Hot News

Thailand hot news, breaking stories, crime, politics, tourism, and business—stay updated with in-depth reports and exclusive interviews on the latest events across the country. Get the latest from The Thaiger, your trusted Thailand news source.

  • Sponsored

    Is private health insurance in Thailand worth it? Real costs vs risks explained

    Thailand has a strong healthcare system with both public and private options. Public hospitals offer affordable care, but many people, including expats, choose private health insurance for faster service, modern facilities, and more treatment choices. To decide if private health...

  • Bangkok court fines activists 11,200 baht issues suspended

    Bangkok court fines activists 11,200 baht issues suspended

    The Pathumwan District Court in Bangkok handed down a four-month prison sentence, suspended for two years, to prominent political figures Piyabutr Saengkanokkul, Pannika Wanich, Pita Limjaroenrat and Pairatthachot Chanthakachorn along with four others, in connection with their involvement in a flash mob protest in December 2019. Each defendant was also fined 11,200 baht for violating public assembly laws and using…

  • Former Thailand athlete turns scammer, stealing from woman

    Former Thailand athlete turns scammer, stealing from woman

    Police in Bangkok arrested a former national athlete for allegedly befriending a Thai woman on a dating app and stealing her valuables after spending a few days together. The thief confessed that he resorted to theft due to his need for money to fuel his online gambling habit. The victim, a Thai woman from the Isaan province of Buriram, filed…

  • Phuket lights up with lanterns for annual Chinese New Year festival

    Phuket lights up with lanterns for annual Chinese New Year festival

    The popular seaside resort of Phuket has been brightly lit up with lanterns, signalling the start of the Phuket Lantern Festival. This annual event is an integral part of the Chinese New Year celebrations, with this year marking the Year of the Dragon. Saroj Angkhanapilas, the Mayor of Phuket Town, inaugurated the festival on a Saturday night at the Chartered…

  • ICONSIAM’s Grand Chinese New Year celebration promises unprecedented spectacle reinforcing its status as a global landmark

    ICONSIAM’s Grand Chinese New Year celebration promises unprecedented spectacle reinforcing its status as a global landmark

    ICONSIAM, a global landmark along the Chao Phraya River, in collaboration with the Ministry of Culture the Department of Cultural Promotion, The Thai Chamber of Commerce and the Board of Trade of Thailand, as well as private partners including KASIKORNBANK Public Company Limited, Hatakabb (Sim Tien Hor) Company Limited, Reference Sathorn-Wongwianyai and Tao Kae Noi, is committed to preserving and…

  • Red Sea attacks reshape global oil market towards regionalisation

    Red Sea attacks reshape global oil market towards regionalisation

    The global oil market is becoming increasingly regionalised due to militant attacks in the Red Sea and skyrocketing freight rates making more local supplies desirable. A decrease in tanker traffic through the Suez Canal is encouraging a divide, with one trading area centred around the Atlantic Basin, including the North Sea and the Mediterranean, and another focused on the Persian…

  • Ganja overuse: Chinese man deported for causing chaos in Chiang Mai

    Ganja overuse: Chinese man deported for causing chaos in Chiang Mai

    Immigration police deported a Chinese man allegedly under the influence of excessive ganja use for causing chaos by walking shirtless, threatening locals, and destroying reflective traffic signs in Chiang Mai province. A motorist travelling along Liab Khlong Chonlapatarn Road in the Suthep sub-district of Chiang Mai province shared a video on social media on February 1, capturing the shirtless Chinese…

  • Aussie Muay Thai boxer’s career on the ropes after Koh Samui road knockout

    Aussie Muay Thai boxer’s career on the ropes after Koh Samui road knockout

    The promising career of a talented Aussie Muay Thai boxer is on the ropes after a devastating knockout by a man driving on the wrong side of the road while riding his scooter on the island of Koh Samui in Thailand. In keeping with the trend, his insurance company declared that the aspiring martial arts fighter was not covered for…

  • Girl injured by classmate in Buriram schoolyard seeks justice

    Girl injured by classmate in Buriram schoolyard seeks justice

    A dispute between parents over a schoolyard incident in Buriram escalated after a fourth-grade girl was kicked in the throat by a male classmate. The 38 year old girl’s mother, Euaengkham, from Isaan Khet, Chaloem Phrakiat district, is demanding justice following the attack that left her daughter with a swollen neck, chest pain, and vomiting, requiring two hospital visits for…

  • Thai monk exposed for sending dick pic to transwoman, asks for sex

    Thai monk exposed for sending dick pic to transwoman, asks for sex

    A 19 year old Thai transwoman exposed the inappropriate bad boy behaviour of a Thai monk from a temple in Nonthaburi province near Bangkok after the monk allegedly sent her a photo of his penis and asked her for sex. The president of the Nonthaburi Provincial Audit and Monitoring Committee of Police, Chaimate Chaipatcharakunpong, told Channel 3 that he received…

  • Wife’s lover and 4 others arrested for killing man in Chachoengsao

    Wife’s lover and 4 others arrested for killing man in Chachoengsao

    Following the death of 33 year old Thai man Thanasan Tae-an, police arrested his wife’s lover and four additional suspects after his body was found on the roadside in the central province of Chachoengsao last month. The dead man’s wife pleaded she was innocent. Thanasan’s lifeless body was discovered on January 29, two days after he went missing. His wife,…

  • Phuket pitstop: Police arrest Myanmar man for motorbike thefts

    Phuket pitstop: Police arrest Myanmar man for motorbike thefts

    A man from Myanmar was apprehended near Kata Hill, Phuket, by Karon police around 8pm yesterday. The arrest came after a series of motorbike thefts that had taken place in the region since August of the previous year. Nyi Nyi Htwe had been identified as the prime suspect and was under the scrutiny of an arrest warrant issued by the…

  • Labour costs outpace revenue growth in Thai tourism sector

    Labour costs outpace revenue growth in Thai tourism sector

    Rising labour costs in the tourism sector are outpacing revenue growth, resulting in increased hotel expenses, as revealed by hospitality market analyst STR. Jesper Palmqvist, senior director for Asia-Pacific at STR, warned that the only risk for hotels this year is maintaining cost controls in light of the extraordinary growth of labour costs and room rates. Over the past one…

  • Thailand’s Land Bridge project eyed as foreign investment magnet

    Thailand’s Land Bridge project eyed as foreign investment magnet

    The Land Bridge project in southern Thailand, a proposal yet to be approved, is being highlighted as a potential boon for foreign investments, akin to the successful Eastern Economic Corridor (EEC). This comparison is drawn by the current government. The EEC, unlike the proposed Land Bridge, is operational and continues to develop, acting as a high-tech industrial hub drawing investments.…

  • Thai teen’s tragic demise: Knife throw turns road into deadly game

    Thai teen’s tragic demise: Knife throw turns road into deadly game

    A 14 year old Thai boy died in hospital after two teenagers threw a knife at him on a road in the Isaan province of Ubon Ratchathani last Thursday, February 1. An altercation between two groups of Thai teenagers on Khutkhaopun-Pathummarat Road was reported to Kut Khaopun Police Station at about 8pm on February 1. A 14 year old victim…

  • EV and SUV sales set for boost in Thailand amid automotive industry changes

    EV and SUV sales set for boost in Thailand amid automotive industry changes

    This year, the automotive industry anticipates uneven sales growth, shaped by motorists’ evolving preferences and lenders’ decision-making. Electric vehicle (EV) makers and banks will be crucial in shaping domestic sales, especially within the pure pickup category. As per the Federation of Thai Industries (FTI), EVs, pickup passenger vehicles (PPVs), and sport utility vehicles (SUVs) are predicted to be this year’s…

  • Scottish woman’s cliff plunge in Thailand sparks insurance debacle: Scot left hanging

    Scottish woman’s cliff plunge in Thailand sparks insurance debacle: Scot left hanging

    An insurance company left a Scottish woman hanging after they refused to pay out after she almost plunged 20 metres to her death off a cliff on Ko Lanta island in West Thailand. Glasgow-born NHS nurse Kerry Hughes almost fell to her death after renting a scooter on the West Thailand island. Despite the swift action of an emergency rescue…

  • BDMS and AstraZeneca partner for AI-driven lung cancer battle in Thailand

    BDMS and AstraZeneca partner for AI-driven lung cancer battle in Thailand

    The Bangkok Dusit Medical Services Public Company Limited (BDMS) recently announced a partnership with AstraZeneca (Thailand) Co Ltd. The partnership aims to leverage Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the fight against lung cancer, with the potential to significantly reduce mortality rates. The collaboration will initially be piloted at the Bangkok Cancer Hospital Wattanosoth, following the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding…

  • Thailand could curb climate change impact with forest expansion

    Thailand could curb climate change impact with forest expansion

    The severe consequences of climate change could potentially be curbed in Thailand by the expansion of forest coverage on unused lands, asserted a water expert. Royon Jitdon, who provides advice to the Hydro-Informatics Institute under the Ministry of Higher Education, Science, Research, and Innovation, expressed confidence in the climate change mitigation capabilities of forest plantations, particularly in terms of reducing…

  • Businesses warned of risks of not adopting AI, says Stanford professor

    Businesses warned of risks of not adopting AI, says Stanford professor

    Stanford University Graduate School of Business Professor Amir Goldberg stressed the urgency for businesses to actively engage with artificial intelligence (AI), according to a conversation with a former corporate executive. Highlighting the vital role AI plays in today’s competitive market, Professor Goldberg warned businesses of the risks of not adopting AI, likening it to a fast-moving train that cannot be…

  • Swedish and British nationals die in separate falls in Pattaya City

    Swedish and British nationals die in separate falls in Pattaya City

    Pattaya City, located in Chon Buri, Thailand, was the unfortunate scene of a tragedy as two foreign men – a Swedish national and a British resident – plummeted to their deaths in seemingly unrelated incidents just 30 minutes apart early Sunday. An official statement from Pattaya City Police Station, delivered by Police Inspector Police Lieutenant Aniruj Jeroh, confirmed the incidents…

  • Mysterious death in Phayao: Man found after neighbours alert police

    Mysterious death in Phayao: Man found after neighbours alert police

    A disturbing scent led to the discovery of a 55 year old man found deceased in his home in Phayao Province. On February 3 at 6.30pm, local authorities were alerted by neighbours to a foul odour emanating from a residence in Jun district. The deceased, whose body revealed no signs of struggle or forced entry, had remained undiscovered for an…

  • China and Thailand’s visa exemption scheme promises tourism boost

    China and Thailand’s visa exemption scheme promises tourism boost

    The Chinese ambassador to Thailand and the Thai-Chinese Cultural Relationship Council (TCCRC) have expressed optimism that the visa exemption scheme for nationals of both countries will boost outbound tourism and reinforce bilateral relations. Pinit Jarusombat, President of TCCRC, highlighted the special significance of this Chinese New Year as it signifies the onset of a new epoch in Sino-Thai relations. The…

  • Thailand’s 10,000-baht digital wallet scheme delayed due to legal complications

    Thailand’s 10,000-baht digital wallet scheme delayed due to legal complications

    The anticipated 10,000-baht digital wallet scheme, initially scheduled for a May launch, has encountered delays due to a study by the National Anti-Corruption Commission (NACC) warning of potential legal complications. Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin, who is also the finance minister, emphasised on Saturday the need for expedited discussions with Deputy Finance Minister Julapun Amornvivat to determine the next steps for…

  • Samut Prakan bus accident claims lives on poorly lit road

    Samut Prakan bus accident claims lives on poorly lit road

    A tragic bus accident in Samut Prakan province resulted in three fatalities and 22 injuries when a bus carrying employees plunged into a canal. Witnesses reported that the bus was travelling at high speed without braking before it crashed into a barrier and fell into the water. The incident occurred on Rattanakosin 200 Years Road during the early hours yesterday.…

  • Thai Cheese Tour unleashes culinary delight across Thailand

    Thai Cheese Tour unleashes culinary delight across Thailand

    In a cheesy twist to the conventional travel experience, the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) kick-started the Thai Cheese Tour 2023-2024 last November. This year-long gastronomic journey, sponsored by TAT, has been spreading the love for Thailand’s burgeoning artisanal cheese industry through an array of pop-up events in tourist hotspots, including Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Phuket, and beyond. What began as…

  • Thai Hong Kong Trade Association signs MoU with Industries Federation

    Thai Hong Kong Trade Association signs MoU with Industries Federation

    The Federation of Hong Kong Industries (FHKI) and the Thai Hong Kong Trade Association (THKTA) have joined forces, signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) that promises to revolutionise bilateral trade. FHKI Chair Steve Chuang made the announcement on January 24, declaring that the Association is strategically eyeing ASEAN and Thailand as prime territories for Hong Kong manufacturers looking to navigate…

  • Thai hotels hit hard as property tax breaks end

    Thai hotels hit hard as property tax breaks end

    Thai hotels are facing an uphill battle this year as the government pulls the plug on property tax reductions and energy prices soar, sending operating costs skyrocketing by 10%. Marisa Sukosol Nunbhakdi, the President of the Thai Hotels Association (THA), reveals the dire consequences for hotel owners who enjoyed a 90% tax discount in 2020-21, only to see it evaporate…

  • Where to pray for love for Valentine’s day in Bangkok

    Where to pray for love for Valentine’s day in Bangkok

    Valentine’s day is a time to celebrate love and show appreciation for those around you. But what if you’re single and don’t have someone special in your life? Well, it doesn’t have to be a drag! Why not visit some of Bangkok’s famous shrines and look for some divine intervention to find the love of your life? Bangkok might not…

  • Sri Racha restaurant owner falls victim to catering scam

    Sri Racha restaurant owner falls victim to catering scam

    Pa Restaurant in Bang Phra subdistrict of Sri Racha, Chon Buri, has become the latest victim of a catering reservation scam that left the owner out of pocket. The restaurant owner, 55 year old Udom recounted his plight to the media on February 1, aiming to expose the scammers. A mysterious caller, posing as a prospective customer, expressed a keen…

  • Narcotics Control warns parents: Beware of lethal ‘party lollipops’ sweeping through social media

    Narcotics Control warns parents: Beware of lethal ‘party lollipops’ sweeping through social media

    The Office of the Narcotics Control Board (ONCB) has issued a stern warning to parents as a new threat emerges in the form of seemingly harmless lollipops. Dubbed “party lollipops” or “drunk lollipops,” these dangerous candies have skyrocketed in popularity among the younger generation and partygoers, posing a grave risk to unsuspecting individuals. Police Lieuteant-General Phanurat Lakboon, the Secretary-General of…