phuketrichard wrote:how about the diving industry?
health industry?

Medical tourists numbers are increasing rapidly and have been for over a decade.

Medical tourists numbers are increasing rapidly and have been for over a decade.

Oh, really? Do you have a reliable source for this "information", other than the TAT, etc?

sigmoid wrote:

Medical tourists numbers are increasing rapidly and have been for over a decade.

Oh, really? Do you have a reliable source for this "information", other than the TAT, etc?

The expansion of the Bangkok Hospitals group is probably a good example. I think they are building a new one in that big development on the way into PP from the airport as part of their growth. I've been in both the Bangkok Pattaya and the Bangkok Rayong on occasion, you could be mistaken for thinking you're in the lobby of a 5 star hotel. I don't think the Middle Easterners I saw roaming the corridors were working there and the facilities provided weren't funded by waxing ears.

Dentistry is another strand to the same bow. In high season my dentist is booked out with older Scandies on their annual winter break getting their once a year treatment. I personally think Thai dentistry is of a higher standard than their medical competence, and the price of treatment is a huge saving compared to back home.

sigmoid wrote:

Medical tourists numbers are increasing rapidly and have been for over a decade.

Oh, really? Do you have a reliable source for this "information", other than the TAT, etc?

Yes, really!

What is a reliable source to you? Google "medical tourism in Thailand". If you don't trust the BBC then go to the World Health Organization (WHO) website. Or, as I did, you can go to Thailand for dental work and see it for yourself. My dentist was swamped with foreign medical tourists. Excellent results for literally 1/30th of the price I was quoted in the States.

phuketrichard wrote:how about the diving industry?
health industry?
Drifter is talking out of his ass

all the serious divers go in Indonesia.

the health industry is doing great, i've been in excellent hospitals in BKK and Chiang Mai.
however, the party will soon be over in my opinion, it can't stay so cheap forever, by the way you can get cheap prices also in eastern europe if that matters.

if we talk about dentists, yeah, they're cheap and good, for but things like an implant you don't save much compared to europe, 20-30% give or take.

Well it appears the "crackdown" is over. It lasted 2 whole weeks - in a row ! Shows how little I know. My over/under was 2 months. From The Nation:

"BANGKOK: -- The military has told the Immigration Bureau to be flexible with "visa runners", junta chief General Prayuth Chan-ocha said Friday.

The runners can register with the bureau, which will find a sustainable resolution to the problem, he said in his weekly televised programme last night.

Foreigners had been exploiting tourist visas and visas on arrival by illegally working in the country, mostly as English teachers. ... "

Read more:

http://www.nationmultimedia.com/breakin ... 41608.html

Sorry, didn't bother to read it since I didn't know what Chia was other than a pet with sprouts growing out of it. Now that I have, I'm more confused. Richard, are they cracking down or not ?