Last Minute Trip To Bangkok Thailand
Most people plan trips around anniversaries, bucket list destinations, or irresistible flight deals. Us? We planned our latest international adventure around molars and premolars—specifically, Z’s dad’s need for dental implants and a root canal. Welcome to the wild world of family dental tourism, where the phrase “Dad needs to see a dentist” transforms into “Let’s all book flights to Thailand!”
The 48-Hour Decision: Vancouver to Bangkok in a Dental Emergency
When the local dentist quoted the price for dental implants that rivals a down payment on a small condo, we had two options: watch him sell a kidney or get creative. We chose the latter, and thus began our frantic 48-hour planning sprint to Thailand, the land of smiles—quite literally, in our case.
With the clock ticking and wisdom teeth jokes exhausted, we dove into the Aeroplan website like digital treasure hunters. Lo and behold, the travel gods smiled upon us (again with the smile references—we can’t help it): business class seats from YVR to HKG for just 57,000 Aeroplan points per person. If you’ve ever tried booking premium cabin awards with points, you know this falls somewhere between “incredible deal” and “are you sure this isn’t a glitch?” With an additional night at an airport hotel in Hong Kong, we will be in Bangkok in no time for his appointment.
Two days later, with barely enough time to panic about our hasty decision, we found ourselves—and most importantly, Z’s dad—reclining in business class seats. The look on his face as he experienced his first-ever business class flight was worth every point we’d saved. There’s something particularly satisfying about watching someone you love experience luxury travel for the first time, especially when they’re en route to dental procedures that are anxiety-inducing at best.
“I could get used to this,” he announced as the flight attendant handed him a glass of champagne, seemingly forgetting for a moment about the dental chair awaiting him in Bangkok. Mission accomplished.
Pro tip: Nothing numbs the anxiety of impending dental work quite like champagne at 35,000 feet, especially when it’s your first time being addressed as “Mr.” by flight attendants who actually seem to mean it.
After landing in Bangkok’s organized chaos, we made our way to the Hyatt Place Bangkok—a sanctuary secured with Hyatt points that would serve as our home base for the next three weeks. If you’re planning extended medical tourism for family, choosing accommodation becomes significantly more important than for your average vacation. You want somewhere that feels like home when your dad is nursing a swollen jaw and contemplating life choices.
The Hyatt Place delivered exactly what we needed: comfortable beds for post-procedure recovery, a location convenient to dental appointments, and staff who didn’t bat an eye when Z’s dad returned from appointments looking like a squirrel storing nuts for winter. The affordable breakfast buffet proved particularly valuable on mornings when chewing was still a theoretical concept rather than a practical possibility for one-third of our travel party.
Our rooms became a recovery station, mini pharmacy, and occasional pity party venue—but with floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking Bangkok’s skyline, even feeling sorry for ourselves (or more accurately, for Z’s dad) had a panoramic backdrop.
Edelweiss Dental: Where Bangkok Smiles Are Made
Let’s talk about Edelweiss Dental, shall we? Walking into a dental clinic 7,000 miles from home requires a certain level of trust (or desperation, but we prefer “adventurous spirit”). What we found at Edelweiss immediately put our Canadian dental anxieties to rest.
The clinic itself looked like something out of a medical design magazine—spotlessly clean with technology that made our hometown dentist’s office look positively medieval by comparison. The staff greeted Z’s dad with the kind of warmth typically reserved for long-lost relatives, despite his obvious tourist status and anxious smile.
The dental marathon ahead was no small undertaking: 4 dental implants, 1 root canal, and 7 cavities filled. In Vancouver, this would have required a second mortgage. Here in Bangkok, it was simply a matter of scheduling and pain tolerance.
These procedures were scheduled with military precision, leaving just enough recovery time between appointments. The dentists walked us through each step with detailed explanations that managed to be both technically reassuring and understandable to dental laypeople like ourselves. Z’s dad, initially skeptical about getting major dental work done in a foreign country, was soon raving about his treatment quality between doses of painkillers.
“Four implants, one root canal, and seven cavities later,” became our trip motto, a phrase we’d use to justify everything from extra desserts (“After four implants, one root canal, and seven cavities, you deserve that second mango sticky rice”) to splurges on Thai silk (“Four implants, one root canal, and seven cavities calls for retail therapy”).
The most shocking part? The final bill. Even factoring in three business class flights, three weeks of hotel stays, and enough pad thai to feed a small village, we spent roughly 60% of what Z’s dad would have paid for the same procedures in Vancouver. Our collective bank accounts were as relieved as his molars.
Between Appointments: Becoming Bangkok Connoisseurs
Three weeks in Bangkok meant we weren’t just dental tourists—we became temporary locals. Between appointments and recovery days, we explored the city at a pace that tourist guidebooks rarely recommend but that turned out to be refreshingly authentic.
On good dental days (when Z’s dad wasn’t scheduling appointments or recovering), we ventured to the Grand Palace, where we marveled at the intricate architecture while contemplating whether the gold leaf would make effective dental fillings. We navigated the floating markets, where we discovered that coconut water sipped through a straw is both delicious and gentle on sensitive teeth.
Post-procedure days called for gentler activities. We became experts at finding Bangkok’s best air-conditioned malls, which led to the somewhat jarring experience of watching Z’s dad recover from dental surgery while we window-shopped at Gucci and Prada. Nothing says “international healthcare” quite like ice packs and luxury browsing.
We discovered that soft foods in Thai cuisine are abundant and delicious. Tom kha gai (coconut soup) became the recovery meal of choice, followed closely by mango sticky rice—proving that dietary restrictions can still be delicious when you’re in a culinary capital. Z’s dad became a connoisseur of foods requiring minimal chewing, developing a ranking system for Bangkok’s best congee that none of us had anticipated adding to our travel expertise.
The staff at our regular coffee shop began preparing our orders when they saw us approaching—iced lattes for us, and extra-mild tea for the gentleman with the gradually decreasing facial swelling. By week two, the street food vendors on our block recognized our little family unit and started suggesting dishes based on Z’s dad’s visible recovery progress. “Father better today?” would be followed by the appearance of progressively more challenging food textures as his healing advanced.
The Verdict: Would We Do It Again?
Three weeks, multiple dental implants, and countless Thai iced teas later, we flew back to Vancouver with Z’s dad sporting new teeth, all of us sharing a deeper appreciation for Thailand’s healthcare system, and the strange satisfaction of having turned a family dental necessity into an adventure.
Was it unconventional? Absolutely. Would we recommend dental tourism to anyone who asks? With some caveats and extensive research, yes.
Our impromptu dental journey taught us that healthcare can be both excellent and affordable outside North America, that points and miles are sometimes best used for practical necessities rather than pure luxury, and that family recovery is infinitely more pleasant when accompanied by tropical fruits and skyline views.
The business class experience added an unexpected layer of joy to what could have been simply a medical necessity. For Z’s dad, who had never experienced the pointy end of the plane before, it transformed a dreaded dental journey into something that began and ended with genuine excitement. The middle part still involved dental drills, but hey, that’s life.
As we settled back into Vancouver life, we realized our Bangkok dental escapade embodied everything our travel philosophy stands for—finding the extraordinary in necessary journeys, saying yes to unexpected opportunities, and always, always having good dental floss in your carry-on.
So here’s to dental implants—the unexpected travel motivation that led to one of our most memorable family adventures yet. Z’s dad’s teeth led the way, but Thailand stole all our hearts… and significantly reduced our dental bills.
Next time your family gets a shocking quote from a healthcare provider, remember: sometimes the solution is just a flight away. Just make sure you have enough points for business class—recovery is always better with a lie-flat seat, especially when it’s your first time experiencing one.
