No one would have imagined 43 years ago that the temple next to the Grand Palace would become a top tourist attraction in Bangkok. That was when the now-world-famous massage centre and school was opened at Wat Pho.
On a daily basis, a stream of both local and foreign tourists enters the two small white buildings at the temple to experience a Thai massage treatment, an ancient art of healing that has been handed down from generation to generation for hundreds of years. The structures contain long rows of massage beds, none of which lie empty for over a 10-minute stretch.
The popularity of Thai traditional massage has been increasing globally at a rapid pace and after a rocky start, the massage school affiliated with the temple has developed into a thriving enterprise.
More than 400000 students from more rhan 70 countries have graduated from the massage course taught at Wat Pho Thai Traditional School while the number of applicants seeking training at the institution has increased 15-20% annually over the last five year.