Thailand News

Thailand news, politics, business, crime, and lifestyle—get breaking updates from Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Pattaya, and beyond. Stay informed on Thai society, economy, tourism, and expat life with The Thaiger.

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    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...

  • Thai FDA to go after misleading ads for nasal spray supposedly preventing Covid

    Thai FDA to go after misleading ads for nasal spray supposedly preventing Covid

    Thailand’s FDA is going after misleading ads that make it appear that a nasal spray can prevent or heal Covid-19. The FDA is currently gathering evidence to take legal action. The FDA’s deputy secretary-general said today that Besuto Qlears nasal spray has an instruction for people to use it when they develop cold or flu-like symptoms. The deputy secretary-general said…

  • Body of missing French tourist found in southern Thailand

    Body of missing French tourist found in southern Thailand

    The body of the 34 year old French tourist who went missing on Saturday has been found in a crevice on the side of Phanthurat Mountain in Surat Thani province in southern Thailand. Cyril Gollino is believed to have fallen off a cliff into the deep gorge. Police said they will need to abseil down the mountainside to retrieve his body,…

  • Police auction off water buffaloes seized from drug dealer in northeast Thailand

    Police auction off water buffaloes seized from drug dealer in northeast Thailand

    Thai police confiscated 16 water buffaloes from a drug kingpin in Nakhon Ratchasima province, northeast Thailand, and sold them at auction today for almost 390,100 baht (US$10,882). Earlier this month, the Office of the Narcotics Control Board (ONCB) seized 4.2 million baht in assets from “Yutt Nong Ya Khao,” the kingpin of a drug trafficking network in Isaan. The court…

  • VIDEO: Chinese President Xi berates Canadian PM Trudeau ahead of APEC

    VIDEO: Chinese President Xi berates Canadian PM Trudeau ahead of APEC

    Things could get a bit feisty ahead of tomorrow’s Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit in Bangkok after Chinese President Xi Jinping and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau exchanged a few choice words at the G20 Summit in Indonesia. President Xi yesterday confronted Canadian PM Trudeau at the summit in Bali and accused him of lacking “sincerity” after he leaked details of a…

  • Senior sets junior student on fire in sick Uni hazing ritual in Thailand

    Senior sets junior student on fire in sick Uni hazing ritual in Thailand

    Senior students at a famous university in Bangkok sprayed a first-year student with spray paint and set him on fire during a hazing ritual – or initiation ceremony – causing him serious burns on his body and genitals. Thanaphon [surname reserved], a 19 year old mechanics student, filed a complaint at Bang Phlat Police Station after he was attacked and…

  • Skyline walk near CentralWorld closed during APEC meeting

    Skyline walk near CentralWorld closed during APEC meeting

    Popular shopping mall CentralWorld, in Bangkok, informed its customers yesterday that the skyline walk near the shopping mall will be closed from now until the end of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meeting on Saturday, November 19. The skyline walk is closed from the Chaloem Phao Intersection to Gaysorn Village near Erawan Shrine for 24 hours. CentralWorld itself and other…

  • Search continues for French tourist missing in Thailand

    Search continues for French tourist missing in Thailand

    The search for the missing French tourist believed to be lost in the jungle in Surat Thani province in southern Thailand continues today after it was temporarily called off last night due to heavy rains. He was last seen six days ago. Three witnesses provided useful testimony which has helped police to narrow down their search. Frenchman Gollino Cyrit Tizzlano…

  • The spiritual significance of lotus flowers in Thailand

    The spiritual significance of lotus flowers in Thailand

    If you live in Thailand, you’ve probably noticed the country’s scenic lotus flowers blooming in ponds across the kingdom. These flowers add a great deal of beauty to Thailand’s scenery. But did you know that lotuses also hold significance in Thai Buddhism? Lotuses grow from mud, and are therefore believed to symbolise growing toward light and warmth, and rising above…

  • Unhinged cop shoots bar owner after being refused free food & drinks

    Unhinged cop shoots bar owner after being refused free food & drinks

    An unhinged cop allegedly killed the owner of a karaoke bar in the southern province of Songkhla last Sunday, November 13, because he refused to offer free food and drinks. The senior sergeant major of police, Santiparp Rit-it-thiphat, was temporarily removed from his position after he shot dead the karaoke owner, 55 year old Pranate Chuea-la-ong. The victim’s wife, 55 year…

  • Fisherman reels in dead body from Chao Phraya River

    Fisherman reels in dead body from Chao Phraya River

    A Thai man went fishing last night at Nonthaburi Pier on the Chao Phraya River in Nonthaburi province near Bangkok and unexpectedly hooked the dead body of an unidentified man. The 37 year old fisherman, Pitsanu Phukird, told police that he was fishing on the pier at about 1am when he caught what he believed was a big fish. Pitsanu’s…

  • Thai airline oversells tickets on domestic flight causing passengers to miss wedding

    Thai airline oversells tickets on domestic flight causing passengers to miss wedding

    Four passengers looking forward to a wedding sadly didn’t make it in time after a Thai airline allegedly oversold tickets on a domestic flight from Suvarnabhumi Airport in Bangkok to Udon Thani in northeast Thailand this morning. At 8am, Phaiboon Sawanprai – a subdistrict chief from Rayong province – told reporters that he had bought four valid plane tickets via…

  • Thai elephant given to Sri Lanka lives unhealthy life & works hard

    Thai elephant given to Sri Lanka lives unhealthy life & works hard

    Animal rights protection organisation RARE Sri Lanka urges Thailand to reclaim the Thai elephant they gave them 20 years ago because the animal is suffering at the hands of its owners. RARE Sri Lanka told Thairath that the Thai elephant, Sak Surin or Mathu Raja, was given to Sri Lanka as a gift in 2001. The Thai elephant was requested…

  • Donki drops ads on premium Thai rice after making Thais angry

    Donki drops ads on premium Thai rice after making Thais angry

    Japanese supermarket Don Don Donki dropped an advertisement for premium Thai rice at one of its Bangkok branches after some Thai people got offended by the messages in the ads. A Thai man posted a picture of the price tag and an advertisement banner of some jasmine rice at the Don Don Donki Supermarket in Bangkok on Facebook on Monday,…

  • The three best dishes you may have not tried in Thailand

    The three best dishes you may have not tried in Thailand

    Upon travelling or living in Thailand, it is undoubtedly expected that you will go on a food cruise of the many amazing dishes of the country. But, despite Pad Thai and Tom Yum popping into your mind as options for lunch, try these lesser-known, yet unbelievably tasty dishes below. Pad Kra Pao Known as the real national dish of Thailand,…

  • THAI Airways makes resurgence with addition of nine more aeroplanes next year

    THAI Airways makes resurgence with addition of nine more aeroplanes next year

    THAI Airways International Plc (THAI), is making a resurgence after it says 60% of its pre-pandemic fleet has resumed service. The company says nine more aeroplanes will be in service next year as the country’s flag carrier says an increase in travel has helped the ailing carrier. Thai Smile Airways, a subsidiary of THAI has also made a resurgence as…

  • Thai restaurant staff attacked by customer in the US

    Thai restaurant staff attacked by customer in the US

    An American man attacked a Thai man working in a Thai restaurant in the United States last week after the establishment refused to give him free food. A reporter from KGO-TV San Francisco, Dion Lim, shared footage and details of the episode at the Thai restaurant in Berkeley, California. The incident happened on Wednesday, November 9 at about 5pm. This…

  • British sex offender extradited from Thailand imprisoned in Scotland

    British sex offender extradited from Thailand imprisoned in Scotland

    UPDATE The British man who fled to Thailand after being convicted of possessing over 60,000 indecent images of children in 2014 has been imprisoned in Scotland. On Monday, Hamilton Sheriff Court jailed 46 year old William Dempster, from Tayside, for 18 months and placed him on the sex offenders’ register. Dempster was found guilty in 2014 but absconded to Thailand…

  • Residents furious 20 million baht rest area on Thailand Riviera Road abandoned

    Residents furious 20 million baht rest area on Thailand Riviera Road abandoned

    Residents are up in arms about a motorway services station and rest area that has been abandoned on the Thailand Riviera Road in the southern province of Chumphon. The Riviera Road was part of a government project in 2009 which tried to level up the coast of the southern provinces of Thailand and make it a must-visit destination for tourists…

  • HelloFresh accused of using coconut milk made using monkey labour in Thailand

    HelloFresh accused of using coconut milk made using monkey labour in Thailand

    PETA Asia urges HelloFresh – a global meal-kit company – to “do the right thing” and stop using coconut milk made using monkey labour in Thailand. People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) says HelloFresh’s coconut milk is supplied by Suree and Aroy-D, two brands that PETA says have admitted to using monkey labour in their coconut milk production.…

  • Covid-19 infections up 12.8% last week

    Covid-19 infections up 12.8% last week

    Despite everyone in Thailand – and the rest of the world – being bored of it, Covid-19 is still here. Last week, new Covid infections in Thailand rose 12.8%. The greatest leaps were seen in tourist areas and Bangkok. In the last week, an average of six people per day died of the coronavirus, while 3,166 people were admitted to…

  • Police search for naked tourist riding a motorcycle in public

    Police search for naked tourist riding a motorcycle in public

    Police officers in the north-central province of Phetchabun are searching for a Thai tourist who was featured on a viral video riding a motorcycle naked on a public road. Local News Phetchabun (ข่าวท้องถิ่นเพชรบูรณ์) posted a video of two male tourists on a motorcycle last night. The male rider wore clothes but his passenger was naked aside from a helmet and…

  • Police seize four tiger cubs in northeast Thailand

    Police seize four tiger cubs in northeast Thailand

    Police and national park officials arrested a Thai couple and seized four tiger cubs worth 2 million baht this morning in Mukdahan province in northeast Thailand. Despite officers luring the couple to arrest by posing as interested customers, they panicked and told police they planned on raising the tigers themselves. Just a few months ago, the mastermind behind the seizure,…

  • Rude passport office director blames customers for system failure making them miss flights

    Rude passport office director blames customers for system failure making them miss flights

    A furious Thai woman complained at one of the nation’s passport offices in Bangkok after she paid 3,000 baht for a special express passport service but still missed her flight. More than 100 people queued at the Department of Consular Affairs in Bangkok until 7pm yesterday with several customers missing their flights because they could not get a passport on time.…

  • New moves to criminalise cannabis shrugged off by Anutin

    New moves to criminalise cannabis shrugged off by Anutin

    Amid moves to walk back the legalisation of cannabis, Minister of Public Health Anutin Charnvirakul shrugged off the attempt to criminalise the herb again. Anutin, who also serves as deputy prime minister, says that the debate over cannabis is decided and done. Opponents of legalisation are pushing for cannabis to be reclassified as a Type 5 narcotic, which would be…

  • Joe Ferrari revealed to have 1.3 billion baht in assets

    Joe Ferrari revealed to have 1.3 billion baht in assets

    By now, it is well known that disgraced and murderous Pol Col Thitisan “Joe Ferrari” Utthanaphon amassed a fortune in luxury cars and suspicious wealth. But today, the National Anti-Corruption Commission put a price tag on it: 1.3 billion baht. The staggering net worth was announced as the NACC argues a court appeal should be allowed to confiscate and liquidate his…

  • Rare Asian golden cat spotted in northeast Thailand

    Rare Asian golden cat spotted in northeast Thailand

    Yesterday, Phu Khieo Wildlife Sanctuary posted photos on Facebook of a rare Asian golden cat spotted strolling through a road in Chaiyaphum province in northeast Thailand. In the Thai language, the Asian golden cat is called Suea Fai (Fire Tiger). The species is listed as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species due to habitat loss and…

  • Woman warns others after being stalked by creepy taxi driver

    Woman warns others after being stalked by creepy taxi driver

    A woman driver issued a warning to others after she was stalked by a taxi driver to her home in Pathum Thani province near Bangkok. The cab driver denied the accusation saying he was hired by an unknown person to follow her. The woman, Thitichaya (surname reserved), said she was stalked by a taxi driver for over 10 kilometres. The…

  • Locals queue to get access to their homes during APEC meeting

    Locals queue to get access to their homes during APEC meeting

    Residents and workers close to the APEC meeting location, Queen Sirikit National Convention Centre (QSNCC), queued up at Lumphini Police Station yesterday to get official passes to get access to the area. Yesterday was the last day Lumphini Police Station issued passes to residents or those who work in the area. Motorcycle taxis, taxi drivers, and food delivery riders were…

  • Small earthquake shakes Chiang Rai in northern Thailand

    Small earthquake shakes Chiang Rai in northern Thailand

    A small earthquake struck along the Thai – Myanmar border in the Chiang Rai province in northern Thailand in the early hours of this morning, according to the Meteorological Department. No injuries or damages have been reported. At 3.38am, the department‘s Earthquake Surveillance Division reported that a 3.2 magnitude earthquake with a depth of 3 kilometres occurred in the Mae Salong…

  • Thai FDA warns against drinking erectile dysfunction coffee

    Thai FDA warns against drinking erectile dysfunction coffee

    Thailand’s Food and Drug Administration (FDA) warned the public against consuming “Gomax Coffee,” a product advertised as treating erectile dysfunction. The FDA said consuming the coffee risks blindness and heart failure. Today, the FDA reported the results of their product testing on “Gomax Coffee” – serial number 122046610023 – produced by PY Intergroup Col, Ltd., in Nonthaburi province and distributed…