Hot News
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Slow trickle of travellers through Suvarnabhumi on day 1 of Test & Go reboot
Yesterday, the revamped Test & Go scheme opened for new applications as 46 international flights, carrying around 2,500 passengers, landed at Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport. According to a Bangkok Post report, most arrivals were from neighbouring countries, including Singapore and Malaysia, with some coming from Europe. As part of the revamped entry scheme, hotels are now required to send drivers to…
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Pattaya travel roadshow to visit Saudi Arabia with PM
PM Prayut Chan-o-cha has instructed tourism businesses in Pattaya to prepare a travel roadshow for upcoming ministerial visits to Saudi Arabia in order to promote tourism and develop relations between the two nations. Following the directive, governor Yuthasak Supasorn of The Tourism Authority Thailand met with the local entrepreneurs group “One Voice” to reveal the PM’s trip to Saudi Arabia…
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Man arrested on drug charges claims he ordered methamphetamine from a prisoner
A 26 year old was arrested outside a convenience store just as he was sitting in his car counting his money. When police approached, they found the man suspicious and searched his car, finding illicit drugs as well as a gun and ammunition. He allegedly told police the bought the drugs from an inmate in prison, making the order through…
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76 inmates escape over the past several months, many from prison quarantine
In the past several months, 76 inmates have escaped from Thai correctional facilities, a significant increase when compared to the previous year. Justice Minister Somsak Thepsuthin says most of the prisoners escaped during the 14-day quarantine at a temporary prison or hospital, which is a requirement before being housed in the general prison population. The minister warned prison authorities to…
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Tourism operators welcome Test & Go reboot, despite frustration at rule changes
Thailand’s Test & Go entry scheme re-opens for registration today and has been given a cautious welcome by tourism operators. Businesses are unsure about the additional rules of Test & Go Version 2, including the requirement for an additional PCR test on day 5, which involves a second mandatory hotel stay until a negative result is obtained. This despite the…
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Survival Guide: How much does it cost to live in Thailand?
Thailand gets a lot of attention as a fantastic travel destination in Southeast Asia; it’s also a great place to call home. The most common questions before moving to a new country include, “How much is it going to cost me?” and, “Is X amount enough each month?” While there are no fixed amounts, we are here to help paint…
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Spotify vs Neil Young: Spotify win round one, facts come second
Spotify have started to respond and offer commentary to the swirling debate over comedian Joe Rogan’s podcasts on their platform. Firstly it was musician Neil Young, then Joni Mitchell, who said they were taking their music off Spotify in protest to misinformation spread about Covid-19 by the Joe Rogan Experience. Now they’re being joined by other podcasters and musicians complaining…
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Rayong officials say clean-up of Mae Ram Phueng beach done, focus on Koh Samet
Following the leaking of thousands of litres of crude oil into the waters around the eastern province of Rayong, the clean-up of Mae Ram Phueng beach has been completed. According to a Thai PBS World report, satellite imagery yesterday showed no traces of oil on the beach and officials are now turning their attention to Koh Samet and in particular,…
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Tomorrow, Thailand opens its borders to the world (terms & conditions apply)
Thailand’s Test & Go entry scheme returns tomorrow after a short hiatus, during which it’s had a makeover. The scheme is now open to travellers from every country in the world and not just the previous 63 approved countries. Great news! However, travellers will now have to take not 1, not 2, but 3 PCR tests in order to participate…
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Betong Airport welcomes first charter flight, full opening February
The long-anticipated Betong Airport is finally ready to launch in Thailand’s southernmost province of Yala, is expected to be up and running by next month. The first charter flight to Betong landed yesterday with 78 passengers hailing the beginning of the new gateway to the destination. Businesspeople from the area were joined on the flight by an aide to PM…
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4th vaccine for 25,000 Suvarnabhumi staffers by end of February
The director of Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport said in a press release today that all 25,000 people working at the main hub of Thailand will receive their fourth vaccination by the end of February. The announcement comes as airports and staff around the country gear up for the reopening of the Test & Go programme in just 2 days. The second…
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TAT predicts Hua Hin Wellness Sandboxers to spend 2x average
The Tourism Authority of Thailand, well known for its glowing predictions, says that international travellers coming for the new Hua Hin Wellness Sandbox will spend on average twice as much as other tourists coming to the country. They believe that visitors to the first Wellness Sandbox of Hua Hin and Cha-Am will attract higher-spending tourists that will spend an average…
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Thailand’s Rayong province declares emergency as oil slick reaches beach
Attempts since last Tuesday morning have failed to avert the oil spill reaching the Gulf of Thailand’s east coast beaches. Yesterday the oil started washing up on the Mae Ramphueng beach in Rayong, an hour’s drive south of Pattaya. Up to 200 people were patrolling the stricken beach using back hoes to try and scoop up the oil. Other volunteers…
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Oil from the Rayong pipeline leak reaches the beach
Despite frantic efforts to contain the leak before it reached the shore, oil from the pipeline leak in the waters about 20 kilometres off the coast of Rayong, south of Pattaya, has begun to hit the shores. The Royal Thai Navy has been leading the efforts to contain the oil that was leaked out into the sea. They warn that…
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Chinese New Year uptick in BKK arrivals, but mostly domestic
More than 450,000 travellers will going through the turnstiles at Bangkok’s main airport Suvarnabhumi between January 26 and February 7, including the annual Chinese New Year celebrations. But they’re not all from overseas, indeed the majority, some 349,000 travellers, are domestic. The airport’s GM reports that 115,931 international travellers will be travelling through BKK during the 14 day period. That’s…
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Pattaya shop reports old foreign man dies during massage
While receiving a massage at a shop in the Pattaya area, an older foreign man died midway through. The incident took place yesterday in Bang Lamung at a massage shop in the late afternoon, and emergency responders were notified of an unidentified foreigner, believed to be an expat around the age of 70, who had passed away in the middle…
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Thailand and Saudi Arabia patch things up 33 years after Blue Diamond Affair
PM Prayut Chan-o-cha visited Saudi Arabia earlier this week, and Thailand and Saudi mended relations they broke 33 years ago following the Blue Diamond Affair in 1989 where a Thai cleaner in Saudi’s royal palace stole diamonds worth US$20 million from the prince. The next year, three Saudi diplomats and a businessman trying to recover the gems were killed. According…
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Pathum Thani man arrested selling child pornography via LINE
A 27 year-old man nicknamed Kij was arrested in the Bangkok suburb province of Pathum Thani, accused of selling child pornography online. The suspect was arrested yesterday and is being charged with profiting from the sale and distribution of child pornography. Police raided the man’s home in the Beung Kham Phroy sub-district of Lam Lukka district outside of Bangkok yesterday.…
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Australia at the top of women’s world cup, defeats Thailand
Australia now leads Group B of the FIFA Women’s World Cup after players Emily van Egmond and Sam Kerr scored two goals against Thailand, beating Thailand 2-1. Thailand still made it to the quarter-finals as a third-place team, along with Vietnam. Up next, Thailand will play against Japan in the quarter-finals on Sunday. Thailand started the cup this Monday, losing…
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Deputy PM Prawit Wongsuwon discusses Phuket pedestrian safety
Deputy PM Prawit Wongsuwon brought up pedestrian safety crossings yesterday at an online meeting with a road safety policy committee, and the interior minister. Phuket officials have now been told to paint warning lines ahead of pedestrian crossings, letting drivers know they will have to slow down soon. The group also talked about the new points system that started in…
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Suvarnabhumi airport predicts Lunar New Year flights up 37%
Suvarnabhumi Airport, the main airport in Bangkok, is predicting a swell of travellers for the upcoming Lunar New Year holidays. The bustling airport located in the Bangkok suburb province of Samut Prakan, is expecting to see about 380 flights each day during the holiday according to the Suvarnabhumi Airport General Manager. Airport officials, along with travel industry experts and airlines,…
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Thai youth orchestra Siam Sinfonietta to perform in Bangkok’s Sathon
Thai youth orchestra Siam Sinfonietta will perform at the Bayan Tree Hotel in Bangkok’s Sathon area this Sunday at 7pm. The orchestra will perform music from Russian ballets, including Swan Lake and The Nutcracker. Tickets are 1,000 baht for people who go alone, and 800 baht for people who go in groups of two or more. People who go in groups of four…
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TAT offices in India introduce online training course for Indian travel agents
Indian travel agents can now sign up for an online training course to brush up on their knowledge of all things Thai, thanks to the Tourism Authority of Thailand. According to a TTR Weekly report, the so-called Thailand Specialist Programme is designed to teach the travel agents about new attractions and tourist offerings in the Land of Smiles. Cholada Siddhivarn…
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Race against time to prevent Rayong oil spill reaching the shore, 3 kilometres away
Officials in Rayong are pulling out all the stops to protect the eastern province’s beaches from an oil spill 3 kilometres off-shore. According to a Nation Thailand report, provincial governor Channa Iamsaeng says the crude oil is currently headed for the beaches of Mae Rampueng and Khao Laemya. Workers have placed a “beach boom”, or barrier line, in the sea,…
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Real estate consultancy says pandemic continues to affect foreign demand
A leading property consultancy says the ongoing pandemic and associated restrictions continues to hamper the real estate market. CBRE Thailand chief, Roongrat Veeraparkkaroon, says the low number of foreign arrivals means the sector continues to rely on local demand and must now adapt to these circumstances. “A decline in tourist numbers affected both residential and retail sectors. Given this challenge,…
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Forensic analysis ordered for elephant killed with 120 bullets
Grandfather of Pala-U, a 60 year old elephant who died after being shot more than 120 times, will be aided by forensic experts in an attempt to identify his killer. Earlier this month, the elephant was found in Phetchaburi province with more than 100 bullet wounds all over its body. Last Saturday, despite the best efforts of veterinarians who have…
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African Swine Fever spreads across Thailand, cases reported in 13 provinces
African Swine Fever is spreading across Thailand. The country’s agriculture minister said the disease has infected pig farms and one slaughterhouse in 13 Thai provinces in Central, Northeastern, and Southern Thailand. The infected farms and the five-kilometre radius around them are now declared epidemic zones. Instead of giving the ministry’s 2.9 billion baht emergency budget to pig farmers as he…
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Another Bangkok pedestrian killed crossing the road
After last week’s tragic killing of a pedestrian by a motorbike at a Bangkok zebra crossing, a pickup truck killed a pedestrian crossing the road in Samut Prakan this morning. A pickup truck struck 33 year old Win Mar Soe, who is from Myanmar, and reportedly swung her 10 metres. First responders took her to Chularat 9 Airport Hospital in…
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Koh Samui hotel, business owners call for PCR test price cut to draw in Test & Go tourists
Hoteliers and business owners on the southern island of Koh Samui are asking the Thai government to lower the costs of RT-PCR tests in an effort to draw in more foreign tourists. The calls follow the decision to reopen registration for the Test & Go entry scheme starting February 1. The quarantine exemption scheme requires tourists to isolate themselves at…
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Domestic vacationers, not international, will be majority of Phuket hotel guests
A report by one real estate consultancy says domestic vacationers, not international tourists, will probably make up the majority of Phuket hotel guests in 2022. After a peak of 5.3 million arrivals at Phuket hotels in 2019, the arrivals dropped by 80% in 2020 to only 1.1 million. Constantly changing Covid-19 policies and confusion over them hinder travellers from booking…
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