Health and safety: prepare well and train without getting hurt

At least, before departure: see a doctor for any vaccines or medicines you need (CDC)

1 month

CDC global notice (level 1, 28/05/2025): be vaccinated as recommended

Measles

• ✓Bring your routine vaccinations up to date.
• ✓Travel vaccines depend on your country of residence and your situation: see your doctor, with the CDC page or the Institut Pasteur sheet.
• ✓Malaria: we have not recorded the details of the Pasteur sheet. Draw nothing from our page on this and read the sheet directly.

The CDC lists these three diseases among the risks to prevent by avoiding bites (mosquitoes, sand flies). Its advice:

• ✓Long sleeves, trousers and a hat when possible.
• ✓A suitable repellent: at least 20% DEET against ticks and mosquitoes; against mosquitoes, the CDC also lists picaridin, oil of lemon eucalyptus (OLE) or PMD, IR3535 and 2-undecanone.
• ✓Clothing treated with permethrin; never put permethrin on the skin.
• ✓An air-conditioned room or a screened one; a bed net if the room is open to the outside.

Worth remembering when choosing lodging near the camp: ask whether the room is air-conditioned or has a mosquito net.

The CDC flags leptospirosis and melioidosis, spread by contact with contaminated fresh water or mud (especially after heavy rain), by contaminated water or by dust. Its useful advice for a fighter: cover cuts and scrapes so they do not touch water or soil.

The CDC also lists tuberculosis, which is airborne: avoid close contact with sick people.

This is common-sense advice, not medical instructions. When in doubt, see a doctor or a pharmacist.

• ✓Clean any cut or scrape after the session, and cover it before the next one.
• ✓Keep wraps, gloves and shin pads clean and dry. Sumalee points out that body and gear hygiene matters, since you train in contact with others.
• ✓Do not soak an open wound in fresh water or walk through mud with it (see above).
• ✓A wound that turns red, hot, swollen or increasingly painful should be shown to a doctor without delay.
• ✓Tell your trainer: they will adapt the session.

According to the Thai government’s official portal, April is the hottest month of the year. The advice below is common sense:

• ✓Drink before, during and after each session, without waiting to be thirsty.
• ✓When you sweat a lot, think of electrolytes; a pharmacist can advise you.
• ✓For the first days, one session a day is enough while you adapt.
• ✓Stop and tell the trainer if you feel dizzy, sick or get a headache.
• ✓The rest day matters as much as the sessions.

We recorded no consultation or hospital prices, and publish none. What you settle before leaving is insurance: the UK FCDO points out that it must cover your itinerary, planned activities and emergency costs, and that travelling against its advice can invalidate it.

• ✓Check that your policy names Muay Thai or combat sports: most travel insurance excludes them from basic cover.
• ✓Keep your insurer’s assistance number and your policy number on you.
• ✓Ask the camp which clinic or hospital it recommends nearby.

• Guide assurance

  Insurance that covers combat sports

• ✓Check with your insurer that riding a two-wheeler is covered, and on what conditions.
• ✓Wear a helmet on every ride, even a short one.
• ✓A fall can end your training stay: if in doubt, take a taxi or walk.

As of 10 October 2026, the UK FCDO advised against all but essential travel:

• –in the far south, near the Malaysian border: the provinces of Pattani, Yala and Narathiwat, the districts of Chana, Thepa, Na Thawi and Saba Yoi (Songkhla province), and on the Hat Yai – Padang Besar railway line;
• –within 20 km of the land border with Cambodia, after clashes in 2025 (crossings suspended, unexploded mines).

The FCDO also points out that it is illegal to take cannabis out of Thailand, including in transit.

Our official sources do not list typical scams, and we do not copy unverified lists. Three points directly affect your stay:

• ✓The DTV visa is applied for on the official thaievisa.go.th portal: a site offering to issue it for you is not that portal.
• ✓A camp pushing you to pay upfront with no written price or refund rule: see the guide to choosing a camp.
• ✓An “all-inclusive” plan whose content is not in writing: ask for the list of what is included.

• Guide : choisir son camp

  The 6 questions to ask before paying

• France Diplomatie — Thaïlande

  Travel advice (in French)

• FCDO — Thailand travel advice

  UK travel advice

• CDC — Thailand

  Travelers’ health

• Institut Pasteur — Thaïlande

  Country health sheet (in French)