Thailand News
Thailand news, politics, business, crime, and lifestyle—get breaking updates from Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Pattaya, and beyond. Stay informed on Thai society, economy, tourism, and expat life with The Thaiger.
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Sponsored 9 most common health issues covered by insurance for expats in Thailand
Thailand is a popular destination for expats due to its affordable lifestyle and excellent healthcare system. However, settling in a new country often brings health concerns. To ensure you’re covered for the most common medical needs, understanding what expat health...
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Russian minister appreciates Thailand’s neutrality over Ukraine
The Deputy Prime Minister, and Foreign Affairs Minister of Thailand, Don Pramudwinai, visited Russia this week to celebrate the 125th anniversary of friendship between the two nations and invited President Vladimir Putin to attend Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meetings in Thailand in November. Don traveled to Moscow on Wednesday to meet the Foreign Minister of Russia, Sergey Lavrov. After the…
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Thailand joins the world in honouring Queen Elizabeth II
Thailand is joining the world in honouring the UK’s Queen Elizabeth II, who passed away yesterday. The Thai government has now ordered all departments to lower their flags to half mast for three days in her honour, starting on September 11. The Queen had had warm relations with Thailand’s late King, His Majesty Bhumibol Adulyadej. In the past, she had…
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Train smashes into car in eastern Thailand, 1 killed, 3 seriously injured
A car crashed through a barrier and was hit by a train in Chon Buri province, eastern Thailand, at 2am today. One woman was killed in the crash and three more people are seriously injured. Officers at Don Hua Lo Police Station received a report at 2am that a train had hit a car where the road and railway track…
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Koh Chang locals urged to evacuate as more rain predicted
Koh Chang residents in the lowlands and foothills of the island have urged people to evacuate the area after learning more heavy rain is predicted to hit the area following a two-days’ deluge that brought floods and landslides. Heavy rain hit Koh Chang island in Trat province in the eastern part of Thailand on Wednesday and continued for two days.…
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Yell signs a collaboration agreement with BACON Singapore and SOUNDS Shanghai
Press Release Yell, an independent agency, has partnered with Singapore’s Bacon Creative and China’s Shanghai Soundsplan Marketing & Planning to expand the organisation’s global reach through partnership creation. This enhances Yell’s ability to serve Asia-Pacific customers and transform into the first Thai agency with an international network. Dissara Udomdej, Yell’s founder and CEO, said, “Yell has developed a more entity…
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Tourists see solar phenomenon at Phanom Rung Temple
Tourists gathered at Phanom Rung Historical Park in Isaan province of Buriram this morning to observe a solar phenomenon through the 15 doors of the ancient Phanom Rung Temple, an event which happens only four times a year. The Phanom Rung Temple is located on Phanom Rung mountain in the Tapek sub-district, Chaloemprakiat district of Buriram province. The temple, constructed…
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Fire breaks out at Indian restaurant in Patong
A fire broke out at an Indian restaurant in Phuket’s famous tourist town of Patong in the early hours of this morning. Firefighters rushed to the restaurant on Taweewong Road to find it ablaze. The firefighters took 40 minutes to bring the flames under control. The restaurant was damaged, but luckily no injuries were reported. The restaurant owner said there…
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You can now submit Thai name ideas for a star and a planet
Astronomy lovers out there can now submit ideas for Thai names for a star and a planet. The National Astronomical Research Institute of Thailand is seeking Thai name submissions as part of an international contest. The contest by the International Astronomical Union is titled “NameExpoWorlds 2022.” The contest aims to name planets and stars outside the solar system that have…
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Driver crashes pickup into noodles bar, injuring 17 in central Thailand
Seventeen people were injured after a pickup crashed into a noodles shop in Chantaburi province, in the central part of Thailand. He is suspected of being drunk at the wheel or high on drugs. A CCTV camera in front of the shop showed the vehicle losing control and suddenly crashing into the shop while customers were either standing outside or…
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140,000 chickens die in flood at poultry farm in eastern Thailand
Approximately 140,000 chickens drowned in a flood today at a poultry farm in Klaeng district, Rayong province, eastern Thailand. Rayong has been hit particularly hard by the heavy rainfall and flash flooding that has swamped Thailand this week, with over 200 houses flooding in the Klaeng district. All six houses at Kamnan Boonsueb’s poultry farm in Ban Na subdistrict flooded,…
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Thaiger Unfiltered
Here’s a chance for our viewers to ask Jay and Sara any questions they have, and they will answer you with their honest responses unfiltered! Please be kind and appropriate.
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Japan donates cute trains to Thailand, ready for public use next month
On Tuesday, the State Railway of Thailand (SRT) conducted a trial run of a cute white and purple locomotive donated by Japan. It is one of 17 Kiha 183 passenger trains donated by the Hokkaido Railway Company, which will be used for short tourism routes as soon as next month. Governor of the SRT Nirut Maneephan said the trains will…
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Heaviest rain in two decades pushes Bangkok’s canals to the brink
Bangkok’s heaviest rains in over two decades are pushing its canals to the brink. The downpours started Tuesday evening, overwhelming the canals. Governor Chadchart Sittipunt said Bang Khen district has reported 170 millimetres of rain since Tuesday, which has been the highest amount in 20 years. Klong Lat Phrao and Kong Prem Prachakon canals have seen water levels rising to…
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AirAsia X disagrees with government’s proposed tourism fee
AirAsia X’s chief executive disagrees with the Thai government’s proposal of a tourism fee on flights. Tony Fernandes, the acting group chief executive of AirAsia X says, instead, that the government should bank on the influx of travellers as aiding the economy. He says the tourism fee would be a smaller impact on the economy than an increase in tourism.…
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Central department stores to get facelift funding
The Central department stores, seen throughout Thailand and other countries, may be looking a lot less shabby as the retail giant has approved a 15 billion baht makeover for its stores. Central Department Store Co, under Central Retail Corporation, has approved the funding as part of its efforts to expand the retail business from 2023 to 2027. Oliver Bron, the…
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Thailand’s caretaker PM caught sleeping on the job
Caretaker Prime Minister Prawit Wongsuwan was caught sleeping on the job this afternoon. The 77 year old was in Krabi province today overseeing a joint meeting with several water and land use agencies to discuss water management issues when he dozed off. The image quickly went viral on Thai social media and drew a number of cheeky comments. Suthaporn Suriyakarn…
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Cabinet approves 1.6 billion baht to solve Thai flood problems
The Thai Cabinet yesterday approved a budget of almost 1.6 billion to deal with Thailand’s perpetual flood problems. Some 912 million baht has been set aside for water management during the rainy and drought seasons while 664 million baht has been allocated for new water pumps. Prime Minister Office spokesperson Anucha Burapachaisi told an assembled Thai press conference yesterday that…
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Horny monk sexually harasses former OnlyFans actor
A former gay OnlyFans actor claims he was sexually harassed yesterday by a randy monk in his clothing store in a shopping mall in the northeastern province of Nakhon Ratchasima, or Korat. The former OnlyFans actor, who goes by the name of Graf, posted a video of the alleged horny monk on his TikTok account @graf19. The video caption said……
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Gran’s drowning attempt thwarted by her strong swimming ability
An 81 year old granny from the Baan Pom sub-district in Mueng Ayutthaya district tried to kill herself by drowning yesterday because she felt a burden on her family. But her attempted suicide failed when she was fished out of the Chao Phraya River at 7am by a fish farm owner – four hours and 20 kilometres after she took…
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Small hotels call for looser regulations to allow them to be legal
Hot on the heels of the Ministry of Interior proposing to loosen laws that would let small hotels operate more simply as homestays, a coalition of hotel associations is calling for a relaxation of building guidelines that have made 20,000 small hotels illegal. The group of 10 hotel and tourism associations submitted a letter on June 29 to the prime…
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Hate traffic tickets? Traffic court may replace them
Not getting a ticket when you get pulled over by police in Thailand sounds nice, but not if it’s replaced with a traffic court date instead. The Cabinet Committee approved a motion yesterday under the Traffic Case Draft Act to create a Traffic Law Enforcement Department which would make being cited for a violation a more formal process that could…
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2nd of 3 statements to court may support PM Prayut until 2025
The ongoing saga continues of whether suspended Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha will be able to extend his tenure more than the eight years he has already served, with speculation rife about a court document suggesting his constitutional eight years ends in 2025. The Constitutional Court is currently considering a pitch by Prayut himself as well as documents from two legal…
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New study shows smallpox vaccine ineffective against monkeypox
Despite previous hopes, the Department of Medical Sciences warned that most adults and seniors who have been previously vaccinated against smallpox are not protected from monkeypox, unfortunately. The news comes after testing in labs of people who received the smallpox vaccine when they were younger and are now over 40 showed no correlation between the inoculation and any immunity from…
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Locals pray to blue snake in northeast Thailand
On Sunday, villagers in Nakhon Ratchasima in northeast Thailand spotted a blue snake in a tree that has never been seen before in Thailand. Villagers lit incense and prayed to the snake, believing it is sure to bring them good luck. Isaan is brimming with snakes, but no one has ever reported seeing this kind of snake before. The bright…
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‘Fish sauce’ leaking through ceiling turns out to be corpse fluid in central Thailand
Last night, a 49 year old teacher living in Nonthaburi province, central Thailand, told her apartment manager that fermented fish sauce was leaking through her ceiling and dripping down her wall. Pornphimon went away for the weekend and when she returned yesterday at 8pm, she noticed a putrid smell in her apartment. She said, “black water” was coming through the…
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Opening day of 2022 welfare sees 1.86 million people register
Yesterday marked the opening date for registration for state welfare for 2022, and people flooded the registration process both online and in person. By 3pm on the opening day, officials reported that 1.86 million people across Thailand had already registered for the state welfare card project. A spokesperson for the Ministry of Finance, who also serves as the director-general of…
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Study uses mobile data to improve domestic tourism trends
A new study used mobile data from mobile operator DTAC’s customers to analyse their movements and extrapolate strategies for increasing domestic tourism within Thailand. The study was conducted by Chulalongkorn University, the National Digital Economy and Society Commission, and Boonmee Lab, and used data from June 2020 to October 2021 of 10% of DTAC’s customers who fit the travel parameters…
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Woman bitten by cockroach suffers allergic reaction in Thailand
A Burmese woman suffered a serious allergic reaction to being bitten by a cockroach while she slept in Kanchanaburi province, in the central part of Thailand. The 40 year old Burmese woman, Minor, woke with a start, nudging her sleeping husband saying she felt as if she had been bitten. He husband switched on the light to find a big…
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Truck carrying elephant overturns in northern Thailand
UPDATE The 50 year old male elephant who was badly injured in a road accident in Chiang Mai yesterday finally made it to the elephant hospital in Lampang province, 20 hours later. At around 9am yesterday, the truck transporting “Pooh Kham” from Mae Chaem to an elephant camp in Mae Wang overturned on the windy roads. At first, Pooh Kham…
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Hike on traffic fines delayed, but ticket prices will be consistant
Writing news in Thailand frequently means announcing something and then the next day announcing the opposite. And true to form, the new major hike in penalty fines for traffic violations announced before the weekend and scheduled to go into effect yesterday… have been retracted. But when they do go into effect, repeat offenders will be further penalised, and a new…
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