What is dental tourism and medical tourism?
Dental tourism and medical tourism is the desire or need to receive health care in a country other than your own. Dental tourism and medical tourism continues to grow due to high health care costs and long waiting lists for procedures in Australia, North America, the UK, Europe and Japan.
Dental tourism is most practiced in regions that have strong tourism infrastructure. As a rule of thumb, any country that has a strong economical holiday sector will have a strong dental tourism and dental holiday segment of the economy. Leading countries in dental and medical tourism are Thailand, Philippines, Mexico, Costa Rica, India and Brazil.
Many other countries are trying to promote dental tourism and medical tourism. These countries include South Korea, Hungary, Poland and China.
Do dentists and dental practices pay to be listed with Smile Planners?
Yes. Smile Planners directory dentists and dental clinics pay for the marketing costs and appointment scheduling cost of our service. Smile Planners does not mark up prices or require you to pay a fee for our service.
Can anyone use Smile Planners service?
Yes. Smile Planners dental holiday service is available to anyone 18 years and over, from any country who would like to receive quality dental care at affordable prices.
Why is dental care less expensive in Thailand?
North America, the UK, Australia, Europe and Japan are the most expensive regions for cosmetic, implant and restorative dentistry due to a higher cost of labor, higher business costs, and more layers of administration than in Thailand. All of these costs are passed on to the patient. This has made Thailand the leader in dental holidays.
Why Thailand?
With their high percentage of western-trained and educated dentists, modern dental practices and use of international standard equipment and materials, Thailand is an ideal destination for dental tourism. And as a leading international vacation destination, Thailand is ideally positioned to host dental tourists.
I'd like to go to the beach after my treatment, can you arrange that trip?
We do not plan post treatment vacations, however there are many travel agents in Thailand that can help with arrangements
Does Smile Planners arrange flights?
We do not offer flights, your local travel agency should be able to offer you flights to Thailand on a variety of airlines. From all the major cities in Australia, like Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane, major cities in the USA, New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, San Francisco, major cities in the United Kingdom, London, Manchester and from the rest of Europe, the Middle East and Africa, any traveler can reach the major holiday destinations in Thailand.
What are the passport and visa requirements for Thailand?
All tourists must possess a passport valid for at least 6 months beyond their intended length of stay. US, UK, Australian and Western European tourists are granted a free 30 day visa upon arrival in Thailand.
Is my personal and financial information safe with Smile Planners?
At Smile Planners we take safeguarding your personal and financial information very seriously. All personal information is secured using industry standard file encryption software. Encryption means that all the personal information in our files is unreadable to anyone without a special digital key. We safeguard our network with enterprise level computer virus and firewall protection. At no time do we or will we sell or rent your personal information to third parties.
Smile Planners does not view, process or store your financial information.