Hot News
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Tourists turn their backs on Rayong over 330 baht antigen testing requirement
Tourists have hit back at the eastern province of Rayong after officials imposed a mandatory antigen testing requirement on all visitors. According to a Nation Thailand report, all arrivals in the province must have a negative antigen test result, certified by a doctor, no more than 72 hours before arrival. Tourists have expressed their anger on social media, with most…
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Thailand decriminalises cannabis, extracts with high-inducing THC still an illicit drug
Thailand’s health minister, Anutin Charnvirakul, has confirmed that the Narcotics Control Board has approved the removal of cannabis from the Category 5 list of controlled drugs. According to a report from the Associated Press, Anutin says the drugs that remain on the list are opium, magic mushrooms, and extracts of cannabis containing more than 0.2% by weight of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC).…
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Police investigate driving speed of officer in fatal bike collision with pedestrian
Bangkok police investigating the speed of a “big bike” involved in a fatal collision with a woman on a zebra crossing say they expect to reach a swift conclusion. Dr Waraluck Supawatjariyakul, an ophthalmologist with the Faculty of Medicine at Chulalongkorn University, died when she was struck by the Ducati bike as she used a zebra crossing on Phaya Thai…
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Thailand’s Test & Go registration opens on February 1
Registration for Thailand’s (almost) quarantine exemption program known as Test & Go, part of the broader Thailand Pass online re-entry process, is reopening next week after being closed for the past month. Starting at 9am on February 1, fully vaccinated travellers from any country can apply for a Thailand Pass QR code to enter with (almost) quarantine-free travel, but there…
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CCSA clarifies details on Test & Go, registration opens at 9am on February 1
Registration for Thailand’s quarantine exemption scheme known as Test & Go is reopening next week after being closed for the past month due to the emergence of the Omicron Covid-19 variant in Thailand. Starting at 9am on February 1, fully vaccinated travellers from any country can apply for a Thailand Pass QR code to enter with (almost) quarantine-free travel, but…
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Former MP to file lawsuit over campaign poster using his photo to mock him
One former member of parliament has filed a lawsuit against another politician for using a photo of him to mock him in a campaign poster. The image shows the former MP of the ruling Palang Pracharath Party, Sira Jenjaka, under a magnifying glass behind a Move Forward Party candidate with a message calling for volunteers to help catch those who…
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Domestic tourism stimulus scheme gets 9-billion-baht budget approval for phase 4
The government’s domestic tourism stimulus scheme enters phase 4 from February, with Cabinet approving a 9-billion-baht budget. “We Travel Together’ (Rao Tiew Duay Kan) will run until July, according to a government spokesperson. According to a Thai PBS World report, participants can benefit from a 40% discount on hotel rates, up to a maximum of 3,000 baht a night and…
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Prayut’s Saudi Arabia trip a ‘breakthrough’ after 30 years of tense relations
PM Prayut Chan-o-cha is currently in Saudi Arabia in an effort to restore Thai-Saudi economic and diplomatic relations. Experts say the trip, which is the first government trip between the two countries after 30 years, is a huge breakthrough after three decades of tense relations between the two countries. Relations first turned cold in 1989 after the Blue Diamond Affair…
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Police officer charged in fatal big bike collision with pedestrian enters monkhood
A police officer who hit a woman with his Ducati bike as she was on a zebra crossing has been ordained as a monk. According to a Bangkok Post report, 21-year-old Narawich Buadok chose to enter the monkhood to make merit for the killing of Dr Waraluck Supawatjariyakul last Friday afternoon. The Bangkok ophthalmologist was mown down as she was…
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Thailand’s Digital Economy and Society Minister infected with Covid-19
Thailand’s Digital Economy and Society Minister has Covid-19. The minister, Chaiwut Thanakamanusorn, is currently in hospital with a fever and headache. He says he may have contracted the virus on a trip to Chiang Mai last Thursday. It remains unknown which variant he contracted. The infection has not reached his lungs, however, other members of the ruling Palang Pracharath Party…
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Thailand Wellness Sandbox entry launching in coastal districts of Hua Hin, Cha-am
In an effort to draw in a tourist base focused on health and wellness, the Thailand Wellness Sandbox entry programme is launching in the coastal region of Prachuap Khiri Khan’s Hua Hin district and Phetchaburi’s Cha-am district. These locations were selected for the first tier of the Wellness Sandbox project. Officials are looking into adding more destinations later on. The…
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Police officer charged following death of Bangkok pedestrian hit by speeding bike
A Thai police officer has been charged with multiple offences after his speeding Ducati bike collided with a Bangkok doctor on a zebra crossing. The charges, filed by Phaya Thai district police, include reckless driving and not stopping for pedestrians at a zebra crossing. Dr. Waraluck Supavatjariyakul died after being hit by Naravich Buadok’s bike as she crossed Phaya Thai…
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Thailand tourism industry hopeful with the return of Test & Go
With the reintroduction of the Test & Go program, that allows fully vaccinated people to enter Thailand with a Day1 and Day 5 PCR test, businesses in the tourism industry are hopeful for a more sustained growth in international travellers from February and beyond. The program was reinstated, albeit with some revisions that were not met with a particularly welcoming…
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Government plans to gather data, combine tourism databases
In an effort to organize data and bolster tourism for the future, government agencies are looking at merging the databases of tourism-related agencies, businesses, and organizations. They plan to create a unified database in order to bring together all the information in an organized system. A campaign was launched, supported by the Department of Tourism, the Department of Provincial Administration,…
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New Sandboxes announced, but are they redundant after February 1?
(All the information in this article is based on CCSA announcements last Thursday and published articles on the Tourism of Thailand website and other government media) Businesses in the entertainment, nightlife, bar and sex industry in Pattaya are breathing a sigh of relief as international tourists will, again, be able to visit the seaside party town as part of the…
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Transportation the focus of 2022 for Thailand, with 1.4 trillion baht budgeted
Thailand is aiming to make 2022 the Year of Transportation, with 1.4 trillion baht being allocated for projects to improve travel by air, land, water, and rail. The Ministry of Transport predicts markedly improved transportation safety and timeliness, as well as an economic return of 1.6 times the initial investment. As a part of Thailand’s 20-year national strategy, the development…
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Plans shot down for property incentives to attract foreigners
A proposal to attract foreigners by lengthening property leaseholds from 30 years to 50 years and allowing foreign condo ownership to increase over the 49% current restriction was shot down today by the Centre for Economic Situation Administration. The committee, headed by PM Prayut Chan-o-cha, rejected those proposals but did seem open to foreigners being permitted to own up to…
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Thai PM sings away his political blues
With some of the former members of the ruling Palang Pracharat coalition turning against him (and forming their own new political party), and the expulsion of 21 renegade MPs, it’s been a septimana horrabilus (bad week) for the Thai PM. But, when things are bad it’s time to whistle a happy tune, or at least break out into song whilst…
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Thumbs down for Thailand’s Test & Go Version 2
Test & Go V2.0 has received a universal thumbs down by Thaiger readers and viewers. Or just about anywhere else in the online comments space. The rebooted, and slightly more complicated, Test & Go option, part of the three-part Thailand Pass online re-entry program, was relaunched on Thursday for travellers arriving after February 1. Initially launched on November 1, and…
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Police sting nabs trans woman for alleged child sex trafficking
A transgender woman accused of human trafficking and child exploitation was arrested in Phuket yesterday in a police sting. The 37 year old trans woman allegedly arranged for prostitution of children under the age of 18 online via Twitter. Local police have been searching for her after catching wind of her exploitation from her Twitter account where she went by…
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Cannabis removal from Thailand’s narcotics list up for discussion
Cannabis is a small step forward toward decriminalisation following the endorsement by the Public Health Ministry’s narcotics control committee draft miniserial announcement excluding cannabis with low THC content from the country’s narcotics list. Cannabis extracts with more than 0.2% of the psychoactive component tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, will still be illegal. The Office of the Narcotics Control Board (not to be…
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Storms in Northern Phayao province create a snowlike sight
“When it snows in Thailand” sounds like an alternative version of “when pigs fly”, a snappy way to say that something will never happen. But, photos in the Phu Kamyao district in the Phayao province in Northern Thailand show a thin layer of snow-like ice on the roads after heavy storms. The province sits on the Laos border and includes…
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No early election, no Cabinet reshuffle says Thai PM
The Thai PM says he has no plans to call an early election or to reshuffle his Cabinet after 21 MPs loyal to him were pushed out earlier this week. The Bangkok Post reports that Prayut Chan-o-cha has also distanced himself from the ouster of Thamanat Prompow and 20 other MPs, who have been accused of sowing division within the…
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Police search for drug suspects after one allegedly fired an M16 rifle at officers
After a gunfire exchange with more than 100 police officers, five drug suspects reportedly fled the scene as one fired an M16 rifle, evading arrest. Apparently, they had been tracked down by police and escaped arrest at least three times prior. Suspects, including alleged gang leader, 41 year old Pradit “Greg” Musikasong, are wanted on several charges. Dozens of police…
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Tourism operators want cost of PCR tests reduced when Test & Go resumes
Following the CCSA’s decision yesterday to resume Test & Go from February 1 (with some changes) tourism operators are urging the government to make PCR testing more affordable. The revamped Test & Go entry scheme now requires overseas arrivals to book a hotel on day 1 and again on day 5 of their stay – and to take a PCR…
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Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand says Thai 5G is not an issue
After a wave of flight cancellations and airline schedule and equipment reshuffling in the US, the Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand spoke up to reaffirm that 5G signals in Thailand do not have any conflicts or negative effects on aircraft or flight equipment. The CAAT explained that, in Thailand, 5G bandwidth is on a different wavelength than anything used in…
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20 baht bills getting a modern polymer update on March 24
Money enthusiasts, get ready! On March 24 the 20 baht bill is getting a radical new update. The Royal portrait will still be prominent but the flimsy, green paper the bills have been printed on for decades is being replaced with a modern new polymer with a glossy, plasticky feel. Starting on March 24, the new, more durable polymer 20…
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UPDATE: Thailand’s Test & Go is back on for travel starting February 1
The Thailand Pass Test & Go program has been rebooted, and vaccinated travellers will be able to register for (almost) quarantine-free entry to Thailand re-starting February 1. There have been slight revisions to the rules, now requiring travellers to have proof of an SHA+ hotel booking on the first and fifth day of their stay in Thailand when they will…
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First meeting of Thailand’s Lower House this year adjourned due to lack of numbers
The first meeting of the year for Thailand’s House of Representatives, which was meant to begin yesterday, had to be abruptly adjourned because the minimum number of MPs required were not present. 227 MPs were present, a number 10 short of the minimum number required to conduct the proceedings. Half of the House’s 473 members were required to attend. In…
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Thammanat Prompow, 21 MPs booted from Palang Pracharat
After a meeting of the executive members of the Palang Pracharat Party yesterday, a shocking 22 MPs including popular but controversial Secretary-General Thammanat Prompow who made headlines after details of an arrest and jail time in Australia came to light recently. Once a rockstar in the ruling party who called himself the main artery of the party, Thammanat was pushed…
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