News
Thailand news, politics, business, crime, lifestyle, and tourism—stay updated with breaking news and in-depth analysis from Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Pattaya, and beyond. The Thaiger delivers the latest national news that matters.
-
Sponsored How to reduce out-of-pocket medical expenses in Thailand?
Managing medical expenses in Thailand is important as healthcare costs continue to rise. The country’s healthcare system includes both public and private options, but even with the Universal Coverage Scheme (UCS) for citizens, many still face high out-of-pocket medical expenses....
-
Andaman’s Barren Island Volcano erupting
PHOTO: Volcano Hotspot According to volcanodiscovery.com, the Barren Island Volcano, situated about 800 kilometres north-west of Phuket, and 130 kilometres east of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, is erupting today. There are currently no warnings or alerts about this occurrence – the volcano last erupted in December last year. According to volcanodiscovery.com, Barren Island, a possession of India in the…
-
An earthquake, a tsunami, now a bubbling volcano – Sulawesi
PHOTO: North Sulawesi’s Mt Soputan erupts, status raised to Level 3’Alert’ – The Jakarta Post Mount Soputan in North Sulawesi’s Minahasa regency is emitting a 4 kilometre high plume of ash this . It started at 8:47 am local time, or 7:47 am. Jakarta time, prompting authorities to raise the volcano’s status to a Level 3 of the national four-level volcano alert system. Mount…
-
Sunhemp in bloom at Rajabhat University
Phuket’s Rajabhat University is holding a Sunhemp Blooming event until the end of today. It started on Monday. President of Agricultural Resources for Tourism Management, Khun Kanokwan Kaewuthai, says, “We are attracting attention to local tourism with some of our agricultural resources by integrating knowledge, tourism, agricultural business, marketing and public relations.” “We are also supporting our student to practice…
-
Thaiger Radio News – Wednesday
Listen to the daily news from The Thaiger, anytime, anywhere…
-
More CCTV cameras being installed around Kathu
Baddies, look up. Big brother is watching you… yes YOU. 37 more CCTV cameras are headed for the streets around Kathu to upgrade safety. Kathu Police Chief Col Dr Jakkrawat Boontaweesakun says, “Kathu has continued to grow up and the population has increased. We are concern about city development, especially safety.” Kathu also sees the majority of traffic to and…
-
Maya Bay’s long road to recovery
by Kornrawee Panyasuppakun and The Thaiger Phi Phi tour operators are crying foul and seeking assistance from authorities after the local tourist magnet, Maya Bay has been declared ‘closed indefinitely’ pending further rehabilitation of the corals around the bay. The Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation (DNP) is extending the closure of Maya Bay’s Had Nopparat Tara-Mu Koh Phi…
-
Phuket Governor inspects flash flood and landslide areas along the coast
Phuket’s new Governor Pakkapong Tawipat, just two days into the job, yesterday visited Kamala and Patong to survey the damaged areas after the torrential rain storm, flash floods and landslides. Parts of Phuket’s west coast were awash yesterday with localised torrential rain. The rain came from a concentrated rain cell that sat over a ten kilometre stretch, drenching Kamala all…
-
Violent tuk-tuk driver faces charges over incident at Chiang Mai airport – VIDEO
A tuk-tuk driver who led a blockade of a Grab taxi at Chiang Mai International Airport on Monday has no public-transport driving licence and will face several charges following the incident, which was exposed by a foreign visitor. The Chiang Mai Land Transport Office and the Chiang Mai police head office met today to plan legal actions after @Winston Vaduz…
-
Ten injured in a Krabi minivan accident
Eight tourists and two Thai have been injured in a minivan accident in Plai Phraya, Krabi, this afternoon. Plai Phraya Police in Krabi were notified that a passenger minivan had veered off the road and flipped over on the Southern Sea Road at about 2pm. When emergency responders arrived they found a minivan off the side off the road in…
-
No happy endings for two massage parlours in Phang Nga
PHOTOS: Sanook Phang Nga district officials and the military have raided two establishments in the Lamken sub-district over the weekend after complaints of noise and the the businesses selling ‘sex’. The first business was called ‘Nang Fa’ (Angel) and was found to have seven staff including one Laotian national whose work permit had expired. The owner ‘Thayarat’ was busted for flouting…
-
Torrential rain dogs west coast of Phuket this morning
VIDEOS/PHOTOS: Nicky Phukettour / Traffic police / Jao Blue Car 2299 – Newshawk Phuket Parts of Phuket’s west coast were awash this morning with torrential rain. The rain came from a small rain cell that sat over an area along the coast between Patong and Kamala, drenching Kamala, southern Patong, Kalim and the coastal road for over an hour between 11am and midday.…
-
Maya Bay closed indefinitely
Maya Bay is to remain closed indefinietly. The four month closure of Maya Bay on Koh Phi Phi has failed to restore the beach area as anticipated. So the national parks authority has issued a letter extending the closure of the bay. Sanook is reporting that no date has been announced when the famous bay would be re-opened again to…
-
Survivors try to flee Palu as aid starts to flow in
PHOTO: Locals and aid volunteers are trying to start the long clean up in Palu – VOA News As aid and volunteers continue pour into north-western areas of Sulawesi, following last Friday’s 7.4-magnitude earthquake and the subsequent tsunami, survivors are scrambling to salvage food supplies and other items. Aid from the central Indonesian government is beginning to trickle into the…
-
Phuket police hunting for a suspect in alleged rape attack
PHOTOS: Sakkarin Somboon / Newshawk Phuket Phuket police are hunting for a suspect in an alleged rape. Police are hoping someone can identify the published photo. A video clip of the man, who followed two women into a room and thenrunning out of the room, has become viral on social media since September 30. Victims say that the suspect was…
-
Villager missing following flash floods south of Surat Thani
FILE PHOTO A villager has been swept away by strong currents after trying to escape from his house during flash floods in Surat Thani’s Phra Saeng district. The area is two hours drive, north of Phuket. The man remains missing as of this morning. Rescue officers and villagers searched for 55 year old Arunrat Phetcharat for over six hours until…
-
Thaiger Radio News – Tuesday
Listen to the daily news from The Thaiger, anytime, anywhere…
-
Whale shark sighted off Koh Racha
A healthy looking whale shark was sighted off Koh Racha, south of Phuket, yesterday. Videos of the whale shark have been shared widely in social media with a message reading “a whale shark is near Koh Racha and swimming near a tour boat.” A tour guide of Nikorn Marine company, Mali Boondanpai, who recorded the video says, “the tour boat…
-
‘Don’t break the law in Pattaya, or else” – Pattaya police chief
Pattaya’s police chief Pol Col Apichai Krobpetch has a clear warning directed at criminals intent on committing crime against tourists in the infamous coastal city. “We will arrest you. You can be sure of that.” The chief had his photo taken with a tourist who had the seat of her scooted forced open by two Thais who stole a bag…
-
No tips and a crackdown on visa agents – Surachete takes over Immigration top job
Thailand’s famous crime buster Surachete Hakparn, aka “Big Joke”, has been welcomed to his new job as head of Thai immigration during a ceremony this afternoon. He kicked off with some tough words, promising action against visa agent rip-offs and officers under his new command. Thai Rath reports that he says he’s determined to stamp out ‘paper bags’ and that…
-
New Phuket governors and a bad case of deja vu
OPINION “Andrea Kotas Tammathin, who is to be officially appointed as Switzerland’s honorary consul for Phuket on Friday… Mrs Tammathin will be joining a group of honorary consuls from Europe who have asked questions for the past two years about scams among jet-ski operators on Patong beach and the continuing high fares demanded by Phuket tuk-tuk and taxi drivers.” –…
-
Whale watching season starts off Phetchaburi coast
The Bryde’s whale has returned to the waters off Phetchaburi and reporters and tourists boarded boats on Monday for the official opening of the official whale-watching season, with about 10 of the huge animals obliging them on the first day. Boonyod Maklai, mayor of Tambon Haad Chao Samran in Muang Phetchaburi, led the outing on Kor Kai Bay and off…
-
Phuket’s underwater neighborhood gets a pre-high season clean
More than 300 volunteers, including divers and local volunteers, joined the cleaning activities held yesterday around Phuket. Rawai Mayor Arron Solos says, “There are many beautiful diving points in the Andaman Sea. In addition, from May to October every year, it is the monsoon season or ‘Green Season’ which can cause some strong wind and waves.” “Garbage and broken fishing…
-
‘Charm Offensive’ awaits at Don Mueang for Chinese passengers
Knee-jerk reaction #48. The Tourist Police Bureau have dispatched a team of officers to attend to passengers, especially Chinese passengers, at Don Mueang International Airport. More Chinese tourist arrivals are expected to arrive for their Golden Week holiday starting today. The Deputy Commissioner of the Tourist Police Bureau, Pol. Maj. Gen. Surachete Hakparn, says additional police officers have been deployed…
-
71 foreigners, including 32 Thais, found safe in Sulawesi
The National Disaster Mitigation Agency in Indonesia has announced that 71 foreign tourists were affected by the earthquake and tsunami that struck Sulawesi last Friday evening. Authorities say they have found 66 of the foreigners and declared them safe and accounted for. Two of the rescued tourists, a Singaporean and a Belgian, have now been moved to Jakarta. Of those,…
-
Dead Australian visited shooting range three times – Police
Following the death of the Australian 25 year old, who shot himself at a Sakoo shooting range on Friday, police have concluded their initial investigation. The man died at Vachira Hospital on Friday night. Police checked CCTV footage in the shooting range and have spoken to witnesses. Police have announced that Jayden Antony Cook had come to the shooting range…
-
Thaiger Radio News – Monday
Listen to the daily news from The Thaiger, anytime, anywhere…
-
10 vehicle pile up in Krabi
Amazingly, no injuries from a 10 vehicle pile up in Krabi City yesterday. Krabi City Police were notified of the carnage on Sri Trang Road near an intersection in the Krabi City Municipality at about noon yesterday (Sunday). Police and rescue workers arrived at the scene to find a ten-wheeler truck, carrying a machine, on the side of the road…
-
Trami storms through Japan, passes Tokyo last night
Some of the latest updates from reports coming out of Japan as Typhoon Trami continues its north-easterly trajectory through the Japanese archipelago. It’s currently early morning in Japan, and commuters are trying to get to work whilst contending with the aftermath of the Typhoon in the southern and central islands. The Typhoon unleashed its fury on some of Japan’s most populous…
-
Junta goes for lighter touch on lese majeste laws
with Kai Chanwanpen – The Nation iLaw experts say they see changes for the better and courts given more leeway in Thailand’s lese majeste cases. Thailand saw the most aggressive enforcement of the lese majeste law after the junta came to power in 2014, but current trends point to an unprecedented relaxation, according to iLaw. “There was a time, after…
-
Central Floresta releases a statement following Tribhum ‘volcano’ fire
Central Floresta has spoken out after a fire almost destroyed a theme park under construction but stressed that the incident hadn’t affected other costumer services at the new shopping centre. The cause of fire is being investigated and a statement will be made after a full check of all systems and interviews with workers on the site, and the new…
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.