There is a lot you can do to help yourself on any vacation to Pattaya to look after your general health. Most common infections can be avoided by the use of basic hygiene and having the necessary vaccinations. General Health While in Pattaya should be a top priority. Pack enough supplies of prescribed medicines that you might require during your trip, these should be kept in their original packaging, along with instructions and any prescription documents.
General Health While In Pattaya
Should you require medicines normally the pharmacist should be able to help, although it might well be an acceptable equivalent. Routine medicine and creams are cheap, importantly it would be prudent to obtain any medicines from the larger pharmacies, some are even open 24-hour. Even better try and source from the well-known international chain of Boots, a branch can be found at the Royal Garden Mall and in Walking Street.
Mosquito and insect bites are very common, mosquito’s, as most people know can spread nasty diseases such as dengue fever and malaria. Well the good news is Pattaya is not deemed as a high risk area. So although irritating should cause you no long-term problems. To avoid being bitten, as much as possible cover up avoiding short-sleeved tee shirts. Espcially at night wear full-length trousers and some sort of hat. Remember to avoid sitting in areas with a lot of greenery where mosquito’s frequent and breed.
Don’t drink the tap water, use only for bathing and cleaning teeth avoid swallowing. Bottled water is readily available at very modest prices, the ice in drinks is safe to use, being bought in from suppliers using purified water. Hotels generally replace the room’s refrigerators bottled water, drinks and snacks on a regular basis, but unless stated their usage in not generally free.
Pattaya has excellent health care facilities so in this area there is no concern. There are numerous clinics, four modern hospitals and excellent doctors in Pattaya. Medicines are not very expensive from either a pharmacy or hospital, most are prescription-free. Pattaya also has many health care clinics, most of these specialize in a particular branch of body science. Keep any receipts in the event that you might need to make a travel insurance claim.
Useful emergency numbers for reference:
Emergency call 24/7 : tel: 1337 ( Pattaya City) Hotline: 1111 ( Bangkok, English dial 9 ) or 191
Doctor’s on call : Dr Belen Clinic tel: 038-410295/7 or Dr Oliver tel: 038-723521 out of hours 038-377463
Pattaya Tourist Police: tel : 038-429371, 038-425937 Hotline: 1155
Pattaya Police Staion : tel : 191, 038-428223, 038-428223
Ambulance Services : Pattaya Memorial Hospital tel: 038-429422/4 Pattaya International Hospital tel: 038-4428374/5
Bangkok Pattaya Hospital : tel: 038-259999 Trauma centre tel: 038-259911
Pattaya International Hospital : tel: 038-428374/5
Hospital Treatment
Pattaya’s hospitals such as the Bangkok Pattaya hospital on Sukhumvit Road and the Pattaya Memorial hospital near to Beach Road have excellent reputations. These hospitals have their own ambulance service and 24-hour emergency facilities. You should always have adequate insurance cover for the cost of any hospital treatment whilst in Thailand.
If you should require an overnight stay for any reason, this is when you will find out how worthwhile it is to have a good travel insurance policy. Whichever insurance company you choose you would be advised to purchase a fully comprehensive policy. One of the minimum requirements should be the cost of all medical treatment (including emergency flights home) and personal liability.
Also recommend is checking that the policy covers you for any activities that you may engage in during your stay in Thailand. Check carefully for activities that are covered and not covered, for example golf, elephant trekking and white-water rafting are not normally included in standard policies which means if you hurt yourself (or someone else for that matter) you will be left with a very heavy bill to pay. Dangerous sports of any type are not covered, except with addtional premiums.
Most travel insurance policies don’t guarantee to pay medical bills, only to reimburse you once you are back in your home country of residence. That being the case hospitals will ask you for a credit card or other means to guarantee your hospital bill before they admit you.
Medical treatment in Pattaya as in the rest of Thailand can be expensive. It is very important that you have a policy where your insurer can arrange emergency assistance and treatment in a modern hospital and in the case of serious treatment guarantee payment.
One further point to note is most insurance policies will not cover you for an accident,if you ride as a passenger on a motorcycle over 250 cc unless you inform them beforehand. If you believe you might use a taxi-bike in Pattaya inform your travel insurance company.
Always check very carefully what the policy does and does not include, and the cover is what you require. Something else to be aware of is that most annual multi-trip policies only cover up to 30 or 45 days in any one trip. Up to 90 days can be obtained at addtional premium.
At present we are looking to include only the best travel insurance companies on our site. Insurance is always best purchased before you leave your home country as purchasing in Thailand may not give you the cover you require. The best travel insurance rates are usually with specialist travel insurers in the field and will have a collection of covers available for you to choose from.
Buying travel insurance from your bank or travel agent can be quite expensive, as these are often the first point of call when you are looking for travel insurance. Sites such as World Nomad’s Travel Insurance may be a good place to start your search.
As the largest cost involved in travel insurance claims tends to be related to medical expenses (twice as much as personal liability) take time out to read the definitions and legal small print. Your needs are maybe different from anyone else’s. Often you are bound to find something which you do not agree with or may result in a larger passive cost when you make a claim, as you might expect exclusions vary from policy to policy.
Arrange your policy with a recognised travel insurer and spend time shopping around and making comparisons for the best levels of cover. Be aware that credit card travel insurance policies generally offer very poor levels of cover. When purchasing any travel insurance it is very important to disclose all pre-existing or current medical conditions.
Be open about this with your insurer or you might find any subsequent claim rejected. If you have any specific questions or queries concerning a particular policy, contact the insurance company directly.
Medical tourism
One of the fastest-growing industries in Pattaya and other parts of Thailand is medical tourism. This is a term used for travelers visiting Thailand to have a medical procedure such as cosmetic and reconstructive surgery and dentistry carried out. In many countries, the cost of these procedures can be prohibitive, however, in Thailand, they are usually only a fraction of the cost. An assortment of different packages is available with access to some of the best cosmetics surgeons to be found anywhere.
The four major Pattaya hospitals all have state of the art technical medical equipment, highly trained nurses, and ancillary staff speaking English and a multitude of languages. Thailand has gained world acclaim in health and wellness on all the medical fronts. Thailand is now major leaders in areas of cardiac surgery experts in cosmetic and reconstructive surgery and dentistry. No wonder millions of international patients are now selecting Thailand for their treatments.
If you’re interested in visiting Thailand, please check out our Booking page here.