Sun, sea and ... a sex change?

Once both men, this couple underwent sex change operations in Phuket before marrying

BANGKOK, Thailand -- For those in search of the tropical sun -- and a sex change -- Thailand's tourism promoters are planning a special package tour to the island of Phuket.

This internationally popular resort isle in southern Thailand has seen a recent boom in private clinics offering sex-change operations and plastic surgery for foreigners, according to health officials.

To further cash in on this trend, chief provincial health officer Jamriang Choosaengchai told the Associated Press that his office has proposed that the government's Tourism Authority of Thailand market a tour which will include recreation along with visits to the clinics as well as dentists.

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Details, he said, were being discussed but a slogan has already been coined: "If you're thinking of a sex change, think of Phuket."

Thailand has become well-known in recent years for the skill of its sex-change and plastic surgeons and dentists. Charges for such services are also far lower than in Western nations.