Your full course is planned around your travel dates by a qualified travel pharmacist.
Choose a weekday. No GP referral or waiting list.
Pharmacist reviews your itinerary and health.
Each dose at our Maidstone clinic. Record emailed.
Two doses before departure. Third dose after return.
The TBE virus passes through a tick bite almost immediately after attachment; unlike Lyme disease, prompt removal alone does not eliminate risk. Ticks are found in long grass and forest edges, and the virus can rarely also spread through unpasteurised dairy in endemic areas.
TBE normally has two phases, an initial flu-like illness and then a period without symptoms. Second phase: The infection spreads to the central nervous system in one-third of patients who experience symptoms. Meningitis or encephalitis may result from it. The patient might die, suffer irreversible brain damage, or become paralysed.
TBE vaccine inactivated for adults and for persons aged 16 years and over. Three-dose primary schedule. Not to be used in patients with latex anaphylaxis or known allergies to egg, formaldehyde, neomycin, gentamicin or protamine sulphate.
Licensed from age one, lower-dose formulation, same three-dose schedule. Doses for adults and children can be administered during a single family visit. The same exclusions for latex and allergies apply.
The most common reactions are pain, redness and swelling at the injection site which go away in a day or two. It may cause mild headaches, fatigue and short fever. Serious reactions are uncommon.
Worried you’ve left it too late? In most cases, a practical option is still available.
Standard
Dose 2 is given 1–3 months after Dose 1.
5 to 12 months after Dose 2
Travellers with 3 or more months before departure
Rapid
Dose 2 at 14 days
5 to 12 months after Dose 2, typically after return
Travellers departing within 4 to 6 weeks
Book ASAP if your trip is near. A single dose provides some protection, and your pharmacist can suggest a schedule that fits your timeline.
Hikers and trekkers in forested areas
Direct and prolonged time in tick habitat, particularly undergrowth and leaf litter, with repeated potential for tick attachment
Campers and overnight outdoor travellers
Extended time in tick environments at ground level, including at night, increases cumulative exposure
Cyclists and mountain bikers
Passage through tall grass and forest edges creates repeated close contact with tick habitats.
Children in forested or rural settings
Children play at ground level, are less likely to perform thorough tick checks, and less likely to report a bite promptly
Hunters and outdoor workers
Regular extended time in woodland and agricultural environments during active tick season
Long-stay travellers and expats in endemic countries
Cumulative exposure over months or years dramatically increases the statistical likelihood of contact with an infected tick
Travellers consuming unpasteurised dairy in endemic regions
Unpasteurised milk, cheese, or yoghurt from infected animals can transmit the TBE virus without any tick contact occurring
Mandeep Sandhu is superintendent pharmacist and independent prescriber at Maidstone Travel Clinic with specialist travel health training from NaTHNaC. Mandeep Sandhu is a fully accredited Yellow Fever Vaccination Centre vaccinator, qualified to advise, vaccinate and supply travel medications in one appointment.
Each consultation is personally led, not delegated, not rushed. Patients depart with a plan tailored to their individual trip, not a generic printout.
Generally no. TBE risk sits in rural and forested areas, not cities. But if your trip includes hiking, cycling, camping, or other outdoor time in tick country, vaccination is worth it even for short visits.
Two doses cover most single trips. A booster is due three years after the primary course, then every five years (or every three years for those aged 60+) if risk remains.
Yes. TicoVac Junior is licensed for children aged one to fifteen years and TicoVac Adult for those aged sixteen and over. Families can book a single appointment to have multiple members vaccinated together at our Maidstone clinic.
No. Repellents cut the risk of tick bites but are not fully effective and will not stop every bite. The vaccine and repellents work together as two layers of protection, not alternatives.
No. TicoVac protects only against the tick-borne encephalitis virus. It does not protect against Lyme disease, a bacterial infection also spread by ticks. There is no licensed Lyme disease vaccine in the UK.
