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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Sponsored 9 most common health issues covered by insurance for expats in Thailand
Thailand is a popular destination for expats due to its affordable lifestyle and excellent healthcare system. However, settling in a new country often brings health concerns. To ensure you’re covered for the most common medical needs, understanding what expat health...
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Thai VietJet offers passengers change of flights during Covid outbreak
Thai VietJet, along with all the other Thai domestic airlines, is being impacted by a drop in traffic during the current list of restrictions during the latest Covid-19 outbreak in Thailand. According to Thai Residents, “for passengers who booked tickets and made payments before January 1, 2021 with travel date between January 5 – 3, 2021, can change their travel…
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UPDATE: New restrictions come into force in Thailand from today
Some new restrictions have been introduced and others tightened as the Thai PM Prayut Chan-o-cha announced the latest list of restrictions taking effect from today. The latest list was published in the Royal Gazette yesterday and are now in force. On Friday the BMA suggested that restaurants in Bangkok may be prevented from providing in house dining, and providing take…
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Schools closed in 28 Thai provinces
Thailand’s Ministry of Education is closing all schools in 28 ‘highly controlled red zone’ provinces until January 31, or until further notice. The statement was released over the weekend and applies to all education institutions and both “informal and formal, public or private” schools. Parents should contact their schools to find out about alternative online teaching arrangements for affected schools. Here’s…
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Covid hotspot Samut Sakhon adds 541 more Covid cases to today’s total
Thailand’s Covid hotspot of Samut Sakhon is adding 541 more Covid cases to the total amount of infections reported today. On the province’s Facebook page, it says 455 migrant workers and 86 Thais were found this afternoon to be infected with Covid-19, raising the total amount of cases in the province to 2,401 since the 2nd wave broke out in…
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Drunk driving claims most traffic accidents over holiday season
Drunk driving is being blamed for most of the road accidents over the 7 deadly days of driving during the New Year season. So far, there have been 2,748 road accidents with 316 deaths and 2,741 injuries reported on the 5th day of the weeklong stretch. Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation says there were about 383 accidents with 44…
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Britons arriving in Thailand test positive for Covid UK variant
Britons arriving in Thailand from England, have reportedly tested positive for the Covid-19 variant that was first identified in the UK. The family of 4 arrived from Kent, in southeast England, and are currently under quarantine at a private hospital after receiving the positive test results. Dr. Yong Pooworavan, chief of the Virology Centre of the Faculty of Medicine at…
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315 new Covid infections – 294 new, locally transmitted, 21 imported
Today, authorities at the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration, are reporting 294 new, locally transmitted infections of Covid-19 with 21 new imported cases, bringing the total to 7,694 cases since the pandemic began. 38 more have been discharged from the hospital, with the overall death toll remaining at 64. Currently, there are 3,293 Covid active patients in the hospital or…
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Majority of Thais think economy will get worse – NIDA Poll
A recent poll has indicated that a majority of Thai respondents think that the economy will get worse this year, along with a continued unrest surrounding the political landscape. The survey by the National Institute of Development Administration was conducted December 24-25 on 1,326 people, aged 18 and over of various levels of education and occupations nationwide by random sampling…
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“Red zone” provinces may see tightened measures amid Covid outbreak
The 28 “red zone” provinces in Thailand, which are deemed high-risk for the spread of Covid-19, may see a potential tightening of measures after the country has experienced a spike in cases. The clamping down on these provinces also falls in line with the temporary closures of 25 types of businesses in Bangkok, in a further effort to curb the…
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216 new Covid cases in Thailand, 11 people in ICU
216 new confirmed infections of Covid-19 have been announced today at the daily media briefing in Bangkok. As usual, Dr. Taweesin Visanuyothin fronted the announcements on behalf of the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration. 1 more person has also died, a 47 year old Chon Buri woman in the Banglamung district with complications of diabetes. It’s been reported in Thai media…
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New Year holiday draws homegrown tourists to Phuket, Koh Samui
With the vast majority of foreign holidaymakers still steering clear of Thailand, or simply unable to get a visa at the moment, the country has become almost completely reliant on homegrown tourists. The New Year holiday has brought some slight relief to islands like Phuket and Koh Samui, as visitors from other parts of the country arrived to welcome in…
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Government confirms social security net for workers laid off due to virus restrictions
The Thai government has confirmed it will compensate employees forced out of work by Covid-19 restrictions, by paying 50% of their salary for up to 90 days. The country has found itself in the grip of a sudden resurgence in cases, with many provinces under strict restrictions in an attempt to control the spread. Read the latest on closures HERE.…
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UPDATE: 279 new Covid infections, 2 new deaths
Dr. Taweesin Visanuyothin has announced 279 new infections of Covid-19 from the past 24 hours at this morning’s media briefing in Bangkok. There’s also been 2 new deaths. 16 of today’s new infections are Burmese migrant workers, 5 are imported cases from arrivees returning to Thailand. The first of the 2 deaths was a 44 year old Thai man who…
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2020’s movers, shakers and influences (that weren’t Covid) | VIDEO
2020 The big events, the winners and the losers 2020 has been one of the most disruptive years in history, certainly for anyone that has lived since the great depression and the world wars. But although Covid-19 has been the big headline for the year, there has still been highlights and big news in all fields. Some of these big…
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Day 2 of the New Year road safety campaign – 74 people dead
Day 2 of the New Year holiday period (December 30) on Thailand’s roads ended up with 74 dead out of 586 road road accidents. 576 people were injured. It was the second day of the “New Normal, Safe Driving, No Accidents” campaign which was prepared to raise road safety awareness, but ended up buried under much of the Covid news…
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His Majesty presents televised end of year message
His Majesty King Maha Vajiralongkorn is appealing to Thai people to appreciate their rich culture, which exhibits virtue, beauty and progress… the foundation of life and mind. HM also asked all Thai people to conduct themselves “with virtue and reason in order” to overcome the Covid-19 crisis. His Majesty spoke in a televised end of year broadcast saying that cultural…
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2020’s top 3 stories in Thailand… besides Covid-19
Covid-19 dominated headlines in 2020. Here’s the other major stories in Thailand this year as rated by the Thaiger editorial team. We’ve also prepared a story rating the Top 10 stories as ranked by you, counting the number of clicks on the stories. You can watch that HERE. February mass shooting On February 8, a Royal Thai Army soldier shot…
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Musical composition of His Majesty King Bhumibol the most popular New Year song in Thailand – VIDEO
A song written by His Majesty, the late King Bhumibol, and Prince Chakrapan Pensiri, in December 1951, is still the most popular New Year song among the people of Thailand today. Pohn Pee Mai, which translates as “New Year Blessing” can be heard on TV channels, radio stations, and at public gatherings, and has been a part of Thai culture…
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Inflight catering ban on domestic flights in Thailand amid Covid-19 surge
Damn. I was looking forward to another stale sandwich wrapped in 7 layers of plastic, unable to open it for fear of elbowing the lady next to me, on my flight today. Airlines flying domestic routes within Thailand have been instructed to not serve inflight meals or drinks from today. The ban has been introduced by the Civil Aviation Authority…
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The case for temporarily closing hotel and restaurant operations
OPINION by Bill Barnett As the final days of disruptive 2020 come screeching to an erratic end, hotel, and restaurant owners are peering into an unpredictable year ahead. Here in Thailand over the past week, the tourism industry has been shaken to its core over an uptick in Covid-19 cases and backroom speculation over fears of another round of lockdowns. (Restrictions,…
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Covid-19 resurgence, weak labour market, threats to economic recovery – Bank of Thailand
A director at the Bank of Thailand’s economic and policy department says the resurgence in Covid-19, coupled with a fragile labour market, poses a threat to the country’s economic recovery. Chayawadee Chai-Anant says the reintroduction of strict lockdowns in many other countries also poses a risk. She says the full impact will depend on the rate of new infections in…
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Nonthaburi province, north of Bangkok, declared Covid-19 controlled zone
Nonthaburi, the province directly north of Bangkok, is now declared a Covid-19 controlled zone. Nonthaburi’s Bang Yai central market has been placed under “maximum control”. The 7 floor Pink Condominium has been locked down until January 12, as the 2nd wave of coronavirus continues to spread in Thailand. Outside greater Bangkok, high risk areas have also been declared in Rayong…
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WOW what a year! Thailand’s top news stories for 2020 as voted by YOU.
TOP 10 (non Covid) THAIGER STORIES FOR 2020 The Thaiger started 2020, as we all did, with high hopes and few clues that we were heading into a profound disruption for almost the entire year. Even as we were tapping away at the keyboards on January 1, 2020, there were stories emerging in Wuhan, China about a mysterious new respiratory…
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Thailand’s top virologist self-quarantines after coming in contact with infected governor
Thailand’s top virologist from Chulalongkorn University is in self-quarantine after he attended a meeting and sat near the Samut Sakhon governor, who has since tested positive for Covid-19. The virologist, Yong Poovorawan, made a post on Facebook page saying he sat near the provincial governor Verasak Vichitsangsri at a meeting in Samut Sakhon where more than 1,000 people have tested…
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Government bans gatherings that “risk” Covid-19 transmission
Some may need to count down the year at home. The Thai government has banned gatherings in provinces with high numbers of Covid-19 cases. The gatherings banned are only those that pose “risk of disease transmission” in provinces classified as “red: maximum control zone” and “orange: control zone.” In Bangkok, New Year countdown events need to be approved by the…
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Cabinet adds 8 holidays to the 2021 calendar including an extra day for Songkran
Get ready for more long weekends. The Thai Cabinet added 8 holidays to the 2021 calendar, including an extra day for Songkran, the Thai New Year celebrated by massive water flights. Adding the extra holidays is an effort to promote domestic tourism and stimulate the economy which was battered by the pandemic. A government spokesperson confirmed the additional holidays with…
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Fewer travellers at Bangkok bus and rail stations as Covid worries take hold
It’s a lot quieter at Bangkok’s Hua Lamphong train station and the Chatuchak bus terminal as Covid-19 restrictions take hold in the capital, leading some passengers to cancel their travel plans. PM Prayut Chan-o-cha has already urged people not to travel unless absolutely necessary. Public transport stations in Bangkok have implemented strict hygiene measures, including socially-distanced seating and the mandatory…
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Cabinet members eat seafood lunch to prove it’s not contaminated with Covid-19
After the Laos government banned seafood imports from Thailand due to the Covid-19 outbreak at a Samut Sakhon fishing hub, Thai officials are assuring the neighbouring country that Thai seafood is not contaminated with the coronavirus. In what seems like a publicity stunt, members of the Thai Cabinet ate 7 seafood dishes for lunch yesterday to prove that Covid-19 cannot…
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Migrant workers to be granted 2-year work permit and health insurance
Undocumented migrant workers from 3 countries will be able to register for legal employment allowing a 2-year stay. The Cabinet approved the measure in an effort to control the spread of Covid-19 after an outbreak at a Samut Sakhon seafood market affecting a large migrant community who worked around the fishing hub. Migrant workers from Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar will…
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Thai PM urges people not to travel over New Year holiday
“Please stay home.” That’s the message from PM Prayut Chan-o-cha, who is calling on people to avoid travel over the forthcoming New Year holiday. Thailand is currently experiencing a resurgence of the Covid-19 virus, after going months without a case of local transmission. Yesterday, the Kingdom reported 155 new cases, with over 2,100 active cases. Only 10 of yesterday’s new…
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