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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Meatball seller wins 6 million baht lottery jackpot in Thailand
A meatball seller from Buriram province in northeast Thailand won the first prize of 6 million baht in the government lottery yesterday. She says she won’t stop selling meatballs. The newfound millionaire, 53 year old Champa Sumahungphan, revealed how she chose the winning numbers. Champa explained that she was riding around the Thai Samakkadi subdistrict on her motorbike and attached…
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German woman injured in Krabi cave
A German woman was injured in a cave in Thailand’s Krabi province on Tuesday. The 61 year old tourist fell while walking inside the cave at Ka Narb Nam Mountain in the main city district. She was left unable to walk. The rescue mission was arduous due to the cave’s location. A rescue team had to get to the cave…
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US Army officer dies during Cobra Gold military exercise in Thailand
UPDATE The US Army officer who was found dead at a Thai army camp in Lop Buri province, central Thailand, on Tuesday morning has been identified as 37 year old Maj. Andrew Cotter. Cotter was taking part in the multinational military exercise Cobra Gold. Yesterday, US and Thai officials said that no foul play was suspected. Superintendent of Mueang Lop…
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Selfridges’ Thai owners take on 70 billion baht debt
Central Group, Selfridges’ Thai owners along with Austrian enterprise Signa Holdings, have taken on another £1.7 billion (US$ 2 billion, 70 billion baht) of debt in a strategy to increase investment returns. The London branch of Bangkok Bank provided the loan, secured against the lease on the retailer’s London flagship store. Selfridges said the loan would “release capital” for the…
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UK YouTuber’s video on Thai boy racers praised by netizens
Thai netizens hailed UK YouTuber JimmyTheGiant for his documentary-style video “Thailand’s Most Hated Subculture,” which sheds light on the persistent issue of boy racers in the kingdom. Many have called on Thai authorities to take the issue seriously and sort it out. The term “Dek Waen” is used to describe teenage boy racers who ride motorcycles or drive cars, very fast. However,…
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Expensive flights to Thailand too hot for Chinese mainland mainstream
Expensive flights to Thailand from bigger cities in China are delaying Thailand’s tourism recovery. Most tariffs are still one and a half times more than pre-pandemic prices, while for smaller cities, fares are more than double previous levels According to the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) governor Yuthasak Supasorn, while most tickets are cheaper than last year, prices for March…
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American soldier dies at Cobra Gold military exercise in Thailand
An American soldier attending the annual Cobra Gold military exercise in Thailand was found dead in the bathroom at an army camp in Lop Buri province, north of Bangkok, yesterday at 9.40am. Officers from Mueang Lop Buri Police Station travelled to the 31st Infantry Regiment to find the soldier deceased in the bathroom in a pool of blood. There was…
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Makha Bucha Day Monday: lots of Buddhism, no booze
Buddha Days: holidays of religious celebration for Thais and sober frustration for foreign tourists. Next week Thailand will celebrate Makha Bucha Day, an important religious holiday for Thai Buddhists. The holiday falls on Monday, March 6. While the day may not hold the same religious significance for non-Buddhists, it is still recognized as a significant day in Thai culture, and…
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50 elephants ‘addicted to sugarcane’ destroy 2000 rai of crops in Thailand
A herd of around 50 wild elephants has migrated into farmland in Loei province in northeast Thailand, destroying 2000 rai of crops so far. There is no sign of them retreating into the forest. Recently, around 50 elephants migrated into agricultural land in the Phra Kradueng district from the Phu Luang Wildlife Sanctuary. No wonder the elephants moved away from…
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4 police officers and 3 men arrested for smuggling motorcycles
Authorities arrested four police officers, one Thai man, and two Cambodian men yesterday at a pier in the southeastern province of Trat for smuggling six motorcycles into a neighbouring country. The Marine Special Unit 182 received a tip-off from an authority spy that the smuggling was to take place at a pier in the Mai Root sub-district, Khlong Yai district…
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2 men arrested for animal trafficking, over 100 carcasses seized
Two men were arrested yesterday in the central province of Suphan Buri for trafficking protected animals. The authorities seized over 100 carcasses of monitor lizards and turtles, making the largest number on record. Authorities from the Natural Resources and Environmental Crime Division, or Greencop, and U-Thong Police Station were notified that a house owner, later identified as 73 year old…
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Tel Aviv – Bangkok flight time reduced by 2.5 hours
Flights between Tel Aviv and Bangkok, Thailand, just got three hours shorter thanks to the government of Oman who made the long-awaited decision to open its airspace to aircraft from all countries, including Israel. On Sunday, an EL AL Israel Airlines flight from Tel Aviv to Bangkok flew through Oman’s airspace, becoming the first Israeli airline to do so, three…
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Faith-based businesses: Your good luck is their bad luck
There’s big money in misery. In times of economic downturn and instability, many Thais turn to spiritual practices such as prayer, amulets, and fortune telling for support. As a result, many faith-based businesses have emerged to offer solutions to people’s problems. But as the economy grows stronger and more stable, faith business profits are falling. With the onset of the…
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Police say key suspect in macau888 case fled Thailand last month
Police say that a key suspect in the Macau888 gambling network case fled Thailand last month, along with his girlfriend. The suspect, 32 year old Kittipong ‘Big’ Kajornboonthavorn, is the younger brother of alleged macau888 gambling kingpin ‘Benz Daeman.’ Benz was finally arrested at Suvarnabhumi Airport upon his return to Thailand on February 14. According to the head of the Cybercrime…
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Grab driver caught on tracking app stealing passenger’s phone
A group of friends turned detective to successfully track down a lost mobile phone using a tracking application after it had been stolen by their Grab driver. They cancelled pre-booked flights and a vacation trip worth over 10,000 baht and set out to track down the thief. The incident was captured on video by one of the victim’s friends, 26…
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Tourist films himself smoking blunt while riding elephant in Thailand
A tourist in Thailand has filmed his experience riding an elephant while smoking a blunt and posted it on Instagram. According to Leafly, Mikhail Harrison rolled up some GUMBO and went into the jungle for an exotic experience. He posed the question, “If you could smoke weed with an elephant, which strain would you pick?” on his Instagram page. In…
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British labradors head to Thailand to sniff out smuggled pangolins
Two sharp-nosed Labradors from England are heading to Thailand to save critically-endangered pangolins from wildlife smugglers. The elusive, nocturnal pangolin – able to roll up into an armour-plated ball when threatened – is the most trafficked animal in the world. Known as “scaly anteaters,” these unique mammals disguised as reptiles are trafficked primarily for their scales, which are used in…
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Thailand’s Cobra Gold war games sees largest US attendance in decade
Thailand’s annual Cobra Gold war games have seen the largest attendance by the US in a decade. The international military exercise started yesterday and runs to March 10. The unprecedented attendance by the US military is thought to be part of Washington’s efforts to build ties with a key security partner as geopolitical competition with China is on the rise.…
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Agoda says these are the most popular vacation spots for Thai families
According to early 2023 search data from the travel platform Agoda, Pattaya is the most popular destination for Thai families looking for a domestic vacation this year. Hua Hin/Cha-am, and Phuket followed in second and third place. The full list of the top 10 most searched domestic destinations by families includes: Pattaya, Hua Hin/Cha-Am, Phuket, Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Chon Buri,…
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Traffic cop delivers 100 babies on the streets of Bangkok
Sporting big bikes, brown outfits and guns on their hips, Thai traffic police officers don’t look like your average midwives. But in gridlocked Bangkok, pregnant women don’t always make it to the hospital in time. In a sprawling city home to nearly 11 million people, sometimes the only way to reach those in need of medical help is on two…
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Courageous deer survives multiple bullets and finds new home in Hua Hin
A courageous deer, who endured multiple gunshot wounds inflicted by poachers, has been relocated to a rescue centre in Hua Hin. Park rangers found the injured Sambar deer in Thailand’s Kaeng Krachan National Park, Hua Hin Today reported. The park borders the Phetchaburi and Prachuap Khiri Khan provinces. Officials from the Department of National Parks sought help from the Wildlife…
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Thailand gears up to welcome more cruise ships
Thailand is gearing up to welcome more cruise ships. The country is making efforts to improve existing ports, and building new ones, according to government spokesperson Anucha Buraphachaisri. Today, Anucha cited data from the Tourism and Sports Ministry, revealing that cruises are becoming increasingly popular among tourists. Some 1,800 to 2,400 tourists arrive in Thailand on cruise ships every year…
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Bangkok gambling den bust sees five police officers transferred
The Metropolitan Police Bureau Division 5 transferred five police officers from the Khlong Tan Police Station to work at the metro police headquarters after 48 gamblers were arrested on Sunday at a gambling den in their area of supervision in Bangkok, Thailand. The officers from the Metropolitan Police Bureau raided a gambling den in Soi Pattanakarn 54 in the Suan…
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Thailand to resume cockfights and other animal sports, gambling allowed
Thailand is resuming cockfighting and other animal fights, with gambling allowed under strict conditions, the Ministry of Interior announced on Friday. Secretary of the Ministry of Interior Suttipong Junjaroen officially announced that cockfighting, horse racing, Siamese fighting fish battles, bullfighting and cow racing may all resume now that the pandemic has subsided. Betting will be permitted under strict conditions, so long as…
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Alcoholic Drink Control Act has reduced drinking 2%
Some news we shouldn’t drink to: alcohol consumption is down 2% after 15 years of Thailand’s Alcoholic Drink Control Act. The law banned alcohol advertisements and placed limits on when and where booze can be sold. A seminar entitled “Different Views on 15-year Enforcement of the Alcoholic Drink Control Act” was held on Sunday at Bangkok’s Asia Hotel where the…
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Collapsed crane kills Cambodian worker at Bangkok construction site
Tragedy struck at a construction site in the Chatuchak district of Bangkok yesterday when a tower crane collapsed and killed a Cambodian worker. Thai news outlet Channel 7 reported that the crane’s sling was broken, causing the crane’s arm to crash down on the worker, 31 year old Sophanna. Two other Cambodian workers were injured in the incident. One of the…
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Tuk tuk driver punches foreign tourist in the face in Bangkok (video)
A tuk tuk driver was caught on camera punching a foreign tourist in the face, twice, at the entrance of Khao San Road in Bangkok, Thailand, on Saturday night. On Sunday morning, the citizen journalism page ‘Social Hunter Reborn V‘ posted a chaotic four-minute-long clip on Facebook of a heated argument at the entrance of Khao San Road in Bangkok,…
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Songkran returns to Pattaya amid Covid concerns
Pattaya is set to welcome back Songkran after a four-year absence due to pandemic restrictions. The festival, which is known for being the biggest and wettest party in Pattaya, will culminate on April 19 with Wan Lai, or the “Big Day.” However, health officials fear that the unbridled celebration could also bring a new spike in Covid-19 infections, as it…
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Bangkok police help Chinese tourist get phone back after she left it in a cab
Bangkok police helped a Chinese tourist get her phone back after she accidentally left it in a cab. The incident happened on Friday at around 5.45pm near Bangkok’s Ratchaprasong intersection. Chinese national Wang Chunhua notified Lumpini Police Station about her missing phone through the SOS system under the Smart Safety Zone initiative. After receiving the report, officers went to the…
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Juvenile court releases Nong Tor’s mother on bail for 9,000 baht
UPDATE A juvenile court in central Thailand released “Nim”, the 17 year old mother of missing baby Nong Tor, on bail for 9,000 baht yesterday after she confessed to dumping the body of her eight month old son in the Tha Chin River on February 5. Police interrogated Nim for more than six hours before charging her on three counts:…
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