News
Thailand news, politics, business, crime, lifestyle, and tourism—stay updated with breaking news and in-depth analysis from Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Pattaya, and beyond.
-
159 people dead after first three days of Thai holiday campaign
PHOTO: VOA 159 people have died in the first three days of the Christmas/New Year holiday 7 day safety campaign. During those three days there has been 1,504 crashes resulting in 1,549 injuries. The numbers take into account last Friday up to midnight Sunday night. The capital, Bangkok, has registered the highest death toll and the highest number of drink-driving…
-
Flydubai introduces daily Dubai-Krabi flights
PHOTOS: Tourism Authority of Thailand More routes from more locations into Thailand’s secondary airports has been the story of 2019 aircraft arrivals. Now the Tourism Authority of Thailand has welcomed flydubai’s inaugural flight on the Dubai-Krabi route. It arrived at Krabi International Airport two weeks ago. The budget airline out of the United Arab Emirates is operating a daily flight on the…
-
Freak hailstorm causes blackouts, damages homes in Chiang Rai
PHOTOS: Thai PBS World Heavy rains and hail have damaged homes and caused widespread blackouts in the northern province of Chiang Rai. Strong winds knocked down trees in several districts, blocking traffic. Officials say the sudden storm, which struck Mae Sai, Chiang Saen and Mae Chan districts, lasted about 30 minutes and damaged several houses. They say the relief operation was hindered…
-
Man arrested with loaded gun in Pattaya, allegedly firing in public
PHOTO: The Pattaya News A 42 year old Thai man has been arrested, not far from the same Pattaya checkpoint where a 26 year old man was earlier arrested with a live grenade. Police responded to a complaint that someone was firing a gun on Soi Bun Bunkaram 5 around midnight on December 29. Officers, and a reporter from The Pattaya…
-
Latest NIDA poll says Thanathorn “most suitable” for PM
A recent NIDA survey has named Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit “the most suitable person” for the post of Thai PM and his Future Forward Party as the best party to lead the country. The survey by the National Institute for Development Administration, or NIDA Poll, was conducted between December 18 – 20 on 2,511 Thai adults of various occupations and levels of education.…
-
Thai police dis criticism of their Koh Tao Murder investigation
PHOTO: Bangkok Post Thai police have publicly hit back at foreign media allegations that their forensics investigation into the highly-publicised 2014 murder case on Koh Tao did not meet international standards. The publicity about their allegedly botched investigation began in 2014 with the brutal murder of two British tourists, David Miller and Hannah Witheridge, on Koh Tao island off Surat…
-
New research poses grim projections for world’s coastal cities
GRAPHIC: The New York Times • More than 20 million people in southern Vietnam, nearly a quarter of the total population, currently live on land that will be underwater by 2050. • In Thailand, more than 10% of the population live on land that will be inundated in 30 years. Bangkok is already suffering inundations, complicated by the city sinking…
-
Phuket police arrest eight drug dealers along with weapons and ammunition
On December 29, Phuket police arrested eight drug dealers and also seized a collection of drugs and weapons. In the first case, police arrested 29 year old Auttarit Chuachit and 28 year old Taweewan Suwannapo for possessing methamphetamine pills and Kratom leaves along with a gun and ammunition. They were arrested at the parking under a condominium on Thepkasattri Road…
-
Thai road toll jumps to 109 after first two days of seven day campaign
Road incidents during the first two days of the seven day New Year holiday period have risen to 974. The southern province of Surat Thani, just north of Phuket, had 33 incidents and 37 people injured. Chiang Rai and Nakhon Sawan have had the highest death toll with 6 deaths each. Police have been instructed to tighten up traffic checks…
-
Thai justice minister supports chemical castration of rapists
The Thai Justice Minister Somsak Thepsutin has given his support to a law that would require chemical castration for convicted rapists. Democrat MP Rangsima Rodrasmi proposed the law during a discussion in the House of Representatives on sexual violence. The House has created an extraordinary committee on the prevention of sex crimes. Rangsima suggested sex offenders should be castrated, chemically or…
-
Two Chinese men survive balloon crash in Sri Racha
PHOTO: Peao Yiang Tai Sri Racha Two Chinese men have survived after their hot air balloon plummeted hundreds of feet to the ground Friday morning in Sri Racha, north of Pattaya. Rescue workers learned of the incident at 11am. They arrived at a fruit plantation to find the balloon on the ground. It appeared to have fallen into several trees, knocking…
-
Thanathorn says he’ll fight for Thailand’s ethnic minorities
Future Forward party leader Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit says his opposition party will press for recognition of the basic rights of Thailand’s ethnic minorities, including ancestral land rights and access to state welfare. The party leader was in the western province of Tak on Friday to attend New Year celebrations among the Hmong hill tribe, and to seek their support for the…
-
Man arrested with live grenade at Pattaya checkpoint
PHOTO: The Pattaya News A 26 year old Buriram man has been caught with a live grenade at a checkpoint in Pattaya. Police say the man, named only as “Seksan,” was acting suspiciously as he went through the checkpoint on Soi Ko Phai in central Pattaya. Officers pulled him aside for further investigation. They searched his black backpack and found an…
-
Bangkok is in the middle of a battle between the Chao Phraya and Gulf of Thailand
The natural ebb and flow, and the eternal battle between waters flowing down the Chao Phraya and up from the sea, may affect Bangkok’s tap water supply. This year the water flowing down the mighty river may not counter the water trying to flow up towards the capital from the Gulf of Thailand. The slow sinking of Bangkok (the capital…
-
Turtle release at Maya Bay to commemorate the 15th anniversary of the Tsunami
by Robb, Five Star Thailand Tours Koh Phi Phi Leh’s most famous tourist attraction, Maya Bay has been a controversial topic in recent years. The bay remains closed. However, tourists are still able to visit the National Park to swim and snorkel along the outskirts of the bay. A rope strung across the bay prevents visitors from going inside the bay…
-
Indian visitors to Thailand help break tourist arrival record
With a few days left to go in 2019, Thailand has already stepped over last year’s record arrivals of 38,260,000. The 38,260,000th visitor to Thailand in 2019 arrived on December 20, a tourist from India, Devanshi Deepak Kesaria. Thailand has exceeded last year’s record for foreign tourist arrivals. This final result for tourist arrivals into the Kingdom in 2019 will end…
-
More palms on the way for Phuket’s Promthep Cape
The Phuket governor’s office is working with the Rawai municipality and consultants from Nongnooch Garden Pattaya to improve the landscape and amenity at Promthep Cape, the hugely popular sunset vantage point at the southern end of the island. Phuket’s Governor Phakphong Thaviphat says Promthep Cape is one of the main tourist attractions under the Tourism Authority of Thailand’s campaign to…
-
Songkhla jail escapee recaptured after a day on the loose
A prisoner who managed to escape from the Songkhla Provincial ail has now been recaptured at a rented house in Singhanakhon district. Police were able to locate him yesterday around midday. The Corrections Department had offered a 200,000 baht reward the day before for any information leading to the arrest of Dalok-Ani MaPrasit who escaped from the provincial prison Officiers…
-
Drones being used to help manage Thai holiday traffic
A fleet of drones is being deployed by the Royal Thai Air Force to assist the Department of Public Disaster Prevention and Mitigation manage traffic on the country’s main highways over the year-end holiday period. The period is also one of the two ost dangerous times on Thai roads; the other being over the Songkran holiday break. Thai PBS World…
-
Former Office of Buddhism chief sentenced to 20 years for corruption
PHOTO: National Office of Buddhism The former chief of the National Office of Buddhism has been handed a 20 year prison sentence for the mis-appropriation of temple funds. Thai PBS World reports that at the Criminal Court for Corruption and Misconduct Cases, Panom Sornsilp was found guilty of graft, along with the former director of the Office of Temple Renovation…
-
Two drug smugglers killed by soldiers in Chiang Rai, drugs seized
Two drug runners have been shot and killed by soldiers in the Mae Sai district of Chiang Rai. They were shipping 600 kilograms of crystal methamphetamine (ice) which was seized in the operation. The men were killed during a gunfight between a group of drug runners and border police after the Pha The Muang military task force detected 15-20 men…
-
Former NZ Olympic champion busted for working illegally at Bangkok fitness studio
PHOTO: Olympic.or.nz | Bangkok Get Fit Cycling Studio A former Olympic champion from New Zealand has been arrested for working in Thailand without a work permit. The Nation reports that 37 year old Kiwi, Marc Ryan, was arrested yesterday at the Bangkok Get Fit Cycling Studio in the Sukumvit district. The arrest came after police received reports of a number of foreign…
-
Asia leads the way in travel technology over next decade
In an industry already heavily “disrupted” by technology, tourism and travel will see even more of the business-side move online. Singapore-based travel booking company Agoda says that single one-stop-shop apps for all travel needs, passport free travel, and mobile app check-in are the top three new travel trends expected by travellers. Their report indicates travellers now expect a lot more from their travel experience…
-
ASEAN aiming to develop Universal Healthcare Coverage for all member states
PHOTO: Pacific Health Care Promoting universal healthcare coverage for citizens is now a common goal of ASEAN member states. The aim is to grant people access to healthcare without barriers to improve nations’ health and wellbeing of all citizens. Universal healthcare is a hallmark of civilised governments around the world with the UN describing UHC as a right of all…
-
Direct Russian flights into Surat Thani start with uptick for Samui, Koh Tao & Ko-Phangan
PHOTO: The Flight Reviews A new series of flights between Russia and Surat Thani International Airport kicked off on December 27 with the charter Nordwind Airlines. Russian tourists will be able to fly direct into the region, avoiding the monopoly at Koh Samui airport. They can then transfer to Koh Samui, Koh Tao and Ko-Phangan from the Surat Thani International Airport…
-
And they’re off! Hundreds of thousands leave Bangkok for New Year break
PHOTO: Eleven Media Group Hundreds of thousands of Bangkok residents have already started heading out of the capital, headed to various Thai provinces to welcome in 2020 in the company of friends and family. The long weekends starts from tonight with many Thais being granted a public holiday on Monday, in addition to the Tuesday and Wednesday public holidays. It…
-
Woman injured by ‘exploding’ manhole cover in northern Thailand
PHOTO: sanook.com A manhole cover has exploded in the northern province of Lampang, seriously injuring a 22 year old delivery woman, who was knocked unconscious. Thai Residents reports that the incident took place in Lampang city yesterday afternoon as the woman, “Nun”, was going to collect a customer’s order. CCTV shows the manhole cover exploding as the delivery woman drove by…
-
Trang mayor’s body found five kilometres from scene of fatal accident
Following a Christmas Day road incident where a white Mitsubishi SUV was seen plunging into a canal, rescue workers have recovered the body of the mayor of Nakhon Trang five kilometres from the scene of the crash. The Nation reports that CCTV footage shows the car being driven at high speed before running off the road and plunging into the…
-
At least 21 killed by typhoon Phanfone in Philippines
PHOTO: bbc.com A deadly Christmas typhoon has swept across the central Philippines region, leaving a trail of destruction in its wake and killing at least 21 people. With much of the area’s communications remain cut off, the full extent of the damage or fatalities is not yet known. Typhoon Phanfone, known locally as Typhoon Ursula, made landfall on Eastern Samar…
-
Central “deeply appalled” by Nazi pics at their Christmas display
UPDATE: The family of one of the people in the photo, has contacted The Thaiger and asked us to remove the photo. We have blurred one of the faces to comply with their wish after a discussion on the matter. “Three French hens, Two turtle doves and a pair of Nazi’s in a Bangkok shopping centre”. A cultural collision, a…
Don't forget to check out some other things to do in Thailand - get help starting a business or finding a job in Thailand, buy Thailand property, rent a yacht or book a medical procedure worldwide.