Chiang Mai News

Chiang Mai news, politics, business, culture, and tourism—stay updated with breaking stories, local events, and expat insights from Thailand’s northern hub. Get the latest from The Thaiger, your trusted Chiang Mai news source.

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  • Chiang Mai wife grabs husband’s Glock and shoots him dead | Thaiger

    Chiang Mai wife grabs husband’s Glock and shoots him dead

    PHOTO: Sanook Sanook is reporting that the police were called to a shooting crime scene shooting in a bedroom behind a convenience store in Hang Dong jurisdiction., Chiang Mai 48 year old Sawat, a civil defense volunteer in Chiang Mai was shot in the chest. He was rushed to hospital but was pronounced dead on arrival. The man’s wife, 60 year…

  • Serbians on the run after trying to fire-torch their way into a Chiang Mai ATM | Thaiger

    Serbians on the run after trying to fire-torch their way into a Chiang Mai ATM

    PHOTOS: Sanook Two Serbians are on the run after trying to use a make-shift fire-torch to break into a Bangkok Bank ATM in Chiang Mai. Sanook report that the pair tried to use a gas canister for cooking to help cut their way into the ATM next to the Ratchaphak University. But the walls of the ATM was too thick and…

  • Phrae bus crash – 35 university students injured | Thaiger

    Phrae bus crash – 35 university students injured

    Thirty-five students from the Uttaradit Rajabhat University have been injured following a bus and car collision on the Rayong to Chaing Mai road last night (Thursday). Four of the students and the unidentified car driver were seriously injured and the rest suffered minor injuries, including the 52 year old bus driver Wichien Phromtha. Pol Lieutenant Apichat Chuathong of Huai Rai…

  • Former US pilot shoots himself dead at house in Chiang Mai | Thaiger

    Former US pilot shoots himself dead at house in Chiang Mai

    PHOTO COMPILATION: Ban Muang A 62 year old former US pilot has shot himself in Chiang Mai on Wednesday. Ban Muang is reporting that the man’s Thai wife heard a single shot ring out at their house on the Rattanakosin Road in Chiang Mai. The woman ran to a bedroom where her husband was dead from a bullet wound to the…

  • Bogus ‘botox clinic’ raided in Chiang Mai | Thaiger

    Bogus ‘botox clinic’ raided in Chiang Mai

    PHOTOS: Thai Rath Thai Rath is reporting that a recently opened ‘beauty clinic’ in Chiang Mai has been raided resulting in the arrest of a 26 year old Thai woman. Yapha Nithijindawach claimed she trained as a doctor in South Korea but was unable to produce any evidence of the qualifications. She faces four charges including operating the clinic without…

  • Chiang Mai’s Doi Suthep housing protests ramping up for August | Thaiger

    Chiang Mai’s Doi Suthep housing protests ramping up for August

    The protests against the construction of the Thai judge’s residences on the slopes of Doi Suthep in Chiang Mai has gone quiet over the past month. That’s all about to change. Activists from leading non-governmental organisations from eight northern provinces will next month join a massive protest against the special housing for judges on Doi Suthep. The Nation reports that…

  • 86 billion baht budget set for Chiang Mai light rail system | Thaiger

    86 billion baht budget set for Chiang Mai light rail system

    A green light for a go ahead of Chiang Mai’s planned light railway transit system has been issued by the Mass Rapid Transit Authority of Thailand (MRTA). Chiang Mai City Life is reporting that, following an initial approval for the project back in August 2017, the MRTA has finally given the green light to start the formal planning and construction…

  • 15 year old dies in Chiang Mai boarding house fire | Thaiger

    15 year old dies in Chiang Mai boarding house fire

    PHOTO: Chiang Mai City Life A 15 year old girl has died following a fire that engulfed the living areas of a Christian boarding school in Fang district, north of Chiang Mai city, this morning. Fang police were alerted at 1:30am about the fire at the Christian Paolo School that is run by the Evangelical Fellowship of Thailand. Ten fire engines…

  • First Mu Pa members emerge from Tham Luang cave | Thaiger

    First Mu Pa members emerge from Tham Luang cave

    File Photo Police chatter at the Tham Luang cave suggests that the first two team members have emerged from the cave mouth. The first at 5.40pm and the second one 10 minutes later. They walked out on their own feet. Their successful retrieval bodes well for the other 11 members The Governor, acting as the official spokesperson, has not confirmed…

  • Drilling down into the cave – 100 tunnels drilled so far | Thaiger

    Drilling down into the cave – 100 tunnels drilled so far

    As the frantic effort continues around the Tham Luang caves to find alternative ways to get to the cave chamber where the 13 footballers have been waiting since two weeks ago, ‘chimneys’ or tunnels from the top or side of the mountain, down into the cave, are being established. AFP are reporting that there have been more than 100 of…

  • Chiang Rai: PM offers congratulations and thanks rescuers | Thaiger

    Chiang Rai: PM offers congratulations and thanks rescuers

    PHOTO: Thai PBS Thai PM Prayut Chan-o-cha has congratulated the officials, civilians, volunteers and foreign rescuers involved in the search and rescue operations. He applauded their success in finding the 12 boys and their football coach deep inside the Tham Luang cave on late Monday night. He also thanked specifically the Navy SEAL teams for their sacrifice, resolve and cooperation…

  • Chiang Mai: New Zealander accused of masterminding murder of his Korean mother Chiang Mai | Thaiger

    Chiang Mai: New Zealander accused of masterminding murder of his Korean mother Chiang Mai

    Chiang Mai police have arrested a New Zealander for allegedly masterminding the murder of his Korean mother by setting it up as quarrel between his wife and his elderly mother. 50 year old Brian Lee was arrested and charged with masterminding the murder of 76 year old An Jung Ja at a house in the Mountain View village in Tambon…

  • Chiang Mai: Son finds father dead in car | Thaiger

    Chiang Mai: Son finds father dead in car

    A man has been found dead in his own car in Chiang Mai’s Muang district. The car was covered near his house when his adopted son found the car with his father inside this morning. Police estimate that 48 year old Somphet Thaso died at least two days earlier. His adopted son, Sukit Somboonpattanakoon, said Somphet could not be accounted for…

  • Heroin-swallowing smugglers nabbed in Chiang Mai and Bangkok | Thaiger

    Heroin-swallowing smugglers nabbed in Chiang Mai and Bangkok

    15.5 kilograms of heroin is a serious amount of illicit narcotics. Six Nepalese and one Indian national have been accused of being members of a transnational drug-trafficking syndicate, They’ve been transporting drugs by having people swallow dozens of capsules containing heroin and were arrested last week. The Nepalese suspects were identified as Singha Bir Gongbotamang, Sudarshan Thapa, Prasad Gurung, Suresh…

  • Visiting the Elephant Sanctuary Park in Chiang Mai | Thaiger

    Visiting the Elephant Sanctuary Park in Chiang Mai

    By Sebastian Jacobitz At the end of last year, I had the opportunity to travel for more than three months through Southeast Asia. I have already stated my travel plans before, and now the time has come where I want to recap on visiting the Elephant Jungle Sanctuary in Chiang Mai. It was hands down one of the best experiences…

  • Small guest-houses and hotels closing down across Chiang Mai | Thaiger

    Small guest-houses and hotels closing down across Chiang Mai

    Hotels, from small to medium size, are closing down across Chaing Mai following recent crackdowns and enforcement of the Hotel Act. Similar crackdowns are underway across the country this week, notably in Krabi as well. About 100 protesters have staged protests outside City Hall demanding that their issues be raised with the Tourism Ministry and the Thai PM. Small and…

  • Now, THAT’S a mushroom! | Thaiger

    Now, THAT’S a mushroom!

    Doi Tao, south of Chiang Mai, is where a five year old has found a giant mushroom, known locally as ‘hed jan’. Local villagers from the Ban Ko Luang, Pong Thung in Doi Tao were astonished when a five year old local, called Bell, turned up at home with an enormous mushroom on his shoulder that he says he collected…

  • TECNO Mobile and Manchester City Football Club developing Thai youth football talent | Thaiger

    TECNO Mobile and Manchester City Football Club developing Thai youth football talent

    Football inspires Thai people like no other sport. Whether a player, spectator or follower of an English Premier League team, Thai people are passionate about the sport and unwavering in support of their team. Thai youngsters play football from an early age at schools, on the streets, in the parks and dream of one day becoming a professional like their…

  • Temple ‘accommodation’ building works spark concerns – Chiang Mai | Thaiger

    Temple ‘accommodation’ building works spark concerns – Chiang Mai

    “When asked about the cease order, the temple responded that it had appealed to the court and was waiting for a trial, but the court had allowed them to continue construction in the meantime.” Local people are complaining to the Ou Sai Kham temple after construction of a four-story building next to a sacred historical 100-year-old house has began again.…

  • Chiang Mai hostel & guesthouse owners seeking clarification on Hotel Act | Thaiger

    Chiang Mai hostel & guesthouse owners seeking clarification on Hotel Act

    PHOTO: Manon Hostel, Chiang Mai Concerns over interpretation of the current Hotels Act, following a court-ruling last month about a Hua Hin condo being deemed illegal when renting rooms by day or week, have spread to Chiang Mai where guesthouse and hostel owners are seeking clarification. Guesthouse, hostel and small hotel owners in the northern city have filed a petition…

  • Complaints flow in for dodgy balloon festival organiser – Chiang Mai | Thaiger

    Complaints flow in for dodgy balloon festival organiser – Chiang Mai

    PHOTO: thaitravelblogs.com These balloon festivals have been popping up around the country and work like a travelling carnival of hot air balloons. The festivals tend to involve little more than a music festival with some well-lit hot air balloons around the perimeter. A similar show, the International Balloon Festival, was n Chiang Mai at the Cowboy Army Riding Club from March 2-4…

  • Chiang Mai hoteliers say the licensing laws are ‘unjust’. | Thaiger

    Chiang Mai hoteliers say the licensing laws are ‘unjust’.

    PHOTO: www.delannahotel.com A few weeks ago a Hua Hin condo lost a court case when the judge ruled that the condominium was not allowed to rent out its rooms on a daily or weekly basis. This has big ramifications for websites and business models like AirBnB. Now the crackdowns are happening in Chiang Mai but local hoteliers believe the registration…

  • British tourist falls from condo balcony in Chiang Mai | Thaiger

    British tourist falls from condo balcony in Chiang Mai

    A British tourist has fallen to his death from a Chiang Mai condo last night (Sunday). 57 year old Phil Edward Miller Hardwicke died after landing on a bench next to the third-floor swimming pool at the Lanna 3 Condo on Huay Kaew road in Tambon Chang Phuak, Muang district. Horrified witnesses say he fell from the 15th floor…

  • New airports in Phuket and Chiang Mai will ‘ease congestion’. | Thaiger

    New airports in Phuket and Chiang Mai will ‘ease congestion’.

    There’s been mainly positive response to the news that the AoT have approved the construction of two new airports – one in Phuket and one in Chiang Mai. The Director of the Thai tourism department says the decision is an important part of the support needed for ever-growing tourist arrivals. Yuthasak Supasorn, says it is a good sign for the industry,…

  • Chiang Mai wakes up to floods this morning | Thaiger

    Chiang Mai wakes up to floods this morning

    PHOTO: Chiang Mai Citylife Downtown Chiang Mai has hit by flash floods this morning (Thursday) following heavy rains on Wednesday night. Residents reported several roads with up to 20 to 40 centimetres of water, forcing kerbside shops to move their businesses to higher ground. Local authorities said the flooding started at 3am this morning. Most of it came from Doi…

  • 12 million meth pills seized in Chiang Rai | Thaiger

    12 million meth pills seized in Chiang Rai

    Police in Chiang Rai, far north Thailand, say they’ve seized a huge cache of 12 million methamphetamine pills from an abandoned vehicle. National police adviser Pol General Thanitsak Thirasawat said that the pickup truck was found on the Chiang Rai-Wiang Chai road in Wiang Chai district loaded with 57 sacks of narcotics weighing 1,425 kilograms. The truck’s licence plate number…

  • Wipawee wins in Krabi – fifth win of the year | Thaiger

    Wipawee wins in Krabi – fifth win of the year

    Wipawee Pratumsuwan after winning in Krabi Race favourite Wipawee Pratumsuwan racked up yet another title, clocking 1:36.34 hours to win the women’s 21km race at the Bangkok Airways Krabi Half Marathon yesterday (Sunday). The 27 year old assistant teacher, who spends most of her weekends competing, clocked eight minutes faster than runner-up Siriphat Bootjen, who crossed the finish line in…

  • Huge rally in Chiang Mai protesting judges’ homes on Doi Suthep mountain | Thaiger

    Huge rally in Chiang Mai protesting judges’ homes on Doi Suthep mountain

    PHOTO: Chiang Rai Times Around 1,000 people have rallied in Chiang Mai yesterday to protest the homes being built for Thai judges on forested land on Doi Suthep mountain. The protest is one of the largest protests against the government ever staged. Public frustration has been mounting over the project since aerial images started circulating on social media earlier this…

  • Chiang Mai teenager arrested after robbing Burmese woman in Phuket | Thaiger

    Chiang Mai teenager arrested after robbing Burmese woman in Phuket

    A Chiang Mai 18 year old has been arrested after robbing and attacking a Burmese woman in Phuket. Wichit Police arrested 18 year old Saranyoo, from Chiang Mai, with a gold necklace, a gold bracelet and 1,000 Baht in cash after he robbed and physically attacked a Myanmar woman. The victim, San Thidar New, who is a house keeper of…

  • 5 people dead following storms in 36 provinces | Thaiger

    5 people dead following storms in 36 provinces

    5 people are dead and 3,758 homes in 36 provinces have been damaged by storms over the past week. The Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Department director-general Chayapol Thitisak reported on the damage yesterday. He reported that relief aid, including home repair assistance and distribution of relief bags has been provided by Army, local administrative officials and related agencies. 655 villages…