Czech Republic, Slovakia, Turkey top medical tourism destination for Kuwait residents

Czech Republic, Slovakia, Turkey top medical tourism destination for Kuwait residents

By Nawara Fattahova

KUWAIT: Medical tourism is popular among residents of Kuwait for many reasons. In general, medical services in Kuwait are expensive and people love travelling, so they combine leisure with medical care. Also, some treatments are specific to certain countries due to experts there and the natural environment.

There are two types of medical treatment abroad. Either the treatment abroad is paid for by the government (for Kuwaitis) — these patients are sent to various destinations depending on their health problems, or medical tourism, where patients choose the destination and pay for treatment themselves.

There are only a few travel agencies that organize medical travel tours. According to all the travel agencies Kuwait Times contacted, the most popular destination for medical tourism is the Czech Republic. “The most in-demand destinations are Czechia and Slovakia for medical treatment and physiotherapy. But recently after the pandemic, Turkey is competing with them for many reasons, especially after medical spas in Czechia and Slovakia increased their prices,” Rita Joubanian of Al-Kharafi International Co for Travel and Tourism told Kuwait Times.

“The difficulty of getting a Schengen visa at this time of the year due to huge demand has made Turkey an attractive choice. Also, due to