Thaiger
- Hua Hin News
Hua Hin Hospital sued for overcharging foreigners
PHOTO: Kapook, Channel 3 A Dutch man is suing the Hua Hin Hospital for overcharging foreigners and tourists. In a novel suit, the litigant says Thai citizen are charged 50 baht for an appointment with the doctor, but foreigners are being charged 300 baht. 50 year old Erwin Robert Bucher claims this is a form of “corruption”. Channel 3 ran…
- Transport News
Bangkok’s ‘Backpacker Central’ gets a makeover
Khao San Road in Bangkok, which has become famous (and slightly infamous) over the years without much interference, is about to get fully-fledged make-over with the help of the Bangkok Metropolitan Authority. Thai PBS reports that works are scheduled to begin in March next year with a budget of 48 millon baht set aside for the work. Bangkok’s Deputy Governor Sakonthee…
- Transport News
Dongtan Beach speed bumps deter after hours racing in Jomtien
Jomtien Beach now has new speed bumps and lines painted on the roads to help deter motorbikes and cars speeding down the road along the beach late at night. The local Pattaya council has now installed speed bumps in Dongtan Beach in Jomtien to discouraging the speeding. While vehicles are currently prohibited from 10am – 5pm daily, cars and motorbikes have…
- Pattaya News
Repair budget for decaying bridge on Koh Larn postponed to next year
Plans to fix up the Koh Larn Tien Beach bridge have been put back to next year. In recent months news stories have reported that the bridge is in urgent need of repair. Locals are claiming the structure is “close to collapse”. The bridge and walkway link Tawaen Beach and Tonglang Beach. Pattaya’s Deputy Mayor says that a 4.5 million…
- World News
Cambodian authorities crackdown on registration of foreigners
Cambodian authorities are cracking down on foreign residents staying in the Kingdom. Sar Kheng, the Cambodian Interior Minister, says all accommodation owners must now report foreigners who stay in their residences, citing a strengthening of immigration law enforcement. The Interior Ministry says that most residential and accommodation owners have respected the 2010 law but some residence owners still did not understand…
- Koh Samui News
Spanish tourist remains missing in Koh Samui mountain trek
PHOTO: Thai PBS A Spanish tourist remains missing after being lost on Na Muang Mountain 2 on Koh Samui. Police and rescue workers spent over three hours searching for 57 year old Louise Cavelo Ortega yesterday afternoon but the search was suspended as night fell. Heavy rain and the dark made it almost impossible for police to proceed. The search resumed this…
- World News
KL’s Petronas Tower architect Cesar Pelli dies at 92
“It is with great sadness that we announce the loss of our founder, mentor, and great friend, César.” – business partner Fred W. Clarke. From Malaysia to the US, famed architect Cesar Pelli, known for his innovative skyscrapers and use of coloured glass, has died at the age of 92. “He was a gifted architect and teacher, two callings he…
- Business News
Co-working spaces in Bangkok are re-shaping small to medium business office options
PHOTO: The Great Room Co-working spaces are opening up around Bangkok and providing a more flexible framework for businesses to grow. Advances in technology, a more mobile workforce, and unpredictable economic growth are reshaping the business environment. In the Bangkok office market, a traditional three-year lease with options to renew and the tenant fitting out the space remains the typical way…
- Pattaya News
Pattaya man in custody for killing horses and selling horse meat
A man being held by police for questioning after being accused of killing horses and selling their meat in Chon Buri province, east of Bangkok. Chon Buri police arrested 33 year old Nirun Kamlon at his house in Banglamung district near Pattaya yesterday on the orders of the provincial governor. Watchdog Thailand Foundation lodged a complaint with the governor that…
- Phuket News
Missing Filipino’s body found in Phuket, identified by family
PHOTO: AsiaOne A body, found washed up on Freedom beach in Phuket on Friday, has now been identified by family to be one of the two missing Filipinos. The family of Noah Ibay arrived at Phuket Provincial Hall yesterday to identify the body and meet the Phuket Governor, Pakkapong Tawipat. Mr. Val Simon Roque from The Philippines’ Embassy in Bangkok also…
- Events
Pope scheduled to visit Thailand this November
Pope Francis is scheduled to visit Thailand and Japan this November, according to reports in Catholic websites in Rome. sanook.com reported the news yesterday. His visit will coincide with the 350th year anniversary of the presence of the Roman Catholic Church in Thailand. As of 2018, there are 379,975 Catholics in Thailand, a figure that represents 0.46% of the total…
- World News
Thai PM has “grave concerns”, orders army to be on standby over drought in north
PHOTO: Thai army water trucks are on standby to help northern farmers Acknowledging the severity of the potential crisis looking over northern and north-eastern provinces, PM Prayut Chan-o-cha is instructing the armed forces to provide help to areas affected by drought, a situation which may be made worse by the test run of the new Xayaburi dam on the Laos…
- World News
Mystery 90 kilogram load was added to cargo flight list on MH370
French investigators looking into the disappearance of the Malaysian Boeing 777, flight MH370, say they have discovered a previously undeclared 89 kilogram load that was only added to the cargo list after takeoff. The sun.co.uk reports that French engineer Ghyslain Wattrelos, who lost his wife and two of his three children in the crash, detailed the claims to judges investigating…
- Health
Thai FDA refuses to endorse Decha’s cannabis oil
PHOTO: Decha Siripat from the Khao Kwan Foundation and supporters Patients who were looking forward to gain access to medicinal cannabis oil, produced by the Khao Kwan Foundation’s Decha Siripat, learned yesterday that the Thai Food and Drug Administration have declined to endorse his own version of the drug. 12 organisations have now accused the FDA of procrastination and mismanagement…
- Phuket News
Phuket’s water shortage solution – pump it from the mainland
For the Thai island surrounded by water, Phuket now faces acute water shortage problems and local officials are scurrying for solutions. This week a 3.5 billion baht plan was announced to pipe potable water across the channel from Phang Nga to Phuket as a remedy for the looming water crisis on the island. At this stage there’s no approval for…
- Crime News
Egyptian tourist stabbed in the neck at a roti street store in Phuket
PHOTO: Daily News A roti roadside vendor has been arrested after attacking a tourist by stabbing a man in the neck outside a Family Mart store. 30 year old Mahmoud Abbas is now recovering in hospital following surgery. He was admitted with a 7 centimetre gash on his neck. According to reports in Daily News, the roti seller stabbed the…
- Transport News
15 baht flat fares for BTS Skytrain – Transport Minister
The government’s new Transport Minister, Saksayam Chidchob, has reiterated its intention to reign in the costs of the city’s Green Line trains, the BTS Skytrain, around Bangkok. They’re even mooting a capped flat fee of 15 baht per ride. The policy was proposed by the Democrats during the election campaign and accepted as party platform for the new coalition in…
- Northern Thailand News
Wild animals and wild flowers – tulip season at the Khon Kaen Zoo
PHOTO: Khon Kaen Zoo Blooming fields of colourful Siam tulips are now competing fort attention with white lions, tigers, orangutan, camels, white rhinoceros and exotic animals at the Khon Kaen Zoo. Th zoo, in Khao Suan Kwang district, has a new seasonal attraction to its collection of wild animals. The combination of wildlife and wild flowers makes for an unbeatable…
- Bangkok News
Allegedly drunk motorcyclist hits 14 year old on a bicycle – VIDEO
Police are looking for a motorcyclist who was caught on surveillance camera in Bang Pakong, a district in southern Chachoengsao, east of Bangkok, driving the wrong way – ghost riding – down a street and hitting a 14 year old boy on his bike. The teenager was just waiting on the side of the road with the bicycle’s wheels sitting…
- Tourism News
Thailand’s marijuana and massage-led tourism recovery
The new Thai minister for tourism and sports says he can lure Europeans and Americans back to Thailand with the promise of massage and marijuana – medical marijuana! The newly sworn-in political “newbie” told the media on Wednesday that he is well aware of the drop in visitors from the US and Europe. He says he hopes plans to promote the…
- Hot News
UPDATE: 3,000 baht Phuket van fare for Australians tourists “all a misunderstanding”
As a follow up of the complaint about an overcharged van fare of 3,000 baht from Phuket International Airport to Kata by two Australians, a meeting was held yesterday between the driver, the tourists and a representative from the Phuket Land Transport Office. They agreed, in the end, that it was all “a misunderstanding”. The complaint about the expensive fare…
- Crime News
British expat arrested over dog attack in Phuket. 15 year old dog ‘ok’.
PHOTO: Shop surveillance footage of the attack A British expat, Mervyn “Merv” Harding, has now been charged over his attack on a 15 year old dog outside a massage shop in southern Phuket on Tuesday. CCTV footage caught the man parking his motorbike, pulling a metal rod from under the bike seat and then repeatedly beating the animal as it…
- Tourism News
Thailand’s tourism copes with surging baht headache
PHOTO: Thailand’s new tourism & sports minister, Piphat Ratchakitprakarn, hoping the finance ministry will listen to his pleas about the high baht Thailand’s new tourism & sports minister, Piphat Ratchakitprakarn, is blaming the surge of the baht for sucking the life out of tourist arrivals into Southeast Asia’s second-largest economy. Piphat yesterday said he’ll discuss with the Bank of Thailand…
- Crime News
43 year old British man arrested over Phuket dog attack
PHOTO: Facebook/Naiharn Beach Dogs Mervyn Harding, a 43 year old British expat, has ben charged over animal cruelty after he was identified on CCTV attacking a dog with a long rod on Tuesday morning (July 16). He was charged after attacking the dog in front of a massage shop near Nai Harn Beach around 7am on Tuesday. Police started investigating the…
- Tourism News
New Thai Tourism & Sports Minister has a wish-list to improve tourism
PHOTO: Tourism and Sports Minister, Pipat Ratchakitprakan – mots.go.th The new Thai Tourism and Sports Minister, Pipat Ratchakitprakan, has set out a shortlist of priorities in his new role. He says setting and maintaining better safety standards are vital to regain the confidence of foreign tourists. The minister says he would also discuss the high baht with the Finance Ministry and…
- Phuket News
UPDATE: Search for Filipinos lost off Freedom Beach, Phuket
PHOTO: siangtai.com Officials are still trying to push on with a search for two Filipino tourists who were washed out to sea by waves at Freedom Beach in Phuket last night around 5pm. With nearly 24 hours having passed since the pair’s disappearances grave fears are now held for their survival. Conditions have been quite rough and squally for most…
- Phuket News
Fire destroys 12 shops in Patong market
PHOTOS: Siam Rath A fire at a market in Patong early this morning has caused damages estimated at 1 billion baht in value. Five fire trucks raced to the scene at the SB Plaza on Rat-U-Thit road at about 2am. It took firefighters an hour to bring the fire under control. 12 shops were destroyed. No one was injured in the…
- Thailand News
TMD issues a new weather warning for tropical storm Danas
The Thai Meteorological Department has issued another warning about tropical storm Danas since saying it’s on the move, from the Philippines’ Luzon, north and north-eastward into the East China Sea. The storm appears headed for Taiwan and likely to dump plenty of heavy rain on the way. The storm is ‘sucking’ in moisture from the Indian Ocean across southern Thailand,…
- Crime News
15 year old Thai student dies following attack in SOTUS hazing tradition
PHOTO: Anti-hazing activist Panuwat Songsawatchai/Facebook Khaosod English is reporting that a high-school student, who was in a coma following ritual hazing at a Nakhon Pathom school, has died today. Pisit Kumniw, a 15 year old student at the Phra Pahtom Wittayalai School, in Nakhon Pathom north-east of Bangkok, allegedly died from injuries sustained from hazing by senior students in a class three…
- Phuket News
Search continues off Phuket’s Freedom Beach for two missing Filipinos
PHOTOS: Workpoint News Phuket rescue volunteers are continuing their search for 2 Filipinos washed off their feet in high waves at Freedom Beach, south of Patong Beach, in Phuket. The two people have been identified as 29 and 40 year old men. The went missing late yesterday afternoon. Kusoldham Phuket Rescue Foundation received a report concerning the two missing Filipino…
