Would you travel 6,000 miles to visit the doctor? What if you could pair it with a dream vacation and still get the care you need for less than what you pay in insurance premiums in the United States?

This is a “travel hack” I’ve been using for years, and now that my parents are retired, I thought it was time to bring them abroad with me and show them why I love health tourism. They’d been talking about full-body checkups in Türkiye ever since my boyfriend and I did ours in 2024, so it felt like the most natural first step for them.

In just two days, they each completed 24 scans, lab panels, and specialist visits, for thousands less than it would have cost in the U.S. The prices were so affordable that they turned this into a 38-day trip and still came out ahead.

Here’s how we put the trip together and where to find the best deals.

The Longevity Checkup We Chose for My Parents

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Even though my parents’ health insurance in the United States costs $22,418 a year, they’d actually done very little preventative testing over their lifetime. Since they just retired, we decided this was the right moment to do the most comprehensive checkup available. Some of these tests are only needed once every ten years, or even once in a lifetime, but we wanted them to walk away with a clear understanding of their true health baseline.

Over the course of three days, they met with a cardiologist, dermatologist, internal medicine doctor, ophthalmologist, gastroenterologist, general surgeon, gynecologist, and urologist. They also completed a breast ultrasound, thyroid ultrasound, mammogram, dental exam, bone density scan, ECG, treadmill stress test, skin cancer screening, colonoscopy, endoscopy, stomach and colon biopsies, four cancer marker tests, 47 lab tests, a hereditary cancer genetic panel, and a full-body MRI. The total cost was $5,500 per person. No insurance was required, and they were able to use their HSA.

Here’s the full checkup package: 

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If they had tried to do all of this through a hospital in the U.S., I honestly think the cost would have easily exceeded $100,000. Beyond the price, preventative care simply isn’t prioritized in the same way, so coordinating this level of testing would likely have been incredibly difficult.

That’s something I’m hopeful will continue to improve as companies like Function Health start to change how preventative care is approached in the U.S.

Most of my parents’ testing was completed within two days, but we added a few additional tests based on findings during their checkups. Thankfully, the hospital was able to fit us in the very next day. By day three, everything was finished, and we still had time to explore and enjoy Istanbul.

Continuing the vacation

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Once the testing was done, it was time to continue the vacation! Cody and I flew to London, while my parents caught $150 flights to Spain. They spent three nights there for $370, then boarded a 19-day transatlantic cruise from Barcelona to Miami for just $930 each.

If you’re new to transatlantic cruises, they can sometimes be cheaper than flying, and your food, room, and board are all included. You also get to see multiple destinations along the way. There are quite a few cruises from Europe to the U.S. for as low as $500 per person, which makes them a really interesting option for longer trips.

All in, my parents’ travel costs came out to $4,249 for a 38 day trip, plus $11,000 total for both of their full-body longevity checkups. Some of the tests they did are once-in-a-lifetime, and you can absolutely spend much less depending on what you need. If you don’t require every test they chose, there are other checkup options starting around $1,000 that are still very comprehensive. It really comes down to your individual health needs.

I’m happy to report that my parents had an amazing time on their very first “healthcation.” It was a huge amount of value and still far less than what even a handful of tests would cost in the U.S., even with travel included. I already can’t wait to plan the next one with them.