Travel Vaccinations in Pattaya
Most people arrive in Thailand having meant to sort vaccinations out at home and not quite managed it. That is fixable here. Travel vaccinations in Pattaya can be started the day you walk in, and for several of the important ones starting late is still worth doing.
What we can give
The vaccines that actually matter for this region, kept in stock rather than ordered in:
- Tetanus, and tetanus with diphtheria
- Hepatitis A — the classic food and water infection
- Hepatitis B — blood, sexual contact, tattoos and piercings
- Typhoid
- Rabies, both pre-exposure and post-exposure
- Influenza, which circulates year round in the tropics
- Japanese encephalitis, for longer rural stays
Each is a straightforward injection into the upper arm, and several can be given in the same visit. You leave with a written record of what was given and when, which matters for the ones needing a second dose.
Which ones are genuinely worth it here
Tetanus is the one nobody thinks about and everybody should. Any dirty wound is a tetanus risk, and this city produces a great many of them through scooter grazes. If your last booster was more than ten years ago, get one.
Hepatitis A is worth having anywhere in Southeast Asia. It spreads through food and water, it is common, and it is thoroughly unpleasant for weeks.
Hepatitis B is worth it for a longer stay, and specifically worth it if you are getting a tattoo or piercing or expect sexual contact. Rabies pre-exposure is worth considering because of the number of stray dogs — see rabies vaccination.
Starting late still helps
The advice at home is to start six weeks before travel. Almost nobody does, and arriving without them is not a reason to give up.
Hepatitis A gives useful protection within about two weeks of the first dose, and most trips are longer than that. Typhoid works within a similar window. Tetanus boosts quickly. Influenza takes about two weeks.
The second doses that give long-term protection can be given anywhere in the world, including back home. Starting a course here and finishing it there is entirely normal, which is exactly why the written record matters.
What is not needed for Pattaya
Malaria tablets are not required for Pattaya, Bangkok or the main tourist areas. Malaria in Thailand is confined to some border regions, and taking prophylaxis you do not need means side effects for no benefit.
If you are going on to a border province, Cambodia or Myanmar, that changes, and it is worth asking rather than assuming either way.
There is no vaccine for dengue in routine use here, and dengue is the mosquito-borne illness that actually matters in this city. Protection is repellent and avoiding daytime bites — see dengue fever treatment.
Yellow fever, and the certificate question
Thailand requires proof of yellow fever vaccination only if you are arriving from a country where it is present — parts of Africa and South America. Most travellers never need it.
If you are continuing onward to such a country, or returning to Thailand from one, you may need the certificate, and it must be given at an approved centre. We will tell you where rather than pretend we can issue it.
Plan that one in advance. It is the single vaccination where leaving it late genuinely can stop you boarding.
Side effects, and what is normal
A sore arm for a day or two is normal and expected. Mild tiredness, a slight headache or a low-grade temperature the following day is also normal.
What is not normal: a spreading hot red area at the injection site after a couple of days, a fever above 38.5, or any difficulty breathing. The first two mean come back; the last means call 1669.
Serious allergic reactions are rare and happen within minutes, which is why we ask you to wait a short while afterwards rather than leaving immediately. Tell us about previous vaccine reactions and about egg allergy before, not after.
Children, pregnancy and existing conditions
Children can have most travel vaccines, at doses adjusted for age rather than weight. Bring their vaccination record from home if you have it, or a photo of it — knowing what they have already had prevents both gaps and unnecessary repeats.
In pregnancy, inactivated vaccines such as hepatitis A, tetanus and influenza are generally considered safe and are sometimes actively recommended. Live vaccines are usually avoided. Tell us you are pregnant before anything is given rather than afterwards, and the choice changes accordingly.
If you take immune-suppressing medication, or have a condition that affects your immune system, say so. It does not necessarily rule anything out, but it changes which vaccines are suitable and how well they are likely to work, and that is worth knowing rather than assuming.
Records, and why to photograph them
You get a written record of the vaccine name, batch, date and the date any next dose is due. Photograph it before you leave the building.
Paper records get lost, soaked and left in hotel rooms. A photo on your phone means the clinic finishing your course in another country knows exactly what was given rather than starting again from the beginning, which is both wasteful and unnecessary.
If you need something more formal for a visa, a work permit or an employer, that is a different document and can be issued at the same time — see medical certificates.
Cost, and doing it here rather than at home
Vaccination in Thailand is generally considerably cheaper than in Europe, North America or Australia, often to a degree that surprises people. You are told the price per vaccine before anything is given.
That makes it worth doing the ones you have been putting off while you are here, particularly hepatitis A and B and a tetanus booster.
Most travel insurance does not cover routine preventive vaccination, since it is not treatment for an illness. Post-exposure rabies after a bite is a different matter and usually is covered — keep the receipt and see travel insurance claims.
Frequently asked questions
Is it too late to get vaccinated once I have arrived?
No. Hepatitis A and typhoid give useful protection within about two weeks, and tetanus boosts quickly.
Do I need malaria tablets for Pattaya?
No. Malaria in Thailand is confined to some border regions, not the main tourist areas.
Which vaccines are most worth having here?
Tetanus, hepatitis A, and hepatitis B for longer stays or if you are getting a tattoo. Rabies is worth considering.
Can I have several vaccines in one visit?
Yes, several can be given at the same appointment.
Is there a dengue vaccine?
Not in routine use here, and dengue is the mosquito-borne illness that matters in this city. Repellent and avoiding daytime bites is the protection.
What side effects should I expect?
A sore arm for a day or two, sometimes mild tiredness or a slight temperature. A spreading hot red area or a fever above 38.5 means come back.
Can I finish the course back home?
Yes, which is why the written record matters. Photograph it before you leave.
Do you issue yellow fever certificates?
No — that must be an approved centre. We will tell you where. Most travellers to Thailand never need it.
Why a clinic rather than a hospital
English-speaking doctors on site, 24 hours a day. It is worth being straight about what that is for. Pattaya is not short of hospitals, and for anything serious that is where you should be — we will send you and ring ahead. What a hospital handles badly is the small urgent thing at an awkward hour: a wound that needs cleaning properly, a stomach that has emptied itself since midnight, a certificate needed before a morning flight. Those mean a long wait behind real emergencies, at several times the price. That gap, at every hour of the day, is what this clinic is for.
Beyond Pattaya, Doctor Pattaya Takecare Medical Clinic belongs to the Takecare Clinic group, which operates across Chon Buri, Phuket and Krabi. The practical value of that is continuity: if your treatment carries on after you leave, the next clinic already holds your notes, and a referral is a phone call between colleagues rather than a stack of paperwork you have to carry yourself.
Coming in
Doctor Pattaya Takecare Medical Clinic is 24 hours, every day, and that is the building being open with a doctor in it rather than a phone line that answers. No appointment is needed at any point, and there is no hour at which turning up is inconvenient for us. Walk in, or reach us on +66 81 668 5557 or WhatsApp. If you would rather not move, ask for a doctor hotel visit and we will come to you.
If it turns out this needs more than a clinic, that same conversation is where the referral and hospital transfer gets arranged — we stabilise you first, ring the receiving department so you are expected, and organise the ambulance rather than leaving you to find one. In this city that is a short drive at any hour, which is exactly why coming in early costs you nothing.