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 Thailand vs. the West: What expats save on healthcare each year
Healthcare in Thailand is much cheaper than in Western countries, making it a great choice for expatriates looking for affordable medical care. Both public and private healthcare options offer high-quality services, with savings of up to 80% on procedures like...
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Bangkok driver killed waiting for help at roadside
PHOTOS: The Nation The 35 year old driver of a Honda car, broken down at the side of a Bangkok expressway, has been killed after his car was rear-ended by a Mercedes Benz early this morning. Police arriving at the scene on the Chalongrat Expressway in Wang Thong Lang district, in Bangkok’s north-eastern suburbs, determined that Somkid Yenjai had pulled…
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Miracle at Tham Luang – The Thailand cave drama unfolds, a year on
On June 23, a year ago, only a few northern Thai locals and serious cave enthusiasts knew much about the Tham Luang Caves in Mae Sai district, about an hour’s drive from Chiang Rai. But on that sunny afternoon, following their regular football practice, a group of 12 players and their coach, decided to have a quick excursion to the…
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Phuket’s perfect plane-spotting selfie
Mai Khao Beach, any day day of the year. People are assembling, not to swim, but to take photos of planes taking off from the Phuket International Airport. Every 5-10 minutes planes will come and go making Mai Khao Beach one of Asia’s top plane spotting locations. For now, you can still capture your special moment with a plane, taking…
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ASEAN agrees on common ground for world’s largest trade bloc, RCEP
ASEAN members reached common ground on the mega economic trade bloc, the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) during their meeting in Bangkok yesterday. RCEP will cover nearly half of the global economy. The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership is a free trade agreement (FTA) between the ten member states of ASEAN – Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam –…
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Vietnam and Thailand top Asia Pacific destinations for Russians
Vietnam is becoming one of the top destinations in the Asia Pacific region for Russian visitors, with the favourite Thailand still a close second, according to global travel analysis firm ForwardKeys. The ForwardKeys survey reports that Vietnam saw the highest increase in Russian market seat capacity at 153%, followed by Thailand and the Maldives, which saw a growth of 125%…
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ASEAN’s main conferences on today in Bangkok
The 34th ASEAN Summit started yesterday with various break-out meetings before the main leaders’ meeting takes place today and tomorrow. Wireless Road (Witthaya Road) is closed Saturday and Sunday as part of the weekend’s security arrangements. Mr. Don Pramudwinai, Minister of Foreign Affairs, delivered a speech at the opening of the ASEAN Women Entrepreneurs Network Meeting, one of the important…
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Thai Airways sneaks into Top Ten. Skytrax World’s Best Airlines Awards 2019.
PHOTO: A Thai Airways Airbus A380 Qatar Airways is the world’s best airline in the 2019 Skytrax World Airline Awards. Last year’s winner Singapore Airlines, has been relegated to second place. Asian airlines have taken six of the top ten spots with Thai Airways, despite their local woes, just sneaking into the Top Ten. The Skytrax awards are the most prestigious…
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73 Burmese and 4 ethnic Rohingya intercepted on their way to Malaysia
PHOTO: Thai PBS Two passenger vans have been intercepted by police along the Asian Highway in Surat Thani, southern Thailand. There were 42 illegal Burmese migrant workers travelling in the two vans. The vans were transferring the migrants, including three women, from the Prachuap Khiri Khan border crossing to Yala in Thailand’s deep south on the border of Malaysia. The…
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Unregistered hotels and lodgings told to get their paperwork in order, or close down
At least 5,000 of the country’s estimated 23,000 unregistered small hotels are expected to get their paperwork in order. The rush to action follows the announcement by the current government to register and comply with the Hotel Act, or be closed down. Most of Thailand’s busy tourist spots are rampant with small and illegal lodgings for tourists. Whilst the growth…
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Australian goes off the rails after being arrested by Pattaya Police – VIDEO
PHOTO: 77JOWO An abusive Australian has been filmed resisting arrest after being stopped by police in Pattaya. Police intervened and arrested Constantine Anagnostou for his ‘chaotic behaviour’ at an intersection on Pratumnak Hill. A 5 minute video shared by Pattaya News showed Mr. Anagnostou swearing at police officers after claiming that one of the officers had assaulted him. It starts off…
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Thailand’s exports plunge 5.8% in May
Thai exports have declined 5.8% for the month of May 2019. The value of May’s exports is 648 billion baht. The Commerce Ministry says in their report today that the contraction is mostly influenced by global factors including ongoing trade tensions between US and China and tighter global financial conditions, and specific factors of each country and region, political uncertainty…
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Thailand remains on Tier 2 for Trafficking in Persons
The Thai government doesn’t fully meet the minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking but is making significant efforts to do so. The US has released the 2019 Trafficking in Persons (TIP) report saying the Thai government demonstrated overall increasing efforts compared to the previous reporting period so will remain on Tier 2. These efforts included identifying more victims, sentencing…
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Blacklisted Chinese and Bangladeshi arrested in Phuket
A blacklisted Chinese and Bangladeshi man have been arrested in Phuket. The Chinese man, Xie Daijiang, whose former name was Xie Dajiang, was arrested for using fake documents 6 years ago. He has been blacklisted to re-enter Thailand for 100 years. He had merely changed his name by adding the letter ‘i’ before submitting for his new passport. After that…
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Two Nigerians arrested in Phuket over romance scam
Two Nigerian men have been arrested in Patong over an alleged romance scam. Police have arrested 25 year old Nigerian man Okoro Ifeanyi Daniel. He is facing charges of possession or use of an electronic bank card of another person wrongfully in a manner likely to cause detriment to other persons (fraud), and being an alien who has stayed in…
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Myth: Strong baht deterring western tourists to Thailand
The rise and rise of the Thai Baht, and it’s pushing through the 31.05 to the US Dollar barrier on Wednesday, tops off a turbulent decade of movement against some of the western currencies. The decade’s currency rise has also been matched by a meteoric explosion in tourism pushing Thailand into the top ten list of popular tourist locations in…
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Thailand’s Ayutthaya Elephant Palace says they will fight eviction orders
The Ayutthaya Elephant Palace and Royal Kraal, an elephant ride business at the Ayutthaya Historic Park north of Bangkok, says it will fight an order to leave the park. The business manager for the company, Ittiphan Khaolamai says the attraction is ‘nationally recognised’. “We will petition the Central Administrative Court next week. We can’t accept the order requiring us to…
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China-North Korea leaders meet. “Ties good for regional peace”
In a clear signal to the US President, North Korea’s leader Kim Jong Un has welcomed the Chinese President Xi Jinping in a grand parade. Kim Jong Un and China’s President agreed that amid “serious and complicated” international affairs, strengthening bilateral ties was good for both countries and regional peace, according to North Korean state media. Xi arrived in Pyongyang yesterday…
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Four Chinese passengers injured in Phang Nga as wheel comes off tour bus – VIDEO
PHOTOS: Newshawk Phuket Four Chinese tourists have sustained minor injuries after a tour bus accident in Kok Kloi, Phang Nga, just north of Phuket, yesterday afternoon. Newshawk Phuket reported that emergency responders headed to the scene of the accident at 4pm . They arrived to find the tour bus in the centre-road ditch. A bus wheel was found near where the…
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Private hospitals briefed on new drug prices and medical fee notifications
Internal Trade department officials have briefed representatives of 353 private hospitals around Thailand about the public notification of prices of drugs, medical supplies and medical services to patients are treated at their hospitals. Internal Trade Department Director General Wichai Phochanakit explained that the private hospitals need to notify the public of the prices of drugs separately, not including the hospital…
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Thai Baht hits six year high – 31.05 to the US dollar
The Thai baht has hit a six-year high, reaching 31.05 to the US dollar yesterday after the US Federal Reserve signalled possible interest rates cuts. The US Fed says their monetary easing would be in response to increased economic uncertainty and a drop in inflation expectations. The Thai currency is forecast to keep trading in a range of 31.15 to 31.25…
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45 year old Swede arrested on Koh Chang over $11 million scam
SCREENSHOTS: Manager Online video 45 year old Swedish national, Roger Nils Jonas Karlsson, has been arrested in connection with a multi-million dollar fraud. He was arrested on Koh Chang, far eastern Thailand near the Cambodian border. Police seized electronic devices and computers, allegedly used in the fraudulent activities relating to his arrest. Thai police were acting on an Interpol red notice…
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478 mostly-illegal foreigners rounded up in immigration raid
FILE PHOTO – One of the regular round-up of illegal foreigners Police have netted another 478 mostly-illegal foreigners during surprise raids in more than 200 locations around Thailand yesterday (Wednesday) – most illegal immigrants. The assistant national police chief cited the 34th ASEAN Summit being held in Bangkok (that started today) as part of the security crackdown. Police and immigration…
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Thai DLT to look at legalising GrabCar and GrabBike
Thailand’s Department of Land Transport is toying with the idea of officially legalising the Grab ride-hailing services using private cars and motorcycles through the Grab App. The DLT say they are already aware of the issue but say amendments would be required to the Land Transport Act if it were to happen. Today they were unable to put a timescale…
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Bryde’s whale carcass washed up on Samut Prakan beach
PHOTOS: ThaiWhales / DMCR The carcass of a Bryde’s whale has been found near a mangrove forest in Samut Prakan today. The Department of Marine and Coastal Resources report that they were notified by staff on an oil ship three days ago that the Bryde’s whale was found dead floating in the sea off Samut Prakan. The DMCR officers searched…
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Norwegian man seriously injured after van collides with a truck in Lopburi
PHOTOS: Motorlance Lopburi A 50 year old Norwegian man has sustained serious injuries while four other Thai passengers sustained minor injuries when a van collided with a truck in Lopburi, north of Bangkok, this morning. Rescue workers say that they were notified of the accident this morning on the Saraburi – Lomsak Road in Chaibadan, Lopburi. The left hand side…
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Where to post all of your job positions: Completely free!
Recruitment can cost you more than you realize. You do not want to sacrifice candidate quality, but you don’t wish to spend too much time and money to find them. All types of employers are searching online for platforms they can use to post their job positions for free. From social networking websites to job boards, there are many ways…
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Eight arrested with drugs and firearms in Phuket
Eight suspects have been arrested, along with the seizure of 700 grams of crystal methamphetamine, 12,000 methamphetamine pills, guns and ammunition, in Phuket. Police have arrested suspects – 29 year old Natakorn Tanlim, 21 year old Katareeya Kenkaew, and 27 year old Lapatsarada Kaewkong. Police seized the drugs, a handgun and 27 bullets. 30 year old Aritchai Suangsiri and 24…
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Screws tightening on Non Immigrant visas for expats wishing to live in Thailand
SOURCE: ThaiVisa A decade ago there seemed to be various ways to stay in Thailand long-term. There was a bit of wriggle room in the interpretation of the guidelines and there was always ‘ways and means’ of securing a visa (nudge nudge, wink, wink). But the screws are being tightened on expats, retirees and long-stayers who are finding their options…
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Ayutthaya Elephant Palace to be relocated for park make-over
Ayutthaya Historical Park has sent a notice to the popular Ayutthaya Elephant Palace, located on Pa Ton road, to vacate the area within 30 days to allow for improvements of the park’s landscape. The elephants, keepers and mahouts are still providing services to tourists visiting the park. Laithongrient Meephan, owner of the Elephant Palace, told Thai PBS that he is…
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How many tourists visit the real Thailand?
PHOTO: Sarah Lazarus – CNN Thailand is best known for its beaches, astonishing street food, markets and diverse south-east Asian culture. But how many people get out of the cities and tourist traps and get to experience the real Thailand? How many expats, living in Thailand, even get to experience the real Thailand? Thailand is the fourth most popular holiday…
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