Chiang Mai News
Stay up-to-date with the latest news from the charming and historic city of Chiang Mai with The Thaiger. Our team of seasoned journalists brings you breaking news, in-depth analysis, and exclusive stories from this fascinating city, covering a diverse range of topics, including local politics, business, culture, and tourism. Keep yourself informed about the city’s rich history, vibrant arts scene, and thriving expat community, as well as updates on events, attractions, and transportation.
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The Four Twenty experience: From seed to sale at one of the most famous cannabis dispensaries in Thailand
Four Twenty is already a household name in Thailand’s relatively new legal cannabis scene, and for good reason. Their meteoric rise can be attributed to a combination of factors, mainly their top-quality cannabis and their dedication to providing a unique...
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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…
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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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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…
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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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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…
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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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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…
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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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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…
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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). Â 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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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…
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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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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…
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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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Day Four – Road toll much higher than last year
Thailand’s Songran road death toll has reached 248, with 2,557 injured in 2,449 accidents during the first four days of the so-called seven dangerous Songkran days (Wednesday to Saturday). The figures marked an across-the-board increase over the same period last year, which saw 226 deaths, 2,457 injured and 2,385 road accidents. On Saturday alone, there were 603 accidents, killing 57…
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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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