraction rarely moves home prices on its own; that happens when something changes daily life in a district, as a beach or a metro station does. Therme is more likely to add appeal for tenants and tourists than to lift prices per square foot. Opening is still two years away, and one-off landmark projects often slip. As of September 2026 there is no public information on the main contractor or progress on site. For the park itself and how it compares with the city’s other green spaces, see our guide to Dubai’s parks.

If you are looking at a home in the very centre of the city, read our Zabeel area guide: what comes up for sale, at what price, and how Therme Dubai and the DIFC expansion are likely to shape the district.