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Thailand news, politics, business, crime, lifestyle, and tourism—stay updated with breaking news and in-depth analysis from Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Pattaya, and beyond.
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Sponsored Weekend road trip routes across Thailand [2025]
Weekend road trips in Thailand are a great way to enjoy beautiful scenery, local culture, and quick getaways without much travel time. From winding mountain routes in the north to coastal drives in the south, every journey brings new sights...
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Phuket’s Central Patong shopping mall plans reopening and recruitment drive
Central Patong shopping mall in Phuket is launching a large-scale recruitment drive on the back of plans to reopen after a year of closure due to the pandemic. Central Department Store, the managers of the shopping centre, informed stores in the Central Patong shopping mall of the temporary closure on February 1 last year. But on Saturday, the Thai department…
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A look at Thailand’s award-winning social media agency
Press Release Meet Primal, Southeast Asia’s Social Media Marketing Powerhouse. With more than 80% of Thailand’s population using social media in 2022, social media marketing is more important than ever for developing your business’s online presence. Meeting customers on the platforms they frequently use is a great way to get exposure for your business and boost conversions. And one of…
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Pop star demands to know why her pet dog died on Thai flight
Thai pop star Prompwilai “Mimi” Leesiriroj has demanded an explanation from Thai Airways, and China Eastern, as to why her pet dog, Melody, died while travelling on a flight from Thailand to China on Friday. The 22 year old singer, also known as Mimi Lee, found stardom in China after she won a reality TV show called Produce 101 China,…
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Bus shortages in Bangkok causing longer waits for commuters
The Bangkok Mass Transit Authority has confirmed that there are severe bus shortages on roughly 27 routes around the city and that nearly 90% of commuters have experienced delays. After receiving a number of complaints from the public, the BMTA found issues with fare collection, driver shortages, maintenance on buses, and the poor management of the schedule. There are 2,885…
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Thais taking Cannabis to Japan will face punishment
Thai nationals heading to Japan should avoid taking cannabis, hemp, and cannabis-related products into the country because they could face being arrested under Japanese laws, according to the Thai embassy in Japan. “The Thai embassy in Tokyo would like to warn Thai people not to bring in cannabis, hemp, or products containing these plants into Japan. Violators could face punishment…
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Bangkok governor dragged into Benchatkitti Park cycling spat
Bangkok Governor Chadchart Sittipunt has been dragged into a war of words between cyclists and parkgoers in a popular city park. Parkgoers and cyclists, who frequent Benchakitti Park, in the Klong Toey district, took to social media to voice their anger over speeding cyclists and the danger they pose by riding without due care and attention to others while speeding…
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Boost to tourism industry as China resumes flights to Thailand
Thailand received another boost to its tourism industry yesterday when China gave its blessing to resume flights between the two Asian nations. The gradual lifting of Covid-19 restrictions, the scrapping of the Thailand Pass, and the relaxation of mask-wearing have all been much welcomed as the kingdom fights back against two tough pandemic years. And the welcoming of Chinese tourists…
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Thai health officials ‘concerned’ about the international rise of Omicron BA4 and BA5 variants
Thailand health officials are expected to gather more data in the coming weeks as the highly transmissible BA.4 and BA.5 sub-variants of Omicron spread in Thailand. There is a new wave of BA.4 and BA.5 Omicron sub-variant infections hitting a number of countries that had, until recently, seen a large drop in their Covid case loads. Germany, Italy, Australia, Taiwan,…
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UPDATE: Bangkok Chinatown fire death toll jumps to 2
UPDATE The death toll has risen after the fire in Bangkok’s Chinatown this morning. While 1 person was reported dead at the Sampeng market earlier today, that number has now jumped to 2. The bodies of the man and woman killed by the blaze were reportedly burnt beyond recognition. The man is identified as 34 year old Phetduang, and the…
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Thailand plans to negotiate with Saudi Arabia over fertiliser
Thailand is suffering a fertiliser shortage, with the country’s farmers bearing the high costs of imported fertilisers. Now, the Chamber of Commerce plans to negotiate with Saudi suppliers. Saudi Arabia recently allowed 2 of its suppliers to sell fertiliser to Thailand, according to Thai Commerce Minister Jurin Laksanawisit. The International Trade Promotion Department is scheduled to hold a business matching…
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Chiang Rai police arrested for taking huge bribe from Chinese porn gang
Another day, another story involving Thai police taking bribes, this time in Chiang Rai. According to deputy police commissioner Surachate Hakpan, a.k.a ‘Big Joke,’ 4 officers in the northern province took a 1 million baht bribe from a Chinese gang filming live pornography at 2 resorts. One of the officers had searched the gang’s filming spot on March 31. He…
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Cannabis for the confused, stoned or curious in Thailand I Lawyers, Guns and Money
Speaking to lawyer Dr. Paul Crozier from Silk Legal in Bangkok. Thailand’s new laws regarding the decriminalisation and legalising of cannabis and marijuana products is not clear, despite some people believing it is. The Thai government has not enacted laws and guidelines about the use of cannabis or marijuana, medicinally or recreationally. Dr. Paul Crozier discusses some of the…
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Filipino transgender woman takes the crown at Pattaya pageant
A Filipino transgender woman claimed the crown at a world-renowned beauty pageant in Pattaya yesterday. Contestants from Columbia and France finished in the runners up places. Altogether, 23 transgender women competed for the title. The newly crowned Miss International Queen, 27 year old Fuschia Anne Ravena, dazzled the crowd in her glittery silver dress, which the bejewelled silver crown matched…
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Embracing No Mask Requirement In Thailand | Weekend Update
Bangkok is celebrating the country’s removal of mask requirements in open spaces. Thai PM bans ‘The green and hemp use on military premises. The Bus issue in Thailand and Storm rip apart villages in the Northeast. All this and your questions are answered on today’s Weekend Update.
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Chon Buri cactus thieves on the loose, plants reportedly worth 80,000 baht
Forget underwear thieves, 2 new crooks are on the loose in Chon Buri- cactus thieves. But why would anyone steal the prickly plants? Because these are reportedly worth 80,000 baht. CCTV footage from last week shows that 2 men in masks cut through the net of a greenhouse in the Sri Racha district, and stole 200 cactuses before they dashed…
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South Thailand’s Muslim leaders reject weed, liquor and same-sex partnerships
South Thailand’s Muslim leaders are rejecting the kingdom’s growing liberalism on 3 issues. On Thursday (June 23), Muslim representatives from Yala, Narathiwat, Songkhla, Satun and Pattani provinces, read a statement against 3 draft bills that are currently being debated or yet to be presented to the Thai parliament Those bills were the Cannabis and Hemp Bill, the Progressive Liquor Act,…
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Bangkok’s new governor posts video of his maskless jog
While Thailand has earned a rap for its enthusiasm over face masks, one politician in Bangkok is celebrating the country’s removal of mask requirements in open spaces. Bangkok’s new Governor Chadchart Sittipunt has posted a video of himself on a daily jog through the city- with his face uncovered. In the video, Chadchart and a bunch of friends or colleagues…
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Sewage nightmare continues for Pattaya village after years
A village in East Pattaya has suffered from horrendous sewage problems for more than 7 years, and things aren’t getting any better. Wastewater regularly flows into Daraphan Village 5 from the neighbouring Eakmongkol Village 8, and officials’ minimal efforts have not brought about change. In 2015, officials had agreed to install suitable pipework to carry the wastewater into Pattaya city…
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From Pattaya with Love, or How To Win Friends and Taser People!
A training session held last week on Wednesday, June 22, on Jomtien Beach has convinced anyone that public relations are not a strong characteristic in the ranks of the Pattaya Police. Thanks to Adam and The Pattaya News for the video and pics. The display was an apparent demonstration of the skills of Pattaya police to be able to handle…
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Largest instant noodle convenience store
This shop that opened in October last year has drawn thousands of teenagers since its opening. Not only does this shop have Thai instant noodles, it also has noodles coming from different countries that include Indonesia, South Korea, China, Japan,malaysia, and more. The cost ranges from 6 baht to 250 Baht
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Storm rips apart villages in Northeast Thailand
Communities in Northeast Thailand are the latest to bear the brunt of the country’s monsoon season. Rain plundered 3 villages in Nakhon Ratchasima province last night, damaging 48 houses and several crops. Non Sung district officials have now warned villagers to make sure that their houses’ roofs and structures can endure rough weather. Northeast Thailand is the country’s poorest region.…
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Pattaya’s Jomtien Beach vendors are putting up a fight over new rules
Vendors on Pattaya’s Jomtien Beach aren’t having it with the beach’s new rules for them. Local authorities plan to ban vendors from operating at the beach after the vendors used a new stretch of the beach to sell their products. The new space was created for tourists to enjoy but merchants, local businesses, and hawkers quickly moved onto the area…
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Motorbike engulfed in flames on Patong Hill, driver left uninjured
A motorbike driving down Patong Hill on Phuket’s west coast was engulfed in flames last night, as shown in a photo of the incident. Not only did the driver survive, but he was left without any injuries. The man, 54 year old food seller Niphon Mengeaid, told The Phuket Express about his close call… “I was driving down Patong hill…
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Police raid Kanchanaburi resorts for land encroachment
There’s been a new incident of Thailand’s tourism industry disturbing the country’s nature, this time in Kanchanaburi. Police in the western province have raided 4 resorts yesterday that encroached on forest land, as well as land belonging to the Electricity Generating Authority of Thailand. The police busted resorts around a dam in the Sri Sawat district. The first resort had…
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Thai woman confesses to beating 6 year old granddaughter to death with pestle
Today, a 47 year old Thai woman confessed to hitting her 6 year old granddaughter’s head with a pestle until she died on Wednesday, June 22, in Pathum Thani province in central Thailand. On Wednesday night, police received a report that a 6 year old girl had died inside a rented room in Som Khok District in Pathum Thani province.…
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Thai officials say price of bagged rice won’t jump
In the midst of the world’s ongoing price inflation, Thailand’s Commerce Ministry says retail prices on bagged rice will not jump. The chairman of the Thai Rice Packers Association said in a meeting yesterday that the association has cooperated with the Internal Trade Department to freeze retail prices. The Commerce Ministry has noted, however, that some sellers could reduce promotional…
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Phuket officials say local Sunday market rakes in 2 million baht a week
Phuket officials say that a weekly market in the island province’s main city district has raked in at least 2 million baht a week this month. A local leader said the famous “Lard Yai” Phuket Street Sunday Market has seen a jump in tourists visiting it every week, now that Thailand is slowly winding its tourism industry up again. The…
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Man stabs 4 in New Zealand
A violent attack has gripped New Zealand after a man stabbed 4 people in a neighbourhood in Auckland yesterday. All 4 suffered moderate injuries, according to a police commander. But locals didn’t cave in to the attacker. Waitematā District commander Superintendent Naila Hassan, told the press that neighbours jumped in to follow and surround the culprit after he started stabbing…
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60% of new HIV cases in a northern Thai province are from high school students
Healthcare workers from the northern province of Phitsanulok claim they discover 2 HIV cases every hour, and that 60% of HIV cases in that area are found in high school students. The statement was made yesterday at a healthcare meeting to discuss the silent danger of HIV at the Crystal Conference Room of The Park Hotel, Phitsanulok. The conference was…
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Thailand’s MOD bans use of cannabis on army premises
Thailand’s Ministry of Defense strictly orders military personnel not to use cannabis on army premises, according to ministry spokesman Col. Chinat Punnotok. Military personnel are also strictly prohibited from posting pictures or videos of themselves using cannabis on social media, said the spokesperson. The army’s cannabis ban was decided upon today during a meeting held by Thailand’s Defence Council, presided…
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