Phuket News
-
Sponsored Why retirees in Thailand are choosing long-term health insurance over quick fixes
Retirees in Thailand are increasingly seeing the importance of health insurance in protecting their well-being during retirement. With insurance requirements for retirement visas and rising healthcare costs, many are moving away from short-term plans and choosing long-term coverage. Long-term health...
-
81 Burmese arrested at Wat Chalong Fair
PHUKET: Immigration officers arrested 81 Burmese workers who broke the 8 pm curfew so they could attend the Wat Chalong Fair between February 16 and 22.In December a provincial order was issued banning Burmese workers from leaving their homes after 8 pm without their employer. They are also not allowed to drive vehicles or possess mobile phones.Pol Col Ittipon Atchariyapradit,…
-
Asian invasion overwhelms airport immigration
PHUKET: The Phuket holidays of about 2,200 East Asian tourists got off to a slow start early this morning, when they were forced to wait hours to clear Immigration at Phuket International Airport (PIA).Twelve flights landed in little over an hour, overwhelming the Immigration officers on duty. It took officials until past 4 am, some three-and-a half hours after the…
-
17 more bars caught in late-trading crackdown
PATONG: Seventeen more bar operators have been charged with trading outside permitted hours following the raids on late-night Valentine’s Day parties last week.The second round of raids came about 4:30 am February 16 on Rat-U-Thit 200 Pi Rd, with the operators of the Jonas Tree Guest Bar, The Sunday Bar, Paris Bar, The Nineteen St Bar and a bar named…
-
Couple attacked on bypass road
RASSADA: A Phuket man was beaten and blasted by a shotgun when he and his wife were attacked by a motorbike gang on the bypass road early on Monday morning. K. Chatchai Chuenjitsoonthorn, 26, was taken to Vachira Hospital where he is still recovering from his injuries. His condition is reported as not life threatening.Lt Theeradet Jiraksa, Duty Officer at Phuket City Police…
-
Koh Yao villagers stage pier protest
PHANG NGA: About 30 protestors have been camping out for over a month on Klong Son Beach on Koh Yao Yai, demanding the government scrap plans for a pier to be built there by a large land developer.The protesters comprise poor Muslim residents of Village 3 and representatives from non-governmental organizations supporting their cause. The villagers see the project, which…
-
Valentine’s Day crackdown sees nine club owners charged
PATONG: The operators of nine clubs and bars in Patong, including Night Station Discotheque and Safari Pub, were arrested early Thursday morning for violating the mandatory closing time of 2 am.Officers from Phuket Provincial Police Special Task Force and Kathu District Police Station, led by Lt Col Sermphan Sirikong, raided the entertainment hotspots at 4 am February 15, kicking out…
-
Masseuse set on fire on Patong Beach
PATONG: After yelling at a Patong Beach masseuse about her crying daughter, a man doused the woman with paint thinner and set her alight about midday on Tuesday.As the girl’s parents ran to their daughter’s aid, outraged witnesses pounced on the man and beat him.The mother is now in hospital, critically injured with first-degree burns. Her attacker, a drug addict,…
-
Police to crack down on foreign labor
PHUKET: Police have been ordered to crack down on alien laborers using mobile phones or found on the streets after 8 pm, Phuket Vice-Governor Vorapot Rattasima said this morning.At a meeting at Provincial Hall, V/Gov Worapot said that he had received reports that alien laborers were leaving their registered place of abode after 8 pm and freely using mobile phones,…
-
Two killed in head-on smash
SAMKONG: A Finnish man and a Thai tuk-tuk driver were killed in a head-on collision between a tuk-tuk and a pickup truck shortly after 1 pm yesterday. A Finnish woman and Thai man traveling in the tuk-tuk were also injured in the accident.The Finns were in the back of a tuk-tuk driving northbound past Steak Samkong restaurant on Yaowarat Rd…
-
Island CCTV up and running
PHUKET: The next time you are having a night out on the town in Patong, Kata-Karon or Phuket City be sure to keep a smile on your face: you might be on TV.Pol Col Peerayuth Karachedi, Superintendent for Administrative Affairs at Phuket Provincial Police Station, told the Gazette that a closed-circuit television (CCTV) system has been fully tested and is…
-
Thai sailor murdered in Phang Nga mutiny
PHANG NGA: The captain of Thai fishing boat Muang Dam 2 was seriously injured and his First Mate killed on February 9, when nine Burmese crew members mutinied during a fishing expedition about 40 miles off the coast of Phang Nga Province.A tour boat found the captain of the boat, Chalermporn Phosung, floating adrift with serious stab wounds.After the incident…
-
Teenage murder suspects still at large
PHUKET: Four teenagers of the nine suspects in the murder of transsexual and glue addict Keittirat Longnawa remain at large while police try to learn all of their full names so that a single warrant for their arrest can be requested from the court.Lt Col Adul Niraphai, an Investigating Inspector at Phuket City Police Station, told the Gazette that he…
-
Phuket student wins national IMPAC award
BANGKOK (Nation): Waranya Nawaluck has taken her personal experience from the 2004 tsunami and turned it into opportunity. The 17-year-old Kathu Wittaya School student yesterday was awarded the National 3rd Annual Junior IMPAC Dublin Literary Award for Thailand. The theme for the essay was “A Tale of Thai Grace and Compassion”.K. Waranya’s essay revolves around the impact that the disaster…
-
SIPA to launch online payments portal
PHUKET: The Software Industry Promotion Agency (SIPA) will launch its “One Click Finish All: One Stop Services” initiative through the www.thaionestop.org website on Saturday.The website, for now in Thai only, will accept online payments for water, electricity and telephone bills, but users must have an account with Bank of Ayudhya.The portal initially will be able to make payments to the…
-
Fire destroys shops on Phi Phi
PHI PHI DON (Nation, Kom Chad Luek, Gazette): A fire raged through beachfront shops at the eastern end of Ton Sai Bay on Koh Phi Phi Don on Sunday, causing estimated damages of more than 2 million baht. No one was hurt in the blaze.The fire began at a beer bar around 11:30 am and swiftly raged through 10 other…
-
Gambling, prostitution top January arrests
PHUKET: From January 1 to 20, police arrested 208 people for gambling and 115 people for prostitution in Phuket, according to the latest crime statistics from the Phuket Provincial Police.Cases involving ya bah (methamphetamine) totaled 99, with 108 arrests made and 5,681 pills seized.Thirteen people were arrested for sniffing glue or paint thinners, 25 for possession of marijuana and three…
-
Call for safety during Chinese New Year
PHUKET: Don’t sell or play with dangerous fireworks – and be careful with lit joss sticks during Chinese New Year, government officials have warned.Fire safety and other issues regarding the festivities that begin February 18 prompted a press conference led by Phuket Governor Vorapoj Rattasima. Also addressing the press were Aroon Kerdsom, head of the Phuket Provincial Office of Disaster…
-
Sea gypsies protest over fishing rights
PHUKET CITY: Some 100 sea gypsies from Rawai on Wednesday petitioned Phuket Governor Niran Kalayanamit to help settle an ongoing, violent dispute over fishing rights near resorts.The complaint follows sea gypsy Pratan Charncheow suffering decompression sickness after having his oxygen supply hose cut while diving off Nui Beach on December 31.Pratan was fishing with five other sea gypsies, including Alim…
-
Mission Hills to host PM’s golf meet
PHUKET: Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah bin Haji Ahmad Badawi will meet Thai Prime Minister Gen Surayud Chulanont for a round of golf at Mission Hills Golf course Sunday afternoon. The PMs will fly in separately Sunday morning and fly out the following day.Phuket Vice-Governor Tri Augkaradacha confirmed both PM’s itineraries, saying that PM Badawi will stay at JW Marriott Phuket…
-
Newspaper Circulation Soars
BANGKOK (The Nation): Worldwide newspaper circulation soared nearly 10 percent in the five years to 2005, according to a study released in Paris yesterday. The study’s findings sharply challenge the widespread notion that the print media is moribund.The World Association of Newspapers [WNA] said the number of paid-circulation daily papers reached a record 10,104 in 2005, an increase of 13 percent…
-
Ya bah addict gunned down after 4-hour standoff
PHUKET CITY: A four-hour standoff between police and a drug-crazed pork vendor ended violently yesterday, with a Phuket City policeman sustaining two bullet wounds before returning fire and hitting the gunman three times.After being felled, the man tried to take his own life by shooting himself in the head – but his gun failed to fire.Phuket City Police Inspector Lt…
-
Eight disaster-alert stations plundered
PHUKET: Thieves have stolen copper cable from lightning rods at eight of the island’s 11 emergency radio network repeater stations, forcing the Phuket Provincial Administration Organization (OrBorJor) to spend some 2.7 million baht on replacement and repairs.News of the vandalism was reported by OrBorJor Vice-President Suthin Uthaithamrong at the January 30 meeting of provincial office chiefs at the Thavorn Grand…
-
Man killed by lover in drunken ‘accident’
RASSADA: Banya Wosongkram, 20, a young laborer from Khon Kaen, died after being stabbed by his lover during a drinking session at a worker’s camp near the bridge to Koh Sireh on January 31.The incident occurred while K. Banya was drinking with two friends and his lover Siam Raisanguan, 32, a married woman from Kalasin province.Lt Col Ampolwat Saengreuang, Inspector at…
-
Foreign teacher crackdown to continue
PHUKET: Foreign teachers will continue to be the target of Immigration crackdowns, Thai Immigration Chief Pol Lt Gen Suwat Tumrongsiskul confirmed during his recent visit to Phuket on Monday.His agency, in cooperation with the Ministry of Education (MoE), will continue to conduct strict background checks on all foreigners applying for teaching jobs in the Kingdom.Gen Suwat said Immigration agreed with…
-
Thai youth: Clever, constructive… copulating
PHUKET CITY: Valentine’s Day is traditionally a time when love is in the air, but according to officials at Phuket Provincial Health Office (PPHO), young love is too often finding its way under the sheets.PPHO Chief Dr Wanchai Satthayawuthipong said that as Valentine’s Day is a time of high risk for youths losing their virginity and contracting STDs, his office…
-
Men cleared of gold shop robbery
PHUKET CITY: The two suspects wanted for the January 27 robbery of the Thongroj gold shop in Dowroong Villa, on Chao Fa East Rd, have been cleared by police after they turned themselves in to proclaim their innocence.Police on January 30 released sketches of the two men as they had visited the gold shop earlier in the week.Pol Maj Sompong…
-
Surayud, Badawi to play a round in Phuket
PHUKET: Prime Minister Gen Surayud Chulanont and Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah bin Haji Ahmad Badawi are scheduled to meet in Phuket on February 11 to play a round of golf and stay one night, before heading to Bangkok the following day.The stately visit was announced by Phuket Vice-Governor Tri Augkaradacha at a meeting yesterday at Phuket Provincial Hall.Citing a draft…
-
Public surveyed on B70bn Ao Phuket project
PHUKET CITY: Public opinions of the 70-billion-baht convention center and hotel project proposed to be built on reclaimed land off Saphan Hin have been surveyed, but the survey results have yet to be analyzed, Vice-Governor Worapot Ratthasima and officials from Phuket Governor’s Office were told on Friday.Researchers Dr Aree Tirasatayapitak and Kamontorn Prompitak, from the Faculty of Service Industries at…
-
New District Chief tackles Thalang traffic
THALANG: Newly-appointed Thalang District Chief Samart Waradisai plans to request a budget to build a tunnel and more dedicated U-turns in order to improve traffic flow and safety on Thepkrasattri Rd.Thalang District Office, working with the Phuket Provincial Highways Office (PPHO) and Thalang Police, has already taken steps to improve traffic flow at Heroines’ Monument.During peak hours, from 7 am…
-
Phuket investors implicated in human trafficking bust
MAE HONG SON (The Nation): Twenty long-neck Karen women (Paduang) arrested while crossing the Thai-Burmese border on Wednesday night allegedly were to be sold to a group of Phuket investors for 10 million baht, police said on Thursday.Mae Hong Son Provincial Governor Direk Konkleeb urged officers to extend the investigation to arrest those behind the alleged human trafficking.One of the…
Phuket is a province in the south of Thailand. Phuket's beaches face the Andaman Sea allowing the west coast beaches fantastic sunsets right throughout the year. If you're looking for news in Phuket, go to thethaiger.com/phuket Or follow our instant news in our Facebook pages.
The good news is that Phuket is famous for its foodie scene with an enormously diverse range of local and international foods - Phuket and southern favorites, street food along with international choices catering for the 12 million visitors to the island each year. Thaiger follows Phuket news and information 24 hours a day with regular updates.
Phuket is only 'just' an island with a 300 metre bridge linking it to Thailand's mainland. We're always reporting in the news that the channel beneath is frequently dredged to maintain Phuket's status as an island. On the other side of Sarasin Bridge is the Province of Phang Nga.
Getting to Phuket is easy as the island has land, air and sea connections. Phuket is also used as a take-off point for local island trips as Thailand's largest island is surrounded by over 30 pristine islands. Koh Phi Phi and the famous Maya Bay are always in the news and would be the best known of the island's just off Phuket's shores.
Phuket is an island and a province. It's the largest island in Thailand – 48 km north to south, 21 km east to west.
It's about 20% smaller, in area, than Singapore but much less densely populated. Whilst the island nation of Singapore boasts a population of nearly 6 million, Phuket has a permanent population of around 400-450,000 (but varies a lot with the influx of tourists and a workforce that is always changing). Most of Phuket remains jungle and tropical rainforest despite an acceleration of development over the past 20 years.
Unlike some of Thailand's other popular islands (that are in the Gulf of Thailand), the news is that Phuket is located in the Andaman Sea.
Phuket is 878 km north of the equator.
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.