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Thailand news, politics, business, crime, lifestyle, and tourism—stay updated with breaking news and in-depth analysis from Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Pattaya, and beyond.
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Thailand expected to review list of countries eligible for “Test & Go” scheme
The Thai government is expected to review the list of countries eligible for the Test & Go entry scheme, as concerns over the Omicron variant mount. Supoj Malaniyom from the CCSA says Covid-19 screening will be intensified and the list of eligible countries will be revised. According to a Bangkok Post report, the CCSA is expected to identify a number…
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3 passengers test positive for Omicron when they arrive on Koh Samui
Three recent arrivals on the Gulf island of Koh Samui have been detected with the Omicron variant of Covid-19 – 2 British citizens and 1 Belgian. The 3 include a 54 year old British woman, a 55 year old Belgian man and a 56 year old British man. The 3 new cases are the first, not only for the holiday…
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5 places to enjoy Christmas Brunch in Phuket 2021
If you want to celebrate Christmas Day with your family or loved ones in an elegant setting, you’ve come to the right location! We’ve hand-picked some of the best restaurants, so come drool over the delectable cuisines on offer at the restaurants listed below. Top 5 places to enjoy Christmas Brunch in Phuket 1. XANA Christmas Family Fun Brunch Join…
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Thai officials to review list of low risk countries, possibly ban travellers from high risk
In addition to discussing whether to cancel the Test & Go quarantine exemption scheme due to the uptick in Omicron cases, the Thai government will also review its list of countries considered to be at low risk for Covid-19 and consider whether to ban travellers from high risk countries. Public Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul told Thai media today that the…
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UPDATE: Typhoon Rai – Rescuers battle to reach affected areas, 208 confirmed dead
At least 208 people have been killed as authorities and emergency workers start mopping up the mess left from the destructive path of Typhoon Rai (named as Odette in the Philippines). More than 400,000 people have also been displaced after the strongest typhoon to hit the Philippines in 2021 slammed into the central east coast last Thursday and cut a…
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Customer says a fish was swimming in a sealed jug of drinking water
Thais are questioning the cleanliness of their drinking water after one person found a small fish swimming around their sealed jug of drinking water. The customer video of the little silver fish swimming in the jug before returning it to the shop. The customer posted the photo on Facebook, but did not mention where they purchased the water or what…
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Myanmar deposed leader faces another postponement of her verdict
Pressures from the West and human rights groups may impede Myanmar generals’ decision to seek longer jail terms for deposed leader Aung San Suu Kyi as the court under the military junta has postponed her another verdict for illegally importing and possessing walkie-talkies today. Despite her lawyers being barred from speaking to the media and journalists barred from attending her…
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Earthquake in Laos shakes Thailand, cracking 425 year old Buddha statue
A 5.8 magnitude earthquake in Laos shook Thailand and caused a 425 year old Buddha statue in the northern border province Nan to crack. The shake could be felt by those in Thailand’s northern and northeastern provinces. The earthquake struck at 4:06am this morning with a depth of 10 kilometres, according to the Meteorological Department’s Earthquake Observation Division. It was…
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Thailand’s Maya Bay will reopen on January 1, no swimming and possibly a fee to visit
After some doubt on if Thailand’s Maya Bay would reopen next month, Thai officials have confirmed that the bay, which was made famous by the Leonardo Dicaprio movie, The Beach, is opening back up on January 1… but no swimming and there might be a fee to visit the site. The New Year’s Day reopening of the popular tourist attraction…
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Body found 3 months after tugboat capsizes in Ayutthaya
After a months-long search, dive and rescue teams have recovered the bodies of both a husband and wife who drowned when a tugboat capsized by a confluence, where the Chao Phraya River and Pasak River meet. The boat sank back in September in front of the Phanan Choeng Temple in Ayutthaya. The captain’s body was later found near the Rama…
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Will there ever be another Concorde?
We’d flown in propeller-powered planes, then jets. Supersonic was the next evolutionary step in flying people around the world as the 1960s came to a close. Now, 52 years after Concorde’s early flights supersonic flight is, again, an aviation pipe dream as we pack into our cheap ‘flying buses’ which are not much different from the first successful commercial jets that…
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First local Omicron case, officials consider cancelling quarantine exemption Test & Go
Thailand’s first local transmission of the Omicron variant was reported today by public health officials. The confirmed case comes as the government considers cancelling the Test & Go quarantine exemption scheme due to increasing reports of Omicron cases involving those arriving in Thailand from overseas. So far, health officials have reported more than 60 imported Omicron cases. The first local…
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Chinese tennis player says she never accused anyone of sexual assault
The mystery surrounding Chinese tennis star Peng Shuai continues, with the player now denying she ever made an accusation of sexual assault. Last month, Peng posted comments on Weibo, the Chinese social media platform, alleging that Zhang Gaoli, a former senior government official, would force her into having sex during their on-off relationship. The post was quickly deleted, but not…
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Long-distance bus passengers travelling for New Year’s asked to take an ATK test
Travelling by bus during the New Year holiday? You might need to take an ATK test for long-distance trips. The state-run Transport Company is in discussions with both the Public Health Ministry and the Transport Ministry about Covid-19 prevention measures during the end-of-year holiday, according to the director-general of the Department of Disease Control Opas Karnkawinpong. Opas says that passengers…
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Bangkok street food vendors welcome return of tourists to Khao San Road
Street sellers on Bangkok’s Khao San Road are celebrating the welcome return of foreign tourists and say life is finally beginning to return to normal. The Bangkok Post has spoken to a number of tourists and the street food vendors serving them. 51 year old Wan Suripar is one of them and she hopes this is the beginning of the…
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Thai government to consider cancelling Test & Go entry scheme – Health Minister
Nearly two months after Thailand opened its doors to international tourism, the country may tighten restrictions and cancel the quarantine exemption scheme, Test & Go. In an interview on Channel 9 this morning, Public Health Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said that the Thai government will discuss whether to cancel the entry scheme due to the uptick in Omicron cases. A meeting…
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Soldier dies, another seriously injured, after plunging off cliff in northern Thailand
A soldier has died after falling from a cliff in the northern province of Tak yesterday, while on duty patrolling for drug traffickers. Another soldier has been seriously injured in the incident at the mountain of Doi Montha, in the district of Mae Sot. The Bangkok Post reports that army spokesman Sirichan Ngathong says military personnel from the Naresuan Force…
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21,000 people rescued in Malaysia as torrential rain causes severe flooding
Emergency services personnel, helped by civilian volunteers, have rescued 21,000 people from severe flooding across 7 states in Malaysia. According to a Reuters report, over 66,000 police officers, military personnel, and fire department staff were deployed, with people having to be pulled from cars stranded in rising waters or from flooded streets outside their homes. It’s understood 21,000 people have…
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Majority believe convicted criminals shouldn’t get a Royal pardon
In the wake of Minister of Justice Somsak Thepsuthin initiating a Royal pardon for many people convicted of corruption, drug trafficking, and other serious crimes, the National Institute of Development Administration polled 1,317 people and found overwhelming opposition to the proposed pardon. The NIDA poll was done by phone between December 13 and December 15 and respondents from around the…
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Jane Seymour will tour Thailand to promote several causes
Jane Seymour, the famous British-American actress, is heading to Thailand with her family to promote and support several causes including pandemic prevention and fighting trafficking. She will tour the country with her family as a part holiday and part advocacy for Freeland, a charity centred in Bangkok. While Seymour will take time to explore the beaches of Thailand on her…
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Southeast Asia sees only a trickle of international tourism
Southeast Asia, for decades a tourism hotspot, has been slowly reopening to international tourists, but despite cracking the door open, most countries are only seeing a trickle of tourism at best. Businesses in the tourism sector like hotels, tour guides and more saw their livelihoods destroyed by the Covid-19 pandemic and are eager to see international travellers returning. But the…
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5 Omicron variant infections identified in Phuket
Phuket province has now identified 5 cases of the Omicron variant of Covid-19 according to health officials on the island. All 5 infections were identified from the RT-PCR test that all international arrivals are administered as soon as they land in Thailand. The Omicron infections were found in people who arrived on December 13 and December 14. One infection was…
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Typhoon Rai rips through the Philippines – at least 89 people dead
Super Typhoon Rai has now been responsible for the deaths of at least 89 people in the Philippines as is ripped through the centre of the island archipelago nation. The typhoon, the strongest to hit the Philippines this year, almost immediately knocked out communications and power in the areas directly in the path of the west-moving storm, ripped off roofs,…
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5 Free Tools To Find Profitable Condos in Thailand
If you invest in real estate in Thailand without using real market data to drive your decisions, you’re bound to overpay for a property and who knows when you’ll ever break even. But if you use the 5 free data driven tools that I’m going to show you in this video, you’ll be able to assess with statistical certainty that…
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Ryanair CEO says anyone who refuses vaccine is an “idiot”
Michael O’Leary, the CEO of RyanAir not known for biting his tongue, has spoken out against mandatory vaccinations but has made clear his personal beliefs on getting vaccinated. In recent comments, O’Leary said that anyone who turns down a potentially life-saving Covid-19 vaccine is an “idiot” and suggested that people who turn down the vaccine without good reason should suffer…
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Is Omicron less or more dangerous than earlier Covid variants?
A month after the first cases of the Covid-19 variant, Omicron, were officially detected in South Africa, we know a bit more about the potential dangers, but not a lot. Anecdotally, there have been plenty of doctors saying that the new variant appears to produce milder symptoms than earlier variants, as is often the case with these viruses. But they…
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Can Men & Women Have A Platonic Relationship? | The Stinky Food challenge
Can you have a conversation while eating extremely stinky and spicy Thai food. Join Natty as she challenges Forrest to a stinky food challenge. Can he handle the smell and more importantly the spice that comes along with it?
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Nong Khai land border opening to Test & Go scheme December 24
While Thailand has flung open the doors on its airports to international travellers since November 1, land border checkpoints are not nearly as widely open. Now, authorities prepare security for a popular border between Thailand and Laos at Nong Khai in time for the Christmas and New Year’s holidays. Starting December 24, the Nong Khai border checkpoint will be opened…
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British Airways cancels over 2,000 flights including Bangkok
In the face of the spread of Covid-19 as infections surge in the UK, British Airways have suspended all their flights travelling to Bangkok until October of next year. Rumours began circulating about the possible cancellation earlier this week with popular travel sites speculating about the major airline suspending the route. Many passengers told stories of receiving cancellation notices from…
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Thailand sees tourism dropping due to Omicron worries
Thailand is seeing a dip in new incoming tourists that Tourism Authority of Thailand Governor Yuthasak Supasorn has said is the predictable side effect of the new Omicron variant of Covid-19. Since December 8, the number of daily international travellers entering Thailand has fallen to less than 3,000 people per day. Many are worried about the Omicron, which seems to…
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