- Thailand News
Massive surge of Japanese restaurants in Thailand
There’s been a massive surge of Japanese restaurants in Thailand, according to the Japan External Trade Organisation (Jetro). Jetro said yesterday that it recorded 5,325 Japanese restaurants in Thailand this year. This is 955 more restaurants than the 4,370 in 2021. In 2022, the number of Japanese restaurants in Thailand rose 21.9% above the number in the previous year, the…
- Tourism News
Russians still biggest tourist group in Phuket, peak expected during holidays
Russians remain Phuket’s biggest tourist group, and the island resort’s tourism is expected to peak during the holidays, according to the president of the Southern Thai Hotels Association, Sueksit Suwannadissakun, who believes the peak of tourism High Season will be between December 24 to January 5. About 57% of hotels in the island province reopened in October, jumping to 70%…
- International Education
International schools in Hua Hin to send your kids to
For many expats in Thailand, choosing an international school to send their child to is one of their most important priorities. Hua Hin, a seaside city with a laidback atmosphere, might be a great environment for your kid. In Hua Hin, there are four international schools that promise students a rigorous education, along with an excellent and nurturing experience. We’ll…
- World News
Major Qatar corruption scandal allegedly involving Greek MEP
There’s been a major corruption scandal allegedly involving a Greek member of the European Parliament (MEP). MEP Eva Kaili has been stripped of her role as one of the EP’s 14 vice presidents. Belgian prosecutors announced on Sunday that they had charged four people with corruption, money laundering and participation in a criminal organisation. The charges are part of an…
- World News
Global football union ‘shocked and sickened’ that Iranian player could be executed
UPDATE The global football players’ union FIFPRO took to Twitter yesterday to announce that it was “shocked and sickened” that Iranian football player Amir Nasr-Azadani faces execution. The tweet read… “FIFPRO is shocked and sickened by reports that professional footballer Amir Nasr-Azadani faces execution in Iran after campaigning for women’s rights and basic freedom in his country. We stand in solidarity…
- Phuket News
Thieves ransack a Patong rental house
Thieves ransacked a rental house in Patong, stealing almost everything including doors and window panes. The house owner, 44 year Phatsamon Chompanat, reported the incident to Patong Police on Monday. Phatsamon said she had left her house locked when she left Phuket two years ago. She said she occasionally came back to visit the house to clean it. When she went…
- Crime News
Woman allegedly nabs 100,000 baht from gullible man in Pattaya
Another dating app crime has occurred in Thailand, this time in Pattaya. A woman allegedly nabbed money and valuables worth 100,000 baht from a man she met via a dating app. The victim targeted, Jack, told Pattaya City Police yesterday that he thought he had met a nice woman named ‘Plaeng.’ Jack said that he and Plaeng talked for a…
- Phuket News
Swedish man falls from Patong hotel
A Swedish man fell from a Patong hotel on Monday. The man, 64 year old Bo Peter Svensson, fell from the second floor of a hotel on Sawatdirak Road near the Sai Namyen Intersection. Rescuers found Bo with several injuries and rushed him to a nearby hospital. The hotel owner, 52 year old Supaphon, told police that Bo had checked…
- Pattaya News
Trance music festival coming up in Pattaya next year
An exciting trance music festival is coming up in Pattaya next year. The ‘Unkonscious Festival’ will be held from February 7-10, 2023, according to a post on the event’s Facebook page. The festival will bring attendees back to the trance scene of the 90s and is said to be the biggest trance festival in Asia. The lineup is as follows:…
- World News
Young police officers killed in battle with gunmen in rural Australia
Young police officers were tragically killed in a battle with gunmen in rural Australia yesterday. Four officers had gone to investigate a missing person at a property in Wieambilla, Queensland when the gunmen ambushed them. The gunmen fatally shot two officers as soon as they arrived. The battle continued, and a neighbour who came to the scene was also killed…
- Thailand News
Police on the prowl for heroin suspect who escaped from Kanchanaburi station
Police are on the prowl for a runaway heroin suspect who escaped from a station in Kanchanaburi province. The suspect, 20 year old Saksit ‘Phet’ Nongkum, escaped from Phanom Thuan police station on Saturday, Thai media reported. Phet escaped after he was taken out of his cell for further questioning. He asked to get a drink of water in front…
- Crime News
Norwegian overstayer arrested on Koh Samui
Thailand’s crackdown on overstayers is continuing, and the latest offender busted is a Norwegian man on Koh Samui. Surat Thani immigration officers arrested the man, 43 year old Jan Banan Thalmann, at a house in Samui district’s Mae Nam sub-district on Saturday. Police said Thalmann had overstayed his visa by 15 days. His reasons for overstaying were not clear, The…
- Tourism News
Transport officials expect tens of thousands of bus travellers in Thailand during three-day weekend.
Transport officials expect tens of thousands of domestic bus travellers in Thailand during the three-day weekend from December 10-12. The managing director of the state-run Transport Co Ltd., Sanyalak Panwattanalikhit, said the company has about 3,000 trips to facilitate during these days. Sanyalak said that over 227,386 people travelled during the last long weekend from December 2-5, for Thai Father’s Day.…
- Phuket News
Chinese tourist found dead in Phuket
A Chinese tourist has been found dead in Phuket yesterday. The 46 year old woman was found hanging from a durian tree in the Sakhu district, The Phuket News reported. A local woman, 60 year old Churaiwan Lengyi, told police she found the Chinese woman’s body when she went out to check if her laundry had dried. She alerted a…
- Phuket News
Officials say no to floating lanterns and fireworks on Patong Beach
Officials aren’t liking floating lanterns and fireworks on Patong Beach. On Wednesday night, officials were alerted that vendors were welling these items on the beach, according to Kathu District Chief Siwat Rawangkul. A team led by Siwat then inspected the beach to crack down on people selling and using the items. The team then found stashes of lanterns and fireworks…
- Northern Thailand News
In northeast Thailand, a pretty camping site is being offered for free
In Thailand’s northeast Nakhon Ratchasima province, the Department of Rural Roads is letting tourists stay at a pretty camping site for free. The site is located between markers Km18 and Km19 on Rural Road 3052 of Wang Nam Khiao district. It overlooks the Baan San Kamphaeng Reservoir. There is a lane along the reservoir where people can walk, jog, and…
- Crime News
Thai traffickers trick man into prostitution in Dubai
Thailand’s cruel sex traffickers have struck again. The victim, a man only identified as ‘B,’ said the three traffickers told him he would work as a massage therapist in Dubai last year. On top of a monthly 80,000 baht salary, B was promised free food and accommodation, as well as a free flight. But B was in for a horrific…
- China News
China says Covid has weakened as it announces loosening of strict policies
China is saying that Covid has weakened in the country after it announced yesterday that it would end the forced centralised quarantine. This will allow people who only have mild Covid-19 to isolate at home, and there will be more freedom to travel around the country. The Chinese Communist Party’s People’s Daily newspaper said today that China has taken the…
- South Thailand News
Whale washes up on beach in South Thailand
A whale washed up on a beach in South Thailand’s Narathiwat province on Monday. Locals, rescuers, and police helped to push the whale back into the sea at Naratat Beach. However, the whale washed up again two hours later about 500 metres away. Officials from the Department of Marine and Coastal Resources believed that the whale might have been sick,…
- Crime News
Kuwaiti overstayer busted in Koh Pha Ngan, Thailand
Police busted a Kuwaiti overstayer on Thailand’s island of Koh Pha Ngan, as Thai cops continue to crack down on overstayers. The man, 56 year old Rashed Hea Juma, overstayed his visa by 16 days, according to police. Surat Thani Immigration officers arrested Rashed at a house in the Baan Tai sub-district earlier this week. Rashed was taken to the…
- Lifestyle
Bird watching event coming up at Thai forest park
Bird watchers in Thailand have an exciting upcoming event to look forward to. The Khao Nang Phanthurat Forest Park is holding the ‘Bird Walk @KhaoNangPhanthurat’ on Saturday, December 17. The park is located in the Cha-am district of Thailand’s central Petchaburi province. Attendance is free, but space is limited to 30 people. A guide will lead participants on an adventure…
- Northern Thailand News
Border patrol sergeant in northeast Thailand kills colleague
A border patrol sergeant in Thailand’s northeast province of Khon Kaen killed his colleague on Monday by shooting him five times. The incident happened at the Border Patrol Police Division Region 2 compound. The culprit, 49 year old Sergeant Major Chuchart Pluakkhiao, shot and killed 44 year old Sergeant Major Pichit Saenkan, according to the Khon Kaen provincial police commander.…
- South Thailand News
VIDEO: Desperate Rohingyas dying on boat off South Thailand
A video is circling on social media of a group of desperate Rohingyas crowded onto a boat off South Thailand’s Ranong province. Over 200 people were on the boat, and 18 people died on the harrowing journey, a Rohingya aid coordinator told Thai PBS. The boat first left Bangladesh in late November. The aid coordinator, Rayid Ali, said the boat has…
- Pattaya News
Motorcycle taxi riders rally against unlicensed ride-share app drivers in Pattaya
Over 100 Pattaya motorcycle taxi riders showed up at Pattaya City Hall yesterday to make some noise about unlicensed ride-share app drivers. The motorcycle taxi riders are calling for a crackdown, saying that these unlicensed drivers are stealing their passengers. In an open letter to Pattaya Deputy Mayor Wuttisak Rueimkitkan, the riders accused app drivers of: Not having had their…
- Phuket News
Phang Nga officials find more leatherback turtle eggs
Turtle nesting season is well on its way in Phang Nga. Phang Nga officials found more leatherback turtle eggs, after finding over 118 of them on the same beach last month. On Wednesday, officials from the Department of Marine and Coastal Resources (DMCR) said they found more nests on Bang Khwan Beach, about 500 metres from the previous nest. However, the…
- Bangkok News
Fireworks to dazzle Bangkok’s Chao Phraya River area on New Year’s Eve
Bangkok fireworks lovers have a new treat awaiting them on New Year’s Eve. Fireworks will dazzle the capital’s Chao Phraya River area during the countdown. Bangkok’s largest shopping mall, ICON SIAM, is hosting the event, Amazing Thailand Countdown 2023, at Icon Siam River Park on December 31. The event’s theme is “win the world for Thailand.” The firework displays will be…
- Crime News
New details unfolding over alleged assault by Pattaya loan sharks
UPDATE New details are unfolding around a Pattaya woman who on Monday, November 28 alleged that loan sharks had abducted and assaulted her. The woman, 21 year old Tasneeporn Youngram, said that four loan sharks forced her into a car on Soi Paniad Chang in Bang Lamung. She said they then brought her to a deserted road, where they beat…
- Tourism News
Tourists flock to famous market in Koh Samui
Tourists are flocking to a famous market in Koh Samui for its mouthwatering food. The vice president of the Tourism Council of Thailand said the tourists are loving the Pad Thai, papaya salad (Somtam), and grilled chicken at The Wharf Samui. The market opens every Wednesday and Friday from the late afternoon until late night. Tourism Council Vice President Wiwat Chuenban…
- Phuket News
Phuket officials once again report finding no human trafficking on fishing boats
Phuket officials reported once again they found no evidence of human trafficking on fishing boats. Officials conducted a series of random interviews at Rassada Pier in the main city district yesterday. They inspected a total of seven boats with 249 workers. Some 117 workers were Thai, and 130 were from Vietnam and Laos. Officials confirmed that they did not discover…
- World News
Province in Vietnam boosting tourism with its rich culture
One province in Vietnam aims to boost its tourism with its rich cultural heritage. Twenty-one ethnic minority groups reside in the coastal, northeastern province of Quang Ninh. This year, authorities launched several tourism initiatives to draw visitors to the province, and improve accessibility to tourism products tied to ethnic cultures. From November 4-6 this year, the Binh Lieu district’s District…
