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 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 smashes up her 1.5 million baht car over feud with Ford Thailand
A woman who smashed up her Ford Everest with a crowbar in Korat, northeast Thailand, on Thursday says she wants “justice, not attention.” The 42 year old businesswoman, Runghathai (surname withheld), resorted to clambering on her bonnet and smashing her windscreen because of an ongoing feud between her and Ford Thailand which began in March. Runghathai says that she drove…
-
1.8 billion baht in donations at the Erawan shrine in 2022
The Erawan shrine is a popular place for Thai people to make merit and donate money, and those donations totalled 1.8 billion baht in 2022. The cash donations are gathered and donated to a variety of charities. Over 50 hospitals have benefitted from the offerings, receiving about 100 million baht this year. The Erawan shrine sits at the Ratchaprasong intersection…
-
Carnival Magic theme park opens in Phuket to fanfare
After launching on Tuesday, the bright and energetic new theme park Carnival Magic has attracted local Thais and international tourists flooding to Phuket. The park is the first of several scheduled to open throughout the country in the next few months as tourists return to Thailand and companies race to provide exciting new attractions for them. Safari World is the…
-
Ask the Thais | Stereotypes, Racial Profiling, and Discrimination
Click the link to watch a video: https://youtu.be/MEBGOF9Ht4c In this episode of Ask The Thais, Natty Warisa asks about topics on discrimination, stereotyping, and racial profiling in Thailand and abroad 3 guests – Parin, Arina, and Ab. Is it true that foreigners are the only people who get ripped off by taxis? Do Thai people get discriminated against in foreign…
-
Military conscription in Russia could benefit Thailand’s economy
Thailand could be an attractive and realistic option for men fleeing military conscription in Russia. Reports say that men are fleeing Russia after President Vladimir Putin announced a plan to conscript 300,000 civilians into military service in Ukraine. Several European countries such as Lithuania have already closed their doors to Russian citizens, citing widespread support for Putin’s unprovoked invasion of…
-
Economists foresee 38 baht to 1 US dollar this year
With the US dollar strengthening and Thailand’s struggling economy, economic experts predict the baht may fall to 38 to the dollar by the end of this year. The head of capital markets research for Kasikorn Bank believes the baht will continue its instability along with the global money markets as a result of domestic and international factors. While the US…
-
Nine people hospitalised by chemical leak in Nakhon Pathom, Thailand
UPDATE Police say that nine people are being treated in hospital as a result of the chemical leak at the Indorama Polyester Industries factory in Nakhon Pathom in central Thailand on Thursday morning. The leak caused a “foul, burning stench” which impacted three districts of the province, forcing the temporary closure of several schools. Deputy Commander of the Nakhon Pathom…
-
Scams in Thailand – Common scams in Thailand to watch out for!
Scams in Thailand The most common scams in Thailand Like anywhere in the world that’s popular with tourists, there are scams in Thailand. Nobody likes being played for a fool, and being scammed leaves you bitter and, for some people, broke. Fortunately, most Thailand scams are easy to avoid and not all that common either. Here are the ones you’re…
-
Tropical Storm Noru is about to hit Thailand
Tropical Storm Noru has been brewing in the Pacific Ocean and is on its way to Thailand, according to the Meteorological Department. Noru is expected to cause isolated and heavy rainfall in northern and northeastern Thailand from Tuesday to Thursday (September 27-29). A tropical depression just east of the Philippines intensified into a tropical storm on Friday at around 1pm.…
-
Thai man ‘does not regret’ death of ‘crazy’ son who stabbed grandma in the genitals
A Thai man says he does not regret the death of his “crazy” son, who allegedly tried to rape his aunty and grandmother in Samut Prakan in central Thailand last night. The perpetrator stabbed his elderly grandmother in the neck and genitals. Neighbours ran inside and tied him to a pole. After that, he started having seizures, fell unconscious and…
-
Schoolgirl raped in a school dormitory in front of friends
A 17 year old girl was raped in front of her friends by a 15 year old boy while she was in a Covid-19 quarantine dormitory at Rajaprajanugroh 57 School in the central province of Phetchabun. When the teenager filed a complaint to the school’s director, he allegedly told her to accept compensation, agree the sex was consensual, and move…
-
New cancer treatment sees results in UK
A new form of cancer treatment being used in the UK is seeing positive results. The drug, RP2, is a weakened form of the cold sore virus, herpes simplex. It has been modified to kill tumours. One man who used the drug had been on end-of-life care. The man, 39 year old Krzystof, had cancer in his salivary glands, near…
-
Another push for helmet use in Phuket
Officials once again pushed for more motorcycle riders to wear helmets in Thailand, this time in Phuket. The push is part of another of Thailand’s many road safety campaigns. Local officials handed out helmets to students and other community members in the Wichit area of Phuket’s main city district on Wednesday. The officials also finished painting a crosswalk in front…
-
Former MP jailed after casting votes for colleagues
A former Member of the House of Representatives from the Pheu Thai Party, Narisorn Thongtirat, was sentenced to 16 months in jail after he was found guilty of signing and casting votes for colleagues. The Criminal Division for Politicians under the Supreme Court yesterday sentenced Narisorn, the former MP of the northeastern province of Sakon Nakhon. An investigation found Narisorn…
-
Over 1000 people evacuated after Thailand’s Mun river bursts its banks
The Mun river burst its banks in the early hours of this morning causing flash floods in Ubon Ratchathani province in northeast Thailand. A total of 1,015 people were evacuated from their homes. The river, a tributary of the Mekong, finally overflowed after a steady rise in water levels in recent months. The floods forced the evacuation of 51 communities in…
-
Wallaya Villas is back with its new pool villas in Phuket
The first established real estate developer in Phuket’s Kamala neighbourhood is Wallaya Villas. They have more than 17 years of experience in the local real estate industry. They have worked on a variety of projects, including The Nest and The Harmony Phase II, as well as in hotels, commercials, and residential properties. As a result, Wallaya Villas is one of…
-
Thai transwoman climbs down building to escape Hong Kong cops
A video of a Thai transwoman in a sexy dress climbing down the outside of a building in Hong Kong like Spiderman to escape the clutches of law has gone viral. The woman, wearing a sexy see-through pink dress, climbed out onto the window ledge of a third floor building to escape the cops, and was witnessed by dozens of…
-
Thailand’s ‘state of emergency’ finally draws to a close
Thailand’s Emergency Decree will finally come to an end on October 1 after being extended 19 times since the beginning of the pandemic. As a result, Thailand’s Covid-19 task force – the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) – will be dissolved. The decision to end the state of emergency has been in the pipeline for some time and was…
-
Pro vaping group calls on govt to legalise e-cigarettes
The director of a pro-e-cigarette group in Thailand believes legalizing the activity would not only lead to more control over vaping amongst the kingdom’s youth but make it safer than the dreaded cancer stick. A survey conducted by the National Statistical Office of Thailand last year found more than half of the kingdom’s 80,000 e-cigarette smokers were people aged between…
-
Chon Buri blaze kills disabled man and his dogs
Another tragic fire broke out in Thailand this week, this time in the eastern Chon Buri province, in the main city district. The blaze hit three houses on Wednesday, killing a 52 year old man named Suriya Eimsawad, who was reportedly disabled. Suriya was not the only one to perish in the devastating fire. His two dogs also died as…
-
US Navy scammer arrested in Venezuela over scandal in Asia
An alleged United States Navy military contractor has been arrested in Venezuela after fleeing house arrest in the US. The man fled his home country just weeks before being sentenced for his role in a corruption scandal in Thailand and other parts of Asia. The man, Leonard Gleen Francis, known as “Fat Leonard,” had fled from his California home and…
-
Fishermen rescued after going missing in stormy seas off Koh Samui
Fishermen who went missing amidst stormy seas off Thailand’s island of Koh Samui were rescued by fellow fishermen earlier this week. The two men, a 70 year old and a 50 year old, were reported missing near Baan Tai Beach in the Koh Samui district. The boat capsized that the two men were travelling in as strong wind and waves…
-
At least 31 dead as Iranian security forces crack down on civilians protesting woman’s death
At least 31 civilians have been reported dead after Iranian security forces cracked down on protests over a young woman’s death. The woman, Mahsa Amini, 22, was visiting Tehran with her family last week when the morality police arrested her for violating Iran’s strict dress code for women. The code has been in place since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, in…
-
Japan to welcome visa-free tourists from October 11
Japan announced it will resume visa-free entry for all travellers from October 11 and scrap the arrival cap of 50,000 visitors per day. Before the pandemic Japan allowed travellers from 69 countries to enter without visas and visitors could stay between 15 to 90 days, according to the conditions of each country. Japan had over 32 million arrivals in 2019…
-
Ambulance runs a red light and kills a motorcycle rider
A 60 year old man was killed after a speeding ambulance run a red light and wiped out his motorcycle causing a huge ball of fire in Mahasarakham, northeastern Thailand. The ambulance from Yang Talad Hospital smashed into the motorcycle at the Chiang Yuen Intersection in Mahasarakham province yesterday at 6am. Video footage from a vehicle behind the motorcycle captures…
-
TAT looks to draw more Japanese tourists to Thailand with new campaign
The Tourism Authority of Thailand is looking to draw in more Japanese tourists. TAT governor Yuthasak Supasorn announced that TAT will introduce a new partnership campaign in the last three months of the year called “It’s Time to Go To Thailand”. The campaign aims to increase Japanese tourists’ average spending per trip, which right now is only 6,400 baht, the…
-
Burmese beauty queen arrested in Thailand
Former Burmese beauty queen, Han Lay was arrested in Thailand today. Han Lay, or Thaw Nandar Aung, winner of Miss Grand Myanmar in 2020, gave a speech against the Myanmar junta in the Miss Grand International 2020 final in Bangkok. The 23 year old talked about the political situation in Myanmar and how the people are suffering. She urged the…
-
North Korea releases statement after being accused of selling Russia weapons
North Korea released a statement today after US officials said Russia was looking to buy weapons from North Korea. The statement claimed that North Korea had never exported weapons or ammunition to Russia, and did not plan to. It said that the United States and other “hostile forces” were spreading rumours to “pursue its base political and military aims.” Any…
-
Thai army saves man walking 1350 kilometres from Songkhla to Buriram
A man who lost his job in the southern province of Songkhla decided to walk back home to Buriram in northeast Thailand. After 12 days of walking on Sunday, the 42 year old man stumbled across an army barracks in Phatthalung province, the next province along. The soldiers took care of him and paid for his train ticket back to…
-
Price hike in vegetables prior to Phuket Vegetarian Festival
Phuket is seeing a jump in its vegetable prices as the annual Phuket Vegetarian Festival is coming up on September 26. The prices of many vegetables have shot up on average from five to 20 baht per kilogram. The prices on other vegetarian ingredients have bumped up as well. Vegetable prices usually increase in Phuket before and during the festival…
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.