Chiang Mai News
Chiang Mai news, politics, business, culture, and tourism—stay updated with breaking stories, local events, and expat insights from Thailand’s northern hub. Get the latest from The Thaiger, your trusted Chiang Mai news source.
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Beware of passport scam targetting British nationals in Thailand warns UK Foreign Office
The British Foreign Office issued a warning to both UK residents and expats in Thailand about a passport scam that is currently targetting British nationals in the kingdom. Fraudsters are attempting to capitalize on the recent strikes by government workers in the UK, which have caused delays in passport renewals, by promising to bypass the three-month waiting period for a…
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Gang attacks Swedish tourist for defending waitress in Chiang Mai, Thailand
A Swedish tourist was brutally attacked by a gang of young men after he tried to stop them from assaulting a waitress at a karaoke bar in Chiang Mai, northern Thailand, on Friday. The gang also stole the victim’s gold necklace before throwing him into a canal. Yesterday, police arrested three men of Tai Yai ethnicity (an ethnic group from Shan state…
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Chiang Mai national park fire kills firefighting volunteer
A forest fire at a Chiang Mai national park tragically killed a firefighting volunteer on Friday. The volunteer, 39 year old Wichai Thimakham from Mae Rim district, was found dead in Khun Khan National Park. His death was apparently due to suffocation, Thai PBS reported. The acting director-general of the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation, Atthaphon Charoenchansa, said Wichai…
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Human trafficking at Chiang Mai karaoke bar with underage girls
A karaoke bar in Chiang Mai Province has been shut down after officials from the Ministry of Labour and related agencies discovered girls under 18 working inside. The underage girls were alleged to be providing sexual services to customers. The bar is now being investigated for illegal activities related to human trafficking. The raid came on Monday in the main…
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Chiang Mai hailstorm brings down power poles and billboards
A hailstorm in Chiang Mai brought down power poles and billboards yesterday. Hailstones were reportedly the size of baht coins. According to Matichon, the entire downtown area was covered with hailstones as the rain continued to fall. The strong winds started around 3.30 pm, followed by a downpour of hailstones and rain, and then another wave of hail. Locals and…
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Former Thai model arrested for scamming victims out of 100 million baht online
Police arrested a former Thai model for creating an online investment scam that stole over 100 million baht from victims. According to the Bangkok Post, Wetika Jaija was arrested in the San Sai district of Chiang Mai at a residential address. The 30 year old Wetika was charged with obtaining loans amounting to public cheating, entering false computer system data into…
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Thai AirAsia boosts flights from Chiang Mai to 6 international destinations
Low-cost carrier Thai AirAsia will soon boost flights daily from Chiang Mai Airport in northern Thailand to six international destinations including Hanoi and Da Nang in Vietnam, Singapore, Hong Kong, Taipei and Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia. Flights will run to these Asian tourist hotspots every day starting Sunday, March 26, 2023. The budget airline is celebrating the boost in flights…
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Foreign tourist dies on Doi Inthanon in northern Thailand
A foreign tourist lost consciousness and died at a car park on Doi Inthanon mountain in Chiang Mai province, northern Thailand, yesterday afternoon. The male tourist – name and nationality unknown – travelled to the mountain as part of a tour group, reports ThaiRath. He was estimated to be between 50 and 60 years old. The tour guide took the…
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High-speed rail project linking Bangkok to Chiang Mai expected to begin
Thailand and Japan’s collaborative high-speed rail project, linking Bangkok to Chiang Mai, is expected to begin soon after years of planning. The first phase of the project would see the railway run from Bangkok to Phitsanulok for over 380 kilometres, then continue to Chiang Mai for another 288 kilometres. As officials from both countries met, Japanese agencies say the first…
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Another member of Chinese theft gang arrested after three years on the run in Chiang Mai
Police officers in Chiang Mai, Thailand, say they have arrested another member of a Chinese-led theft gang after he spent three years on the run. Namnua, alias Jongchiang Sae Lor was arrested in front of a house in the Chai Prakarn district of Chiang Mai. Jonchiang, who holds Thai nationality, has been wanted on an arrest warrant by the Pattaya…
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Irishman suffers life-threatening injuries in motorcycle accident in Thailand
A young Irishman is the latest in a long line of victims injured in a motorcycle accident in Thailand without having any cover or insurance. How many more need to suffer fatalities or life-threatening injuries before they learn to drive properly or get insured? Michael John Miller, from Knock in Mayo, is the latest man to suffer life-threatening injuries following…
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Where’s our money? Chiang Mai bank loses farmers’ 100 million baht
More than 200 angry members of an agricultural cooperative laid siege to Chang Phueak Police Station in Chiang Mai on Friday demanding to know where their farmers‘ 100 million baht has gone. Members of the San Pa Tong Agriculture Cooperative claim that more than 100 million baht (US$2.8 million) deposited with a “reputable bank” has vanished from their account. Police to…
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Chiang Mai school director shocked by former student and Wild Boar football captain’s sudden death
The director of a school in Chiang Mai says he is shocked by his former student and Wild Boar football team captain’s sudden death. Duangphet “Dom” Phromthep was a Mathayom Suksa 5 (Grade 11) student at Vachiralai School in Chiang Mai’s Saraphi district before he received a scholarship from the Zico Foundation to play football at an academy in England.…
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Chiang Mai tackles PM2.5 pollution with giant vacuum cleaner
Thailand‘s Disaster Department is testing out a giant vacuum cleaner as a way to tackle the PM2.5 dust pollution problem that plagues the northern city of Chiang Mai every ‘burning season.’ Every year, farmers around Thailand send their forests and fields up in smoke because it’s the cheapest way to prepare to plant new crops causing PM2.5 levels to shoot…
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Tarmacked forest in Thai conservation area sparks outrage
Netizens are scratching their heads at the Department of National Park‘s decision to tarmac a forest inside a conservation area at a wildlife sanctuary in Chiang Mai province in northern Thailand. No space at all was left around the tree trunks to allow the trees to breathe and grow. An outraged Facebook user posted a picture of the newly tarmacked…
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4 Chinese tourists & Thai tour guide injured in Chiang Mai crash
Four Chinese tourists and a Thai tour guide were injured after a minibus crashed into an electric pole on a road in the northern province of Chiang Mai. The minivan driver was unharmed and is being questioned to find the cause of the accident. Three rescue teams and officers from Doi Saket Police Station rushed to the scene on the…
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2 Chinese tourists injured after fight at bar in Chiang Mai
Two Chinese citizens were injured after two groups of Chinese tourists brawled at the end of a boxing match at a bar in Chiang Mai. The fight also caused a heavy backlog of traffic near Tha Phae Gate. Members of the Ruamlanna Chiang Mai Rescue Association rushed to the bar on Loi Kroh Road near Chiang Mai Old City after…
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Thief leaves an apology note in Chiang Mai, Thailand
A thief stole over 12,000 baht from an electrical appliances store in Chiang Mai province in northern Thailand on Sunday morning and left behind a note apologising for his crime. CCTV footage captures a masked assailant, a man estimated to be around 30 years old, breaking into an electrical appliance store next to Wat Tha Mai-i Temple in Chiang Mai’s…
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Murder case of northern ethnic teen activist to be tried in Thailand’s Supreme Court
The murder case of a 17 year old, ethnic teen activist is set to be heard by Thailand’s Supreme Court. Family members of Chaiyaphum Pasae filed the suit which was accepted for consideration by the Supreme Court. Chaiyaphum was an ethnic, Lahu activist who worked to promote indigenous rights in northern Thailand. He was allegedly shot and killed by military…
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Chinese tourists expected to flock back to Phuket and Chiang Mai
Chinese tourists are expected to flock back to Phuket and Chiang Mai after China eased travel restrictions on its citizens on January 8. Now, the two tourism hotspots expect a significant jump in travel on direct flights from China from January 18, according to local airport authorities. There will be one daily direct flight from China to Chiang Mai, and three…
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Flights between Shanghai and Phuket, Guangzhou and Chiang Mai resume
Flights between Shanghai and Phuket, and Guangzhou and Chiang Mai, will resume this month says Shanghai-based Spring Airlines. The budget airline also revealed that flights from Shanghai to Hong Kong, and Taipei, will also be relaunched in January while the resumption of flights between the metropolis and Singapore is being considered. Another Shangai-based airline, Juneyao Air, announced late last month…
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Couple injured after their motorcycle collides with sedan
A foreigner and his Thai wife were seriously injured after a white sedan crashed into their motorcycle last night when they made a U-turn at Samerng Intersection in Chiang Mai province. A witness reported the collision to the Hang Dong Police Station at 7pm yesterday, January 4. The accident happened in front of a convenience store at the Samerng Intersection on…
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Downhill cycling banned in Doi Inthanon National Park
Fearing a string of preventable injuries and deaths, authorities have banned all downhill cycling in the mountainous Doi Inthanon National Park. The park, located in the Chom Thong district of Chiang Mai province, is popular for its scenic nature and picturesque mountains. But slippery roads and dangerous driving conditions have the potential for deadly accidents for those riding their bicycles…
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90% of hotels in Chiang Mai fully booked during New Year
If you’re planning on visiting Chiang Mai in northern Thailand this New Year, then you had better be quick, because 90% of hotel rooms in the province are already booked up, according to the Thai Hotels Association (Northern Region). Hotels in the province are expected to generate one billion baht in revenue during the high season, which runs from November…
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Chiang Mai officials steal Thai Identity for Chinese woman
A district chief, village chief, community leader and a resident in the Chiang Dao district of Chiang Mai province have been charged with stealing a Thai identity to create a Thai ID card for a Chinese woman. Each member of the fraudulent group received 800,000 baht for processing the ID card. Police stumbled on the stolen identity case while investigating…
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A bikini thief spotted on CCTV arrested in Chiang Mai
An audacious bikini thief was arrested after breaking into a house and a builder’s merchant in Chiang Mai before making off with cash, an iPhone and other goods The owner of the builder’s merchants posted CCTV footage of the daring burglar on Facebook yesterday. The video reveals the woman climbing over a 3-metre gate behind the shop in a two-piece…
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Thailand’s top cheesemaker toasts his own success
When Thailand’s top cheesemaker Jarutat Snidwongse Na Ayuthaya decided to make cheese for a living, he didn’t find much support. His family and friends doubted that was a market for Chiang Mai cheese. Thailand’s unique cuisine doesn’t find much space for dairy. Sixteen years on, and things could hardly be better in the small but perfectly formed Thai cheese cottage…
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Chiang Mai farmers ordered not to move pigs to prevent African Swine Fever spread
Livestock officials ordered farmers in a district of Chiang Mai to not move their pigs off farms. This measure in the Doi Saket district is meant to prevent the possible spread of African Swine Fever (ASF). The order comes after a pig in the district died on November 21. Livestock officials visited the farm to test another pig that was…
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Tourists flood to Chiang Mai for Yi Peng and Loy Krathong festivities
Chiang Mai in northern Thailand is teeming with foreign and domestic tourists looking to experience the magical Loy Krathong and Yi Peng festivities from November 7-9. The fusion of Loy Krathong traditions with a night sky glittering with Yi Peng lanterns creates an unmissable atmosphere that draws people to the city year in and year out. During October, Chiang Mai…
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Hundreds of tourists climb Chiang Mai mountain for glorious sunrise view
The glorious view of one mountain in Thailand’s iconic northern province of Chiang Mai drew hundreds of tourists yesterday. The tourists crowded the summit of the 1,100-metre peak to watch the sunrise through the mountain’s misty fog. The mountain now expects to see more visitors in the coming months, since Thais like the cool new year temperatures and the Covid-19…
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