Where to Learn Thai Massage: Wat Pho and Chiang Mai Schools
What a Thai massage course involves at Wat Pho in Bangkok and at schools in Chiang Mai, what the published prices are, and what a certificate does and does not let you do.
Learning Thai massage in Thailand usually starts with a bow to a teacher and a week of repetition. At Wat Pho in Bangkok, the school stands in a restored shophouse on Soi Phen Phat, just outside the temple walls. In Chiang Mai, a handful of schools run five-day courses that start every Monday.
This guide compares what those schools publish: course lengths, prices, who they teach, and what the paperwork means. It is written for people who want to learn for themselves, for family and friends, or as a first step towards a career.
How we chose
We looked for schools with a published course list and a recent price or schedule, and left out schools that publish neither. Prices are in baht, as shown on each school’s pages in October 2026, and some pages carry no date. We have not enrolled at any of them, so we cannot say how good the teaching is.
Wat Pho, Bangkok
The Wat Pho Thai Traditional Medical and Massage School sits at 392/32-33 Soi Phen Phat. Lonely Planet lists a basic course of 30 hours over five days, in either general or foot massage, and an advanced course of 165 hours with the basic course as a prerequisite. Oil massage, aromatherapy and infant massage are also taught.
A Thailand government travel guide from 2023 gives different figures: courses of 60 to 165 hours, starting at ฿9,000, held Monday to Saturday from 9am to 5pm. It also says the school offers a labour skill test. We could not load the school’s own site, so confirm hours and fees by phone (+66 2 622 3551) before you travel.
Chiang Mai: ITM
The International Training Massage school, known as ITM, publishes the clearest price list we found. Its page is undated, but the footer reads 2026 and its teacher-training schedules run into 2027.
- Level I, Foundation: 30 hours over five days, Monday to Friday 9:00–16:00, ฿7,000. A new class starts every Monday.
- Introduction: 18 hours over three days for ฿5,500, with an option to extend to five days for ฿1,800 more.
- Levels II and III: ฿7,000 each. Level IV, upper or lower body, is ฿7,500 each.
- Weekend courses: foot reflexology, chair massage and table massage run on Saturdays and Sundays, for ฿5,000 to ฿5,500.
- Longer programmes: an 11-week, 390-hour practitioner and teacher programme costs ฿92,000.
Classes are taught in English. ITM says a certificate needs 90 per cent attendance, and its page also mentions 80 per cent in another section, so ask which applies. The school says its certificate is accredited by the Ministry of Education. Meals are not included, and ITM lists recommended guesthouses near the school, many with student rates.
Chiang Mai: TMC and the Old Medicine Hospital
TMC School lists Foundation, Enhancement and Therapeutic levels of 30 hours each, plus a 90-hour comprehensive course and a 150-hour intensive. Its pages show approvals from several overseas continuing-education bodies. The price pages we could read carry 2021 dates, so we have not quoted fees. Ask for a current schedule.
The Old Medicine Hospital on Wua Lai Road, just south of the old city moat, teaches Northern Thai massage. Chiang Mai CityLife described courses from a six-hour introduction to a 500-hour traditional programme in 2023, without prices. Contact the school for fees.
What a course day looks like
ITM’s five-day foundation course runs seven hours a day, from 9:00 to 16:00. Its published prerequisites show how courses stack: Level II needs Level I, and Level III needs both. A first-timer therefore starts at Level I or the three-day introduction.
Thirty hours is well short of the 150 hours that Thai rules ask of a licensed masseuse, as the next section explains.
What a certificate does and does not allow
Thai rules matter here. In August 2024 the Charawi Association for the Conservation of Thai Massage told Pattaya Mail what a legal masseuse needs. The association said it is 150 hours of training and a licence from the Department of Health Service Support. The association says foreign workers are taking jobs reserved for Thais. We did not find an official source confirming every detail, so check the current rules with the department.
Thailand’s Thai Massage College opened in March 2025 under the Ministry of Public Health. Its specialist courses require a 150-hour course registered with the department, according to the Nation Thailand. That is one reason to ask whether a school’s course is registered, not just whether it issues a certificate.
On visas, ITM’s FAQ says a tourist visa allows 60 days and a non-immigrant education visa 90 days. Rules change, so check with a Thai embassy.
Know before you go
- Where: The Wat Pho school on Soi Phen Phat in Bangkok, and ITM, TMC and the Old Medicine Hospital in Chiang Mai.
- Price: ฿7,000 for a five-day, 30-hour foundation course at ITM (as published in October 2026). Wat Pho courses start from about ฿9,000 (2023 figure).
- Book: ITM courses, TMC School and the Wat Pho school listing.
- Good for: Curious beginners, long-stay residents and anyone planning longer study.
- Check first: Whether the course is registered with the Department of Health Service Support, the attendance rule, class size and what the fee includes.
Learn the first sequence slowly, and practise it on someone patient. A week of calm repetition is the best preparation for the longer courses.
Mali. Mali writes about spas and retreats, meditation and spirituality, food and slow living across Thailand. Her name means jasmine in Thai; she believes rest is a skill, and that the best retreat is the one whose habits you take home.
RestRobin is editorial content, not medical advice. Prices, programmes and opening details change, so check with the provider before you book, and talk to a qualified doctor before starting a treatment, fast or detox programme.
