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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    How to travel around Thailand for under US$30 a day

    The Thaiger key takeaways Staying in budget hostels or guesthouses and eating street food keeps daily expenses low. Mixing buses, trains, and budget flights allows affordable travel between cities and islands. Free or cheap activities, such as temples, markets, parks,...

  • Student falls out of the back of School songtaew in Nonthaburi | Thaiger

    Student falls out of the back of School songtaew in Nonthaburi

    Who was at fault? The student or the songtaew driver? A female student has fallen out the back of a moving songtaew on her way to school, captured on a dash cam. Daily News is reporting that the footage shows the girl with her satchel fall as the vehicle made off in front of the Chao Phraya market in Nonthaburi. The…

  • Who’s living there? Chiang Mai locals question lights on at controversial judicial housing | Thaiger

    Who’s living there? Chiang Mai locals question lights on at controversial judicial housing

    If you thought the controversy between local protesters and the Thai Government was over, regarding the extravagant homes for Thai judges on the slopes of Doi Suthep, you’d be wrong. CityLife is reporting that photos of lights coming from the banned judicial residences on Doi Suthep has gone viral, angering Chiang Mai locals. A picture was posted on June 9…

  • Trump/Kim summit – Reaction from Thai leadership. | Thaiger

    Trump/Kim summit – Reaction from Thai leadership.

    The Thai government is praising the successful summit between the leaders of the United States and North Korea, saying the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula will benefit both Asia and the world. Following a historic meeting between US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Singapore, the Thai PM Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha pointed out that the…

  • New flagship Starbucks in Central World BKK – celebrating 20 years in Thailand | Thaiger

    New flagship Starbucks in Central World BKK – celebrating 20 years in Thailand

    Love ’em or hate ’em, Starbuck is in Thailand to stay and have, without doubt, been a strong contributor to the growth of coffee culture in the Kingdom. A decade ago you were hard pressed to find a decent coffee in many part of the country. That’s certainly changed now. The Nation is reporting that Starbucks on Tuesday celebrated 20…

  • Intrusive news reporter challenged at accident scene | Thaiger

    Intrusive news reporter challenged at accident scene

    Nakharin Kaewchalerm from Sri Racha’s Phiaw Yiang Thai rescue in Chonburi arrived at the scene of a truck collision. He said the driver was stuck in the cab and needed to be cut out and given urgent treatment. Video footage shared online showed a TV news reporter lash out at a rescue medic trying to do his job at an accident…

  • German tourist in coma after dramatic rescue at a Koh Phangan beach | Thaiger

    German tourist in coma after dramatic rescue at a Koh Phangan beach

    PHOTO: 77Jowo A dramatic rescue of a German tourist in Koh Phangan yesterday. The man remains in a coma. 77Jowo is reporting that a 47 year old German tourist on holiday with his family was in hospital in a coma after a dramatic rescue at Nai Han Yai beach on Koh Phangan yesterday afternoon. Witnesses said that Heyros Jochen (name…

  • WANTED: 1,000 World Cup Pretties | Thaiger

    WANTED: 1,000 World Cup Pretties

    PHOTO: FIFATH.com Along with the World Cup comes the ‘crackdown’ on gambling. Khaosod English is reporting that police are looking for more than 1,000 women for illegally promoting online gambling for the upcoming World Cup. Deputy Police Chief Gen. Chalermkiat Sriworakan said warrants have been issued for more than 1,000 promotional models, known as pretties, featured in online gambling promotions…

  • Thaiger World Cup wall chart – print it out, pin it up, fill it in | Thaiger

    Thaiger World Cup wall chart – print it out, pin it up, fill it in

    The Thaiger will have extensive coverage of this year’s World Cup – hourly updates on The Thaiger 102.75 FM, Facebook updates and, of course, website score updates. Here is your wall chart, in English and Thai including the Thai time for each of the games.

  • Drug conflicts likely motive behind murder of five in Yala | Thaiger

    Drug conflicts likely motive behind murder of five in Yala

    Officials examine the blood-splattered scene where five men were shot dead in Yala’s Bannang Sata district early yesterday. Authorities say the killings were probably not related to the deep South insurgency. PHOTO: The Nation By Suriya Patathayo, Nakharin Chinnaworkomol and Parez Lohasan. A conflict over the drug trade is thought to be the motive behind the brutal killing of five men…

  • Five shot dead in Yala home invasion | Thaiger

    Five shot dead in Yala home invasion

    Paramedics remove the bodies of the victims to hospital for autopsy. (PHOTO: Maluding Deeto) Police say five men have been shot dead in the southern province of Yala, the latest killings in a region plagued by insurgency for over a decade. The Bangkok Post is reporting that gunmen stormed into a house and shot five people dead in Bannang Sata district…

  • French tourist reports sale of Nazi merchandise in Pattaya | Thaiger

    French tourist reports sale of Nazi merchandise in Pattaya

    A French tourist has raised concerns about the sale of Nazi paraphernalia in Pattaya. PattayaOne.news reports that 34 year old Alexandre Jandaeng spoke of his shock at seeing the goods, which included pictures of Adolf Hitler, swastika emblazoned scarves and coins, on sale at a market in the popular resort town. Mr Jandaeng reported the sale of the goods to Pattaya…

  • Chinese couple trash Phuket apartment | Thaiger

    Chinese couple trash Phuket apartment

    Won’t be the first tenants, nor the last, to leave a room in a disgusting condition. But this one is truly revolting, and bizarre. Coconuts Bangkok report that a Phuket apartment owner took to the internet yesterday to share horrific photos of a room he rented to a Chinese couple for just two nights. The Thai man went so far as to…

  • Green turtle found in Chantaburi, full of plastic | Thaiger

    Green turtle found in Chantaburi, full of plastic

    The reporting of the deaths of these magnificent marine creatures, found to be riddled with plastic they’ve unfitly consumed as they feed in the seas off Thailand, puts more pressure on the Thai Government. Let’s hope their deaths are not in vain. A green turtle has died in Chanthaburi’s Laem Sing district after consuming a vast quantity of plastic. A Facebook page, ReReef,…

  • French man released without charge after rape allegations from UK teen | Thaiger

    French man released without charge after rape allegations from UK teen

    PHOTO: Daily News Koh Tao, in the news again for all the wrong reasons. This time, a story printed in international media, has taken a turn with the man arrested in Phuket for the alleged rape, released from custody. The French man, arrested in Phuket in April, after a UK 18 year old claimed that she had been raped on…

  • 10 Hua Hin hotels face closure over Hotel Act infringements | Thaiger

    10 Hua Hin hotels face closure over Hotel Act infringements

    ‘Fake’ hotels and other premises being operated as hotels, but don’t have proper licences, are in the firing line at the moment, in just about all the major tourist provinces around the country. There’s clearly a nationwide crackdown on these dodgy guesthouses, hostels and mini-hotels at the moment. The owners say they find it almost impossible to comply with the…

  • Lampang pineapple farmers picket City Hall over falling prices | Thaiger

    Lampang pineapple farmers picket City Hall over falling prices

    Pineapple prices have been tumbling across the country, not only in the popular southern plantations. Now Lampang pineapple farmers are struggling to sell their products in the Chiang Mai market after another price crash hits the pineapple world. On June 8, over 10 pineapple farmers from Lampang set up shop outside City Hall to highlight the problems with pineapple prices falling…

  • Islamic committee chair dies from Friday shooting in Pattani | Thaiger

    Islamic committee chair dies from Friday shooting in Pattani

    Pattani Islamic Committee deputy chairman Aduldej Chenae, who was seriously injured from a gun attack in the southern province on Friday, was pronounced dead at 2.45am today (Sunday) in an intensive care unit of Pattani Hospital. The 55 year old Aduldej was leaving a mosque in front of Ban Lalo Witthaya School in Sai Buri district, where he also served…

  • High speed road crash in Korat leave two dead | Thaiger

    High speed road crash in Korat leave two dead

    From the sketchy news we’ve received it appears there was a military officer and his wife on one bike, both now dead. A 19 year old student, driving a Mazda SUV, is injured but has survived the crash. Early reports suggest the bike and the car were travelling up to 160 kph. The video is from Channel 8 News. The link…

  • A 50 percent cut in plastic garbage in 9 years | Thaiger

    A 50 percent cut in plastic garbage in 9 years

    Straws, beach trash and plastic bags. Thailand seems to be on a head on collision to tackle these issues, at last. To realise how difficult it will be to turn around a society that uses so much plastic daily – a recent survey suggest that the average Thai uses 8 disposable plastic bags every day – you only have to…

  • 21 year old Australian Jaydon Sienkiewicz remains in serious condition | Thaiger

    21 year old Australian Jaydon Sienkiewicz remains in serious condition

    Thursday’s stabbing on a young Australian man in a Pattaya night club is making headlines overseas, particularly in Australia. News.com.au is reporting that the 21 year old’s Thai stepmother was ‘horrified’ when he went to the bathroom and returned covered in blood. News.com.au reports that an Australian man is in a serious condition after he was attacked in a bathroom while…

  • Latest warnings from Thai Meteorological Department | Thaiger

    Latest warnings from Thai Meteorological Department

    The Meteorological Department has warned residents in many parts of Thailand to brace themselves for heavy rains and strong winds from Saturday to Monday. In its sixth warning issued at 5am this morning (Saturday), the department said a strong southwest monsoon is now prevailing over the Andaman Sea, Thailand and the Gulf of Thailand while a monsoon trough lies across…

  • Surat Thani school director transferred over pathetic school lunches | Thaiger

    Surat Thani school director transferred over pathetic school lunches

    The Education Ministry is investigating the former director of the Ban Tha Mai School in Suran Thani province for alleged “grave disciplinary offences”. His alleged penny-pinching cuisine options drew the attention of authorities after someone posted a video clip on the internet showing students at the Ban Tha Mai School in the Tha Chana district eating noodles with just fish…

  • A wet weekend around the country | Thaiger

    A wet weekend around the country

    Around the country there’s been a surging southern monsoon mixing with a front crossing over the South China Sea, moving north and sucking in moist air from the Gulf of Thailand and the Indian Ocean. The Thai Meteorological Department is reporting “more isolated heavy to very heavy rain will hit all regions of the country from today until June 11…

  • Sleeping on the job – NLA members caught napping | Thaiger

    Sleeping on the job – NLA members caught napping

    Two legislators caught nodding off during a serious discussion involving the 3 trillion bah national budget were actually hardworking lawmakers who fell asleep because of their poor health, National Legislative Assembly (NLA) vice president Peerasak Phochit said yesterday. Peerasak, who is in charge of NLA’s professional ethics, said their behaviour was not a serious enough breach of professional ethics to…

  • 30,000 methamphetamine pills seized, drugs rife due to decreasing prices | Thaiger

    30,000 methamphetamine pills seized, drugs rife due to decreasing prices

    Four drug dealers have been arrested with more than 30,000 methamphetamine pills. The use of methamphetamine pills is on the rise in the region, indeed right around Thailand, due to decreasing prices and increased availability. At a media briefing held yesterday (June 7) at the Krabi Provincial Police Station, Krabi Provincial Police Deputy Commander Col Tharatcha Tommapat said, “the four…

  • Police going to visit 3,900 members of ‘organic marijuana’ Facebook group | Thaiger

    Police going to visit 3,900 members of ‘organic marijuana’ Facebook group

    Pol Maj-General Panumart Boonyalak, commander of the Patrol and Special Operation Division 191, has threatened a Facebook group promoting ‘organic marijuana’ during a press conference held at 8.30pm last night (Thursday). He also announced the arrest of three suspects. Police are vowing to trace and take legal action against over 3,900 members of a closed Facebook group that encourages members…

  • Crazy school songtaew driver slapped with 5,000 baht fine and suspension | Thaiger

    Crazy school songtaew driver slapped with 5,000 baht fine and suspension

    CCTV footage from an intersection near Kabinburi, east of Bangkok, showed a fully loaded school songtaew almost collide with other vehicles as the driver plowed through a red light. Thai Rath reports the songtaew almost topples over, such is the speed and swerve. The children came from three area schools – Kabin Withaya, Jiamin School and Ruksasap School in Prachinburi. Following…

  • The final straw – say NO to plastic straws | Thaiger

    The final straw – say NO to plastic straws

    You walk into your nearest convenience store. You grab a drink and go to pay for it. You’re offered a straw (packaged in a plastic wrapper), or maybe two straws, thrown into your carry bag (also plastic). Or maybe you’re grabbing an iced coffee on your way to work from the roadside vendor. The coffee, in a plastic cup, carried…

  • Help on the way for Lampang woman who cares for 400 stray dogs | Thaiger

    Help on the way for Lampang woman who cares for 400 stray dogs

    There’s been a lot of interest in the story from yesterday about the woman in Lampang, Pongrueduee Rasi, who had been caring for 400 stray dogs but was in despair because she’d run out of money. We’ve tracked down the account number of her Foundation that cares for the dogs. Pongrueduee Rasi told several TV channels yesterday that she had only…

  • Premchai wants to move the case to another court. The Prosector’s not happy. | Thaiger

    Premchai wants to move the case to another court. The Prosector’s not happy.

    Haven’t heard much about the Premchai Karnasuta case in the past month? There have been moves behind the scenes to have the case moved to the Region 7 Criminal Court in Samut Songkhram province. Thai PBS is reporting that the public prosecutor in charge of the Thungyai illegal hunting case has objected to the request of Italian-Thai Development boss Premchai Karnasuta…