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 Do foreigners get free healthcare in Thailand?
Thailand’s healthcare system is well-regarded across Southeast Asia, with options ranging from public hospitals to world-class private facilities. But when it comes to foreign residents or tourists, healthcare access isn’t as straightforward. So, do foreigners get free healthcare in Thailand?...
-
Woman arrested for keeping protected birds as pets
A woman in the southern province of Chumphon faces up to five years in jail and a fine of up to 500,000 baht for keeping 37 protected birds as pets without permission. The woman insisted that she did not buy or obtain the birds illegally, the birds came to her of their own free will so decided to care for…
-
Body of dead woman dumped in garbage bin in southern Thailand
Kura Buri Highway Department officers in the southern province of Phang Nga found a dead woman’s body dumped in a garbage bin on the roadside near the Khao Sok National Park at the border of Phang Nga and Surat Thani yesterday. The murderer is still on the run. Highway department officer Makesuwan Suphannamok told the media that he and his…
-
Downhill cycling banned in Doi Inthanon National Park
Fearing a string of preventable injuries and deaths, authorities have banned all downhill cycling in the mountainous Doi Inthanon National Park. The park, located in the Chom Thong district of Chiang Mai province, is popular for its scenic nature and picturesque mountains. But slippery roads and dangerous driving conditions have the potential for deadly accidents for those riding their bicycles…
-
China opening up a boost for Thailand tourism
China yesterday announced it will reopen its borders and abandon its strict Covid-19 quarantine for travellers and mainland citizens on January 8. The announcement signals great news for Thailand as the kingdom continues to prosper from the worldwide relaxation of Covid restrictions. Chinese visitors topped the nation’s No.1 tourist charts before the pandemic outbreak in 2020. From 2014 there had…
-
Bangkok hailed one of the top 10 places in the world to spend New Year’s Eve
Bangkok has been hailed as one of the top 10 places in the world to spend New Year’s Eve while riverside shopping mall ICONSIAM is recommended as the No.1 spot to enjoy a fireworks display and countdown to the upcoming new year. US multinational news channel CNN produced a list of 10 Great Places to Spend New Year’s Eve. The…
-
Top 5 Fun Things to Do in Thailand
There are lots of places to visit in the world and Thailand is on the bucket list of so many travelers. Once you’re there you’ll get to enjoy the sun and engage in lots of interesting activities. While you’re there, you can do all sorts of things to pass the time instead of being stuck in your hotel room. When…
-
Bangkok court grants bail to Tuhao’s wife for 2 million baht
Southern Bangkok Criminal Court granted bail to Pol. Col. Wanthanaree Kornchayanan – the wife of Chinese gangster Tuhao – for securities of 2 million baht this afternoon. Yannawa Police arrested and detained Wanthanaree and nine others yesterday on transnational drug and money laundering charges. The court does not usually grant bail to those accused on such serious charges in case…
-
Phuket remembers anniversary of Indian Ocean Tsunami
Today marks the anniversary of one of the deadliest natural disasters ever to befall mankind. The Indian Ocean Tsunami, also known as The Boxing Day Tsunami, struck Phuket and the surrounding areas at 10am on December 26, 2004. In the province and neighbouring provinces, religious ceremonies were held today to mark the 18th anniversary of the deadly tsunami. Religious ceremonies…
-
Scientists discover secret of see-thru frogs
Scientists have discovered the secret of how frogs found in South and Central America have the ability to turn themselves almost transparent, according to a report in the journal Science. During the day, these nocturnal frogs sleep by hanging underneath tree leaves. Their delicate, greenish transparent forms don’t cast shadows, rendering them almost invisible to birds and other predators passing…
-
Golden gunmen set to repel crime wave in Thailand’s Wild West
In the lawless shopping malls of Mae Sot – Thailand’s Dodge City – golden gunmen are set to a repel crime wave. Gold shop owners in the western border province are being given firearms training, as an epidemic of armed robberies grips the Thai side of the frontier with Myanmar. Three gold shops in the province have been held up…
-
Foreign man fornicates with Thai woman on Pattaya street ‘for 30 minutes’
A foreign tourist and a Thai woman were spotted fornicating against an electricity pole near a busy intersection in Pattaya “for 30 minutes” early this morning. At 4am, reporters received explicit video evidence of a foreign man and a Thai woman having sex on the roadside in central Pattaya’s Bang Lamung district in Chon Buri province. Locals are urging police…
-
Meteorological Department head, corruption, blamed for navy ship sinking
In the wake of the devastating navy ship sinking last month, someone needs to take the blame. Yesterday, the Pheu Thai Party declared that the person accountable for the tragedy of the HTMS 442 Sukhothai is the weatherman. The director-general of the Meteorological Department of Thailand is being blamed for not providing a more accurate report of the dangerous weather.…
-
Police ordered not to name nationalities, arrest Swedish man with gun and meth
The Royal Thai police have given foreign troublemakers a bit of a Christmas gift. In an order put out late on Christmas Eve, the RTP told all provincial police bureaus to no longer release to the media the nationality of any foreigner arrested in Thailand. A spokesperson for the Royal Thai Police said that people accused of a crime in…
-
Tasteless Thai food humbled by American culinary excellence
Thai food was humbled by American when TasteAtlas announced their top 50 best cuisines from around the world, and almost everyone was offended. While some obvious countries made it into the top spots, not everyone agreed with the breakdown. Taking the top three spots were Italy, Greece and Spain, who were joined by the likes of Japan, India, Mexico and…
-
Bitcoin mine raided over suspiciously big electricity bill
A commercial building in Nang Rong district, Buri Ram, has been running up a suspiciously big electricity bill. The premises – two storey-building with two shop fronts – were raided by police Sunday, is a search for an illegal bitcoin mining operation. China’s recent ban and crackdown on cryptocurrency has fuelled a cryptocurrency mining boom in Thailand as small investors…
-
Road accidents involving motor bikes on the rise in Phuket
As we head into what has become known in Thailand as the “Seven Days of Danger” – the holiday period from December 24 to January 4 that always sees an increase in road deaths – a new report initiative is shedding light on an increase in motorbike accidents in Phuket. The Phuket Provincial Administrative Organisation has begun releasing a report…
-
Tuhao, wife reunited for Christmas in prison
Police have arrested Pol Col Wanthanaree Kornchayanan, niece of Pol Gen Pracha Promnok, the former national police chief who acted as Yingluck Shinawatra’s deputy prime minister, and wife of alleged Chinese gangster Chaiyanat “Tuhao” Kornchayanant. Officers from the Metropolitan Police Bureau (MPB) arrived at a luxury condominium in Bangkok on Saturday afternoon to arrest Wanthanaree and six others. As is…
-
Air pollution at unsafe levels in Bangkok
Bangkok residents should pay close attention to the air-quality in their vicinity and protect themselves, according to Bangkok Environment Department. The capital’s air quality is invariably appalling at this time of year, due to still air and is expected to remain unsafe over the weekend. The deteriorating air quality is attributed to a cold front from China and only weak breezes.…
-
No official plans to cancel countdown parties
The government of Thailand has not officially cancelled any New Year celebrations, the Tourism Authority of Thailand informed. The TAT said all New Year’s countdown events can operate as planned, though some provinces and areas have chosen to scale back their parties. Perhaps most notably, the chief of the Khao San Road Business Association has announced a cancellation of the…
-
Prayut to run for new party as PM
Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha is to run as the PM candidate for a new party in the next election. Prayut will be after another term under the banner of the Ruam Thai Sang Chart (RTSC) party, a move that could divide the pro-military and conservative bases in the next election. Prayut insisted that he has a close bond with the…
-
International tourism 2022: 11.5 million foreign arrivals
The Tourism Authority of Thailand says that, now that they’ve blown past their 2022 target of 10 million international travellers, they are now predicting 11.5 million by the end of the year. This is 15% above their projections which seemed overly hopeful earlier in the year. From the beginning of the year through December 20, 10.9 million foreign tourists have…
-
Fireworks cancelled at Pattaya’s New Year event
Pattaya’s three-day New Year event from December 29-31 at Bali Hai Pier is still going ahead but there will be no fireworks at all this year, even on the countdown into the New Year. Concerts and street food stalls will be available to enjoy as normal. Facebook page Pattaya City Mayor Hotline (สายตรงนายกเมืองพัทยา) posted about the cancellation of the annual fire…
-
Holiday bus tickets escaping Bangkok close to selling out
More than 90% of bus tickets heading out of Bangkok for the holidays on December 28 and 29 had been sold by yesterday evening. Most advance bookings are for travel to Chiang Mai, Nakhon Phanom in the Northeast and Hat Yai in the South. Sanlak Panwatanalikit, managing director of the state transport company, said Thursday that about 55,000 passengers will…
-
Southern Thai woman caught with 70 bizarre animal carcasses
Police arrested a woman from Songkhla province in southern Thailand for selling protected wildlife carcasses as ingredients for “exotic dishes.” Officers seized nearly 70 animal carcasses including monitor lizards, pangolins, langur monkeys, squirrels, mouse-deers, and civets. Yesterday, the Natural Resources and Environmental Crime Division was tipped off that a passenger was carrying protected wildlife on a train from Sukirin district in…
-
Malaysia or China? Thai court to decide if Teddy goes home
A Thai court is to decide on whether to extradite Malaysian businessman Teow Wooi Huat (“Teddy”) to Malaysia or China, after Malaysia filed an extradition request. Malaysia’s extradition request was heard by the Bangkok Criminal Court on Thursday. Wary of what might happen if his client is sent to China, Teow’s counsel Juti Suanraksa said the defence team would be…
-
Village chief survives accidentally shooting himself while driving in central Thailand
Somehow, a village chief accidentally shot himself in the leg and hand while driving through Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya province in central Thailand yesterday. He tried to drive himself to the hospital but ended up crashing into a temple. At 12.22am, officers from Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya Police Station received a report of a car accident at Phra Si Sanphet…
-
Thailand welcomes nearly 11 million tourists this year
Tourist arrivals in Thailand could hit the 11 million mark before the year is through, according to the Governor of the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) Yuthasak Supaporn. Between January 1 and December 20, Thailand welcomed 10.9 million tourists from around the world, the governor said this morning. With High Season in full swing, Yuthasak said he expects tourist arrivals…
-
Accused Bangkok fraudster attempts to flee justice
A defendant in a fraud case attempted to escape justice yesterday when he fled from Bangkok’s Criminal Court. Prasit Jiewkok’s comedy attempt to flee was foiled by police and corrections officials who captured him after he left the building.With the help of accomplices, Prasit changed out of his prison clothes in a courtroom toilet. Prasit is on trial with eight…
-
Jealous Thai husband strangles wife and sleeps next to her body all night
A drunk Thai man strangled his wife and slept next to her dead body on Tuesday night in Udon Thani province in northeast Thailand. He said he didn’t know she was dead. At 10am on Wednesday, officers from Mueang Udon Thani Police Station were notified that a husband killed his wife at a construction workers’ residence in Kak Khaeng district.…
-
Commerce experts predict Thailand’s consumer spending will hit 17 year high during New Year
Commerce experts predict that Thailand’s consumer spending will hit a 17 year high during the New Year period coming soon. The president of the University of the Thai Chamber of Commerce (UTCC) discussed the UTCC’s predictions at a conference on “Consumer behaviour and spending during the 2023 New Year Festival.” The president, Thanavath Phonvichai, said the period is expected to…
Don't forget to check out some other things to do in Thailand - get help starting a business or finding a job in Thailand, buy Thailand property, rent a yacht or book a medical procedure worldwide.