Northern Thailand News
Northern Thailand news, Chiang Mai news, business, tourism, and culture—stay updated with breaking stories, local events, and travel insights from Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Pai, and beyond. Get the latest from The Thaiger, your trusted Northern Thailand news source.
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Sponsored 5 ways retirees in Thailand lose money (and how to stop it)
Retiring in Thailand can be affordable and enjoyable, but many retirees lose money due to common mistakes. High living costs, scams, and unexpected expenses can quickly drain savings. There are five ways that retirees in Thailand can lose money and...
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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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12 year old girl abused and abandoned by family in Isaan
A 12 year old girl physically abused by her stepfather and grandparents was left abandoned on a roadside in the Isaan province of Nong Bua Lamphu. Fortunately, a warm-hearted local took pity on the girl and helped to find her aunt. Rattiya Anusuriya found the abandoned 12 year old alone and shivering in front of her house in the Na…
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Delivery driver saves family from fire in northeast Thailand
Yesterday, netizens helped to reunite a restaurant owner with the Grab delivery driver who saved him and his family from a fire in the middle of the night earlier this month in Buriram province in northeast Thailand. On January 16 at 3am, a raging communication cable fire broke out in front of the Chan Chao Thai curry restaurant in the…
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Thai cops bust Chinese fraudster wanted by Interpol
Thai cops busted a Chinese fraudster wanted by Interpol in the country’s northeast region on Sunday. The Immigration Bureau’s deputy commissioner said the suspect is wanted on an arrest warrant in China and an Interpol warrant for public fraud. The deputy commissioner, Pol Maj-General Phanthana Nutchanart, said immigration police arrested the suspect in the province of Maha Sarakham, in the…
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Man to join monkhood after surviving mini bus accident that claimed 11 victims
A 20 year old man who survived a mini bus accident on the Friendship Highway in the Isaan province of Nakhon Ratchasima is planning to join the monkhood to pray for the 11 victims who were killed in the accident. The white mini bus, which was travelling from Amnart Charoen to Bangkok, overturned and caught fire at 9.30pm last Saturday,…
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Approval sought for 70 million baht junk boat-shaped skywalk in northeast Thailand
Government officials in northeast Thailand are seeking approval for a 70 million baht budget for a new boat-shaped skywalk in the Isaan province of Sa Kaeo called the “Khao Chakan Skywalk.” The Khao Chakan Skywalk will be made of glass and made in the shape of a “junk” sailboat, a type of classical Chinese sailing ship used in Southeast Asian…
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Statue mixing Hindu and Buddhist themes draws tourist in northeast Thailand
Tourists and worshippers alike are oohing and aahing at a statue in northeast Thailand that combines Hindu and Buddhist themes. The Sri Suk Ganesha statue in Udon Thani province portrays the Hindu deity Ganesha, sitting on the coils of Naga, a Thai serpent god. Naga’s nine heads stare down at Ganesha, who holds several objects in his eight hands. Worshippers…
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Ferris wheel cabin door falls off and knocks out Isaan man
A young Thai man was attending the Red Cross Fair in Buriram province, northeast Thailand, last week when a 20 kilogramme Ferris wheel cabin door fell on top of him from a height of 10 metres and knocked him out. A rescue team rushed to the event in Lam Prai Mart district to give first aid to 21 year old…
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Himalayan cherry trees bring splash of colour to northeast Thai province
Himalayan cherry trees are bringing a splash of colour to Thailand’s northeast province of Loei. Over 100,000 of the trees are now brimming with blossoms, known locally as ‘tiger queens’ or ‘nang phaya sua kroang.’ A swarm of tourists is now visiting Phu Hin Rong Kla National Park to delight at the pink and red blossoms. The trees are spread…
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Northeast Thai farmer is ‘selling’ fresh air
One northeast Thai farmer is ‘selling’ fresh air. The farmer, 52 year old Dusit Kachai, charges visitors 1,000 baht per person for the first hour they stay at his farm. The farm is located on the edge of Chaiyaphum province’s Phu Laen Kha National Park, which has clean air, forests, and mountain streams. Dusit said… “The first hour costs 1,000…
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Chinese New Year festival lights up city in northern Thailand
The Chinese New Year festival is lighting up in one of Northern Thailand’s major cities. Last night, a large crowd gathered in Nakhon Sawan to watch fireworks, dragon, and lion dances, and pole-climbing. The theme for this year’s Chinese New Year festival in Nakhon Sawan is ‘the dragon flies toward the sky and the flowers bloom.’ The festival along the…
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Five men fatally injured as pickup hits tree in N Thailand
Police reported that five men were fatally injured and four sustained serious injuries after a pickup truck veered off a rural road at a bend and collided with a tree in the Non Thai district, Northern Thailand yesterday morning. According to police, Sergeant Major Phayungkiat Waisanthia, who is based at the 11th Infantry Division in Bangkok, was driving eight friends…
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Drug traffickers killed in N Thailand gun battle
Five suspected drug traffickers were shot and almost 500,000 methamphetamine pills were seized after a skirmish in Chiang Rai province Thursday. A military patrol came across the suspected smugglers carrying backpacks in the early hours of Thursday in the area where the forested borders of Thailand, Laos and Myanmar meet, long a lucrative hub for the illegal drug trade. Refusing…
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Community craft centre exploiting indigenous Karen weavers
Members of the Bang Kloi Karen community employed as weavers in a community craft centre have accused the centre of exploiting indigenous workers. The Karen workers claim they suffer poor working conditions and are paid less than the minimum wage. Activist Anchalee Ismanyee said weavers are paid much less than the official minimum wage in Phetchaburi province of 335 baht…
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Woman kidnapped and left for dead in deep forest in Northern Thailand
National Park rangers rescued a 65 year old woman who was kidnapped by two unidentified men yesterday and left for dead in a deep forest in the northern province of Lampang. The leader of the Wian Kosai Nation Park, Prawit Jaikam, reported to the media that he received a message from a woman, in Baan Pang Ma O in the…
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Male prostitute threatens to kill woman in Isaan
A lonely, fearful woman in the Isaan province of Udon Thani filed a complaint with the police after a male prostitute stole from her, murdered her dog, and threatened to kill her. The 32 year old woman named Boom told the media that… “I’m embarrassed to talk about this, but I think this is too much, and I have to…
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Violent monk flees scene after leaving teenage girl for dead
A violent monk is on the run after attacking his 17 year old granddaughter with a hammer and leaving her for dead at a temple in the Isaan province of Ubon Ratchathani last Saturday. Police believe that a letter found at the scene suggests the monk had a crush on the girl and was jealous of a friendship she’d recently…
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Man lives in a tree for 3 years due to financial embarrassment
A Thai man in the Isaan province of Udon Thani has been living in a tree for three years due to financial embarrassment. A provincial official offered him a new house on the ground and food, but he refused. He insisted on staying in the tree until officials find him a job. The 38 year old man, Charlie, constructed a…
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Man in NE Thailand allegedly raped his young relatives and lured them into sex trade
A man in northeast Thailand allegedly raped and exploited young boys who were his relatives and lured them into the sex trade. The boys are six and 10 years old. Police arrested the suspect, 21 year old Saifa, in the Si Bun Ruang district of Nong Bua Lamphu province today. The officers caught Saifa as he was allegedly taking one…
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Doi Kloselo tourist attractions threatened by hydropower dam
In Mae Hong Son province, Doi Kloselo tourist attractions are to be created in a desperate attempt by locals to stop a planned hydropower dam on the Salween River. The Salween is one of Asia’s last largely free-flowing rivers. About 3,300 kilometres long, the Salween flows from the Tibetan Plateau south into the Andaman Sea, primarily within southwest China and…
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Man lying on a roadside for 6 days survives accident
A man who was injured in a motorcycle accident survived for six days while lying on the roadside before being rescued in Udon Thani’s Isaan province. The injured man, Withawat Nanthapetch, went missing on December 29 of last year after he went to a bar to drink with friends. A bar security camera captured the 22 year old walking out…
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Famous dance teacher arrested for sexual assault allegation
Police arrested a well-known Thai dance instructor, Chutidate Thongyoo after sexual assault allegations were made by an underage teenage boy. The teacher denied the allegations. The teenager filed a complaint with the police alleging that he had been sexually harassed by the 60 year old teacher, also known as Thiam, on September 16 last year. The boy revealed he was…
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Tesco slavery case – police interview 100s of Mae Sot workers
Police and labour officials in Mae Sot are interviewing more than 100 workers from the former supermarket supplier in the Tesco slavery case. Authorities are gathering information as they follow up on last week’s raid led by deputy national police chief Gen Surachate “Big Joke” Hakparn at the VK Garment (VKG) factory in the border town of Tak province. The…
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Christmas Eve raid finds 40 underage pub patrons drinking
Many children eagerly await a visit from Old Saint Nick on Christmas Eve. They hang their stockings and set out cookies and milk for Santa Claus. But for one club in Sisaket province, and its underage patrons, without a chimney for Santa to come down, they instead got a late-night Christmas Eve visit from someone a bit less welcome. Police…
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Monkey steals bag containing 50,000 Thai baht and throws it off a cliff
A trouble-making monkey in Srisaket province, northeast Thailand, stole a tourist’s tote bag and launched it off the side of a cliff yesterday after finding nothing edible inside it. A team of park rangers scaled down the cliffside to retrieve the bag, which contained 50,000 baht (US$1,438) in cash. Park rangers at Khao Phra Wihan National Park received a call from…
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Pink lilies pull hundreds of thousands of tourists to northeast Thailand lake
Flowers are still springing up across Thailand, drawing tourists to admire them. The latest flower hotspot in Thailand to have tourists come flocking is Nong Han Kumphawapi, known as Thailand’s ‘Pink Water Lilies Lake.’ The lake is located in the northeast province of Udon Thani. The chairman of the lake’s tourism boat enterprise, Paisit Sukrome, told Thai media the lilies…
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Kindergarten students save up to buy blankets for the needy in northern Thailand
Kindergarten students in Chiang Rai province in northernmost Thailand saved up one baht every day for a year to buy blankets for people suffering in the cold weather this winter, especially those living at high altitudes in the province’s mountainous regions. Teachers at Chiang Rai Kindergarten invited students to join a charitable project entitled “Doing 89 Million Good Deeds for…
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Driver hits wild gaur in northeast Thailand, both injured
A driver hit a wild gaur in Thailand’s northeast province of Nakhon Ratchasima last night, injuring both himself and the gaur. The driver hit the gaur on Highway 3052 in Wang Nam Khiao district. The driver said he saw the gaur cross in front of him, too close for him to stop or avoid hitting it. Rescuers arrived on the…
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Thailand’s rescued tiger cubs fattening up, but not for the pot
Thailand’s rescued tiger cubs are fattening up nicely in Udon Ratchathani, but these guys have already been saved from the pot. Laos’ wildlife authorities are finally assisting Thailand’s search for 30 tiger cubs trafficked across the border to be fattened up and fed to sexually-challenged Chinese customers in underground Bangkok eateries. Chaiwat Limlikitaksorn, director of the Ubon Ratchathani’s National Parks,…
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Man savaged to death by three pit bulls
A man was savaged to death by three pit bulls in the Isaan province of Udon Thani. The owner of the dogs is distraught and revealed he will find a new home for the dogs to avoid the same fate in the future. Pornchai Ritmaha was attacked by three pit bulls last night at about 8pm. The 47 year old…
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