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.
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Sponsored 5 ways retirees in Thailand lose money (and how to stop it)
Retiring in Thailand can be affordable and enjoyable, but many retirees lose money due to common mistakes. High living costs, scams, and unexpected expenses can quickly drain savings. There are five ways that retirees in Thailand can lose money and...
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Police warn about the dangers of visiting Thailand, directly contradicting Tourism Minister
PHOTO: Shutterstock Following the claim of Thailand’s Tourism Minister earlier this week that Thailand is “a completely safe environment”, a spokesman for the Royal Thai Police appears to have directly contradicted that statement. Pol Col Krissana Patanacharoen is warning tourists and business visitors about the dangers of Thailand, after a taxi driver allegedly robbed a Chinese tourist of millions of…
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Proposed amendment to Thailand’s Narcotics Act seeks to legalise cannabis growth at home
PHOTO: commons.wikimedia.org Thailand’s Bhumjaithai party says it will confer with key stakeholders to seek input on a proposed bill to allow people to grow their own cannabis at home. Those being consulted include government officials, medical patients, and traditional medicine practitioners. Party member Supachai Jaisamut says the draft bill proposes an amendment to Thailand’s Narcotics Act that would allow for…
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Bangkok is the world’s most visited city again, fourth year in a row
Bangkok is again the world’s most-visited city for the fourth consecutive year, beating out Paris and London. The rankings are compiled annually by Mastercard. Welcoming around 22.7 million international visitors, Bangkok ranked as the top destination for global travellers this year. Many of Bangkok’s visitors originate from these top five destinations, listed in order: Mainland China, Japan, South Korea, India…
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Constitutional court turns down request to lift Thanathorn’s suspension
Future Forward’s Thanathorn Juangroongruangkit has hit another hurdle with the Constitutional Court rejecting his requests to rescind an earlier court order suspending him from performing his duties as an MP. According to yesterday’s Constitutional Court’s bulletin, the court had not found “any change in behaviour on the part of Mr. Thanathorn that would justify the court lifting the suspension”. The…
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American woman tries to smuggle 6 day old baby in carry on luggage – Philippines
A female US citizen remains in custody in the Philippines after allegedly trying to leave the country with a baby inside her hand luggage. She was flying out of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport in Manila. The baby was alive and now in the care of Philippine officials. The 43 year old American woman was caught with the child in…
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Thai public hospitals now have two-tiered pricing for their services
Foreigners who receive medical treatment or services at public hospitals in Thailand are set to pay more than locals or residents of neighbouring countries for the same services. The new multi-tiered pricing sets guidelines for services by the Thai public Health department. New government guidelines were announced in the Government Gazette at the end of August and include a new…
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UK PM’s call for general election rejected by British MPs
In a dramatic day of British politics, the House of Commons has passed a bill that rules out the new PM Boris Johnson’s plan to pull out of the EU next month without a blueprint of how trading terms will continue with the UK out of the bloc. That bill now goes to the unelected House of Lords for assent.…
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Release dates announced for Tom Waller’s ‘The Cave’
The first of a few productions about last year’s massive cave rescue at the Tham Luang caves in Chiang Rai is going to be released on November 28. It is a feature film called “The Cave” (Nang Non) and will be released in Thai theatres as well. The film focuses on the rescue itself as the director said working with…
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Thai freight train derails near the Laos border
PHOTO: Prasit Tangprasert Trains running between Bangkok and Nong Khai (the north east province on the Laos border near Vientiane), had to be detoured this morning just after 6am after a freight train became derailed near Bua Yai junction station. According to the Bangkok Post, the train was carrying gravel for use on the construction and maintenance of rail tracks,…
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Thai economic committee warns about stagnant growth in second half of 2019
The Joint Standing Committee on Commerce, Industry and Banking says they’re concerned by threats to the performance of the Thai economy in the second half of this year. The office says the lack of stimulating factors and the project of an ever-stronger baht will stifle economic expansion and the economy will fail to reach targets. The JSCCIB President Preedee Daochai…
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Foreigners crying foul over the new dual pricing policy at Thai public hospitals
Thailand’s expat community is reeling after the news of Thai public hospitals given the greenlight to charge foreigners higher rates for foreigners than the locals – a classic dual-pricing policy. The new split rates kick in from September 29. But the health ministry say the new rates actually provide more set prices for services and procedures and, in some cases,…
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Court orders prison sentence for airline boss after 2007 Phuket crash
PHOTO: La-croix.com 12 years after a crash at Phuket airport that killed 89 passengers, a Paris court has sentenced the former chief of Thai budget airline One-Two-Go to four years’ imprisonment and a fine of 75,000 Euros. Udom Tantiprasongchai has been found guilty of voluntary manslaughter in a civil suit brought by the families of 9 French victims. However, despite…
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Thai street dog goes viral with “fake” injury
A clever street dog in Bangkok has gone viral on social media, with users joking that he is faking an injury for sympathy and food from passersby. Known as Gae, the dog drags his back leg behind him as if unable to walk, but once someone stops to give him attention, he’s quickly back on all fours and walking normally.…
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Sick child rushed to Bangkok hospital by a passing Grab Food motorcycle rider
A Grab Food motorcycle came to the rescue and helped a frantic mother rush her sick child to hospital yesterday. Her car’s dash cam video (below) captures the mother’s desperate please as her son, Pla Wan, was foaming at the mouth and losing control of his movements. Daily News reports the the mother’s car was stuck in traffic and unable to…
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Chief Executive of Hong Kong insists she’s going nowhere
PHOTO: Scmp.com/Nora Tam The Asean Post reports that Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam says she has no intention of resigning, despite a leaked audio recording where she says she wants to do just that. “For a chief executive to have caused this huge havoc to Hong Kong is unforgivable. If I have a choice, the first thing is to…
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Central Bank of Thailand voices concern over impact of economic slowdown
PHOTO: Thai PBS World The Bank of Thailand has expressed concern about the country’s rising household debt as a result of the sluggish economy. The bank’s assistant governor Titanun Mallikamas was speaking on Monday, in response to the National Economic and Social Development Council raising the matter at a press conference. “We are closely monitoring household debts, as Thai families…
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Thailand’s high-speed railway will carry first passengers in 2023
The first section of the 873 kilometre high-speed railway running between Thailand and China should be operating by 2023. Thailand will now pay for the total cost of the 179 billion baht first section of the high speed rail line, but China is providing the design and will provide the train and carriages. The first 252 kilometre leg, from Bangkok to…
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Missing Chinese swimmer’s body found off Freedom Beach in Phuket
The relatives of a 35 year old Chinese tourist, whose body was found floating off Freedom Beach in Phuket, have now been contacted. Chinese man Yin Lei was swept away by strong currents while swimming with six other friends off Freedom Beach last Sunday night around 7pm, resulting in an urgent search mission on Sunday night into Monday. After the…
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Thailand industrial property a winner as US-China trade war drags on
Amongst all the bad economic news, Thailand’s industrial property sector is profiting from the protracted US-China trade war, as mainland Chinese manufacturers shift production to ASEAN countries in an attempt to avoid escalating tariffs. Chinese foreign direct investment into the south east Asia sector rose last year by 31.7% to USD 233 million, after declining by 15.7% in 2016-17, according…
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AirAsia X orders 42 new long-haul Airbus jets
PHOTO: AirAsia’s new generation A330neo will be based at Bangkok’s Don Mueang International Airport – Bernama AirAsia X, the long-haul part of the AirAsia Group, has now finalised a major order with Airbus for 12 more A330-900 and 30 A321XLR aircraft. The contract was signed today by Tan Sri Rafidah Aziz, chairman of AirAsia X, along with Guillaume Faury, CEO…
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Mae Hong Son school inundated by flooding in Thailand’s north
The clean up is continuing today at a school for hilltribe children in Mae Hong Son’s Mae Sariang district in far north Thailand was hit by mountain runoff and floodwaters from last week’s heavy rain. The Ban Pho Sor School in Tambon Saohin was inundated by mountain runoff following heavy rains late Friday and into Saturday. The school provides education for…
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The problems with Phuket’s lifeguarding, in plain sight
PHOTO: Patong Surf Lifesaving Club A personal view from a veteran ocean lifeguard After viewing the news and photos today of yet another body retrieval from Phuket’s ocean waters, this latest is unfortunately one in a long-line of such grisly episodes, for as many years as I can remember. And as Kee Lighting and Engineering Company, apparently the contract provider…
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Indian visitors to Phuket surge whilst total numbers drop
by Bill Barnett from c9hotelworks.com The soaring number of Indian visitors to Phuket for the first seven months of 2019 has propelled Indian tourists into the Top 5 arrivals for the first time. Arrivals from India from January – July, compared to the same period in 2018, grew 354%, amassing a total of 186,360 arrivals. Mainland Chinese arrival figures continue…
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Massage parlour busted in Pattaya providing sexual services and underage staff
PHOTO: Pattaya Mail Police have raided the Thong Dang Thai traditional massage parlour on Central Road, Pattaya. They allege that staff were offering sexual services to customers whilst employing underage girls. The sting operation was conducted by officers from the Centre for the Protection of Children, Women and Family and the Anti Human Trafficking, a division of the Royal Thai…
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Large heroin bust announced in Bangkok
PHOTO: Naew Na The deputy national police has announced the arrest of two suspects in two large drug seizures. Heroin weighing 100 kilograms, plus one and a half kilograms of cocaine were seized. Deputy chief Pol Gen Chalermkiat Srivorakhan made the presentation to the media at the Crime Suppression Division headquarters in Bangkok. The media conference went through the long list of…
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Pet leopard not a hit with neighbours in Chonburi, Thailand
A couple in Chonburi, eastern Thailand, have not ingratiated themselves with neighbours after it was revealed they’re keeping a pet leopard in their home. It’s understood that a Thai woman known as Nittiya, and her foreign husband, nationality unconfirmed, have just recently moved to the area from Chiang Mai, and news of their unusual pet has put neighbours very much…
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Soaring baht continues to court investors and speculators
The Thai baht continues to be the best performing currency in Asia. On a year-on-year basis it has soared more than 8% against the USD and this year reached a six-year high. But the strong currency threatens the country’s exports and tourism, two major drivers of Thailand’s economy. Thailand continues to have solid economic fundamentals, a high current account surplus and…
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The Thai charm-offensive on the South Korean President
Thai PM Prayut Chan-o-cha is inviting South Korean investors to increase their investment and trade with Thailand. The PM says Cabinet will consider offering incentives for South Korean businesses to invest in the country. South Korean President Moon Jae-in capped off an official two day visit to the Kingdom yesterday. The Thailand-Korea Business Forum was held yesterday in Bangkok with…
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No direct hit from Kajiki, but heavy rain predicted for many parts of Thailand
PHOTO: My-thai.org The Thai Meteorological Department (TMD) says tropical storm Kajiki will miss Thailand, but parts of the country are in for some very heavy rain over the next two days. With Kajiki moving west across the South China Sea in the direction of Vietnam, a TMD spokesman says there’s a good chance it may change direction, heading northward towards…
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Chinese passenger detained on suspicion of theft at Suvarnabhumi airport
PHOTO: Bangkok.com Police and security officials at Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi airport arrested a Chinese woman earlier this morning on suspicion of theft. The woman had picked up a money-belt dropped by an Iranian passenger, but failed to hand it in. It’s understood the bag contained US$1,441 in cash and a mobile phone. The Iranian passenger reported his bag missing to airport…
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