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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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…
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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…
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Chiang Rai: Rescuers prepare to bring out the final five
PHOTO: VOA Following last evening’s successful rescue of a further four members of the Mu Pa football team, bringing the total number safely out at 8, Thai and international divers are preparing to rescue at least another four today. Mission control spokesperson Narongsak Osotthanakorn described the rescue operation, so far, as a success. Last night the first of the four emerged…
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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…
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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…
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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…
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Huge meth bust in Chiang Mai
The big seizures of methamphetamine pills and ‘ice’ continue around the Kingdom. In the last two months nearly 50 million pills have been collected in various stings and raids. Around 9 million methamphetamine pills and 300kg of crystal meth or “ice” was seized in Chiang Mai province shortly after the arrest of a fugitive last Monday, the police claimed. Officers…
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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…
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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…
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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…
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NBTC been told to clean up the overhead cabling mess
PHOTO The Nation Last year PM Prayut Chan-o-cha declared war on Thailand’s overhead electric cabling signalling provincial governments to get their overhead house in order. The clean up has been complicated by the many services that run their systems overhead – cable TV, electricity suppliers, internet and telecom providers. Now the Nation Broadcasting and Telecommunication Commission (NBTC) has been tasked…
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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…
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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.…
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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…
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Hua Hin and Khon Kaen to get extra flights from Air Asia
Hua Hin and Khon Kaen, new flight destinations for Air Asia, are looking to get more passenger love with Air Asia announcing proposed expansion of routes to the two destinations. New routes are being added to and from the Hua Hin airport, adding to the first scheduled flights from KL, Malaysia this month. Hua Hin International Airport The proposed new…
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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…
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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…
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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,…
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New airports approved for Phuket and Chiang Mai
After four years of false starts and rumours it looks like Phuket will now get a much-needed second airport to feed the island and the surrounding region. Yesterday’s announcement by AoT (Airports of Thailand) comes after extensive studies to examine the extension of the current Phuket airport runway which is hemmed in by Thepkasattri Road at one end and the…
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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…
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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…
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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…
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Bike crashes into a van killing one
A 35 year old man from Chiang Mai, Warat Liewrungrot, has crashed his motorcycle into a van, killing him instantly. He was driving without a helmet. The accident happened in front of Soi Suksan 1 in Rawai heading towards the Chalong Circle. Witnesses told Chalong Police that Warat was riding his motorcycle at high speed from Rawai Pier towards Chalong…
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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…
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2018 Songkran road toll total up on last year
This year’s Songkran “Seven Dangerous Days counted an appalling toll of 418 people dying on Thailand’s roads compared to last year’s 390. The figures were recorded by the Road Safety Centre said yesterday. The figures follow an ‘all out’ attempt by the Government and police to reduce the carnage on Thai roads over the Songkran break. This year also saw a…
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The Thailand Travel Mart heads to Pattaya this June
Pattaya will host the annual Thailand Travel Mart this June. The show was hosted in Pattaya back in 2001, followed by years in Bangkok before it moved to Chiang Mai in 2016 for a two-year stint. Now the annual B2B event, that showcases travel content from across the country and neighbours in the Mekong Region, moves south to Pattaya’s Ocean…
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Day Five – Drunk driving leads the way on Thailand’s ‘killing fields’
Drunk driving remains the major cause of road fatalities after the Songkran ‘Seven Days of Danger’ toll reached a staggering 323 people killed on Thailand’s roads (after the first five days of reporting). 3,140 others were injured in 3,001 crashes during the first five days of the Songkran seven-day accident-monitoring period – From last Wednesday morning to Sunday night. On…
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Australian teacher shot by ex in Chiang Mai
An Australian teacher, reportedly trying to get back together with his Thai girlfriend, has been shot in the stomach in the car park of a Chiang Mai apartment. 47 year old Jean Paul Bull, an English teacher at a well known Chiang Mai university, remains in hospital recovering from his injuries. He had gone to invite his 39 year old…
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Day Four report – the road toll remains worse than last year
Four days into the 2018 Songkran reporting period and the country has witnessed a horrific 248 deaths with 2,557 injured. 57 people died and 626 were injured in 603 accidents on April 14 (Saturday) alone. The statistics are from the Centre for the Protection and Reduction of Road Accidents. Dr Opas Karnkawinpong, deputy permanent secretary of public health in his…
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Songkran revenues flow whilst hot-season temperatures soar
Songkran Festival has attracted millions of Thai and foreign tourists to popular destinations nationwide, generating significant revenue for local economies. Last week Tourism Authority of Thailand economic forecasters were predicting a 10 percent rise in spending this year. Chuchat on-charern, the Tourism Authority of Thailand chief for the southern province of Phang-nga, said an estimated 155,000 tourists visited the province,…
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