Thailand spotlights surf and wellness travel across Phuket and Phang-nga

On 14 August 2026, the Tourism Authority of Thailand wrapped up two international media and creator journeys across Phuket and Phang-nga, the Amazing Thailand Surf & Wellness Journey and the Amazing Thailand x Insta360 itinerary. Both were built around "Healing Is the New Luxury," TAT's communication direction for travel that supports physical, emotional and mental wellbeing.

At the center of the trips was Thailand Surf Therapy, developed under the Thailand Health Excellence 2026 programme. It is designed as a structured wellness experience rather than a medical treatment, combining surfing with nature, movement, mindfulness and positive social connection. The approach draws on knowledge shared by Waves for Change, a South Africa-based organization, and follows a five-step "Take 5" framework of Energise, Check-in, Breathe in, Play and Check-out.

The Surf & Wellness Journey ran from 8 to 13 August and brought eight international media representatives and content creators from the United Kingdom, Australia and Japan together with Thai tourism and wellness partners. A parallel collaboration with Insta360 hosted 18 creators from the Philippines, Indonesia, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Japan, Taiwan, Vietnam and Thailand across Phuket and Phang-nga from 8 to 12 August. The two groups met on 9 August at a networking dinner in Khao Lak that connected them with TAT executives, operators, wellness partners and community representatives.

Much of the surfing took place in Khao Lak, Phang-nga, one of Thailand's established surf spots, where guided sessions at Memories Surf House covered water safety, movement and progressive skills. Around the waves, the itinerary wove in wellness stays, forest bathing at Khao Lak-Lam Ru National Park, kayaking at the Little Amazon in Takua Pa, and cultural time in Takua Pa Old Town and Phuket Old Town, along with farm-to-table meals and Michelin Guide-listed dining.

The effort reflects a wider goal of turning Thailand's coastal assets and wellness expertise into distinctive, market-ready experiences for higher-value travelers. It also lands at a useful moment in the calendar. On the Andaman coast the surf arrives with the southwest monsoon, so the middle of the year, Thailand's green season, is when many surfers head to breaks near Khao Lak. A new five-day, four-night Surf Therapy package, combining structured sessions with accommodation, meals and nature-based activities, shows how the concept is moving from promotion toward something visitors can book.

For an independent traveler, a trip like this is spread out. A surf house, a national park trail, a riverside kayak launch and an old-town restaurant can sit tens of kilometers apart, and the schedule rarely matches fixed public transport. Many visitors reach these places the way locals do, on a rented scooter or in a small car, which turns a cluster of separate bookings into a route they can follow on their own time.

This is the part of the journey Balm Rentals is built to make smoother. As a marketplace for scooters, motorbikes and cars in Thailand, Balm shows the full price, deposit and conditions before payment, works with verified local rental partners, and presents everything in the traveler's own language through its iOS and Android apps. The aim is to complement the operators and community businesses that TAT is spotlighting, giving visitors a clear and legal way to move between them, so more of the day goes to the surf, the forest and the table rather than to logistics.

Thailand Surf Therapy is still young, built so far with facilitators from seven Thai organizations across Phang-nga, Phuket, Chanthaburi and Nonthaburi. But it shows how the country is packaging wellbeing, nature and local culture for international visitors, and how much of that experience unfolds on the road between one coastal stop and the next.