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 How to reduce out-of-pocket medical expenses in Thailand?
Managing medical expenses in Thailand is important as healthcare costs continue to rise. The country’s healthcare system includes both public and private options, but even with the Universal Coverage Scheme (UCS) for citizens, many still face high out-of-pocket medical expenses....
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Thai restaurant staff attacked by customer in the US
An American man attacked a Thai man working in a Thai restaurant in the United States last week after the establishment refused to give him free food. A reporter from KGO-TV San Francisco, Dion Lim, shared footage and details of the episode at the Thai restaurant in Berkeley, California. The incident happened on Wednesday, November 9 at about 5pm. This…
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Thailand to issue one-year visas for medical tourists
Thailand is trying to attract more rich tourists by promoting itself as a destination for medical treatment, with hospital operators such as Bangkok Dusit Medical Services and Bumrungrad Hospital among the companies expected to profit the most from the new visa. The latest attempt to lure so-called high-quality visitors comes with just as many unfathomable restrictions as previous attempts to…
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British sex offender extradited from Thailand imprisoned in Scotland
UPDATE The British man who fled to Thailand after being convicted of possessing over 60,000 indecent images of children in 2014 has been imprisoned in Scotland. On Monday, Hamilton Sheriff Court jailed 46 year old William Dempster, from Tayside, for 18 months and placed him on the sex offenders’ register. Dempster was found guilty in 2014 but absconded to Thailand…
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Residents furious 20 million baht rest area on Thailand Riviera Road abandoned
Residents are up in arms about a motorway services station and rest area that has been abandoned on the Thailand Riviera Road in the southern province of Chumphon. The Riviera Road was part of a government project in 2009 which tried to level up the coast of the southern provinces of Thailand and make it a must-visit destination for tourists…
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Covid-19 infections up 12.8% last week
Despite everyone in Thailand – and the rest of the world – being bored of it, Covid-19 is still here. Last week, new Covid infections in Thailand rose 12.8%. The greatest leaps were seen in tourist areas and Bangkok. In the last week, an average of six people per day died of the coronavirus, while 3,166 people were admitted to…
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Fisherman finds dead dugong in Krabi
In a tragedy for Thailand’s animal lovers, a fisherman found a dead dugong in the southern Krabi province on Sunday. The fisherman found the dugong in the sea and pulled it up onto a pier. A consultant of the Krabi Fishermen Association said the dugong was a male, and around three years old. He said it weighed 100 kilograms and…
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Police search for naked tourist riding a motorcycle in public
Police officers in the north-central province of Phetchabun are searching for a Thai tourist who was featured on a viral video riding a motorcycle naked on a public road. Local News Phetchabun (ข่าวท้องถิ่นเพชรบูรณ์) posted a video of two male tourists on a motorcycle last night. The male rider wore clothes but his passenger was naked aside from a helmet and…
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Police seize four tiger cubs in northeast Thailand
Police and national park officials arrested a Thai couple and seized four tiger cubs worth 2 million baht this morning in Mukdahan province in northeast Thailand. Despite officers luring the couple to arrest by posing as interested customers, they panicked and told police they planned on raising the tigers themselves. Just a few months ago, the mastermind behind the seizure,…
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New moves to criminalise cannabis shrugged off by Anutin
Amid moves to walk back the legalisation of cannabis, Minister of Public Health Anutin Charnvirakul shrugged off the attempt to criminalise the herb again. Anutin, who also serves as deputy prime minister, says that the debate over cannabis is decided and done. Opponents of legalisation are pushing for cannabis to be reclassified as a Type 5 narcotic, which would be…
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House fire kills family of 3 and 12 pets in central Thailand
A blazing fire engulfed a house in Pathum Thani province in central Thailand last night killing a couple, their one year old child, and 12 pets. At 1am today, officers from Thanya Buri Police Station were informed of a house fire in Pruksa Village Khlong 8 in Thanya Buri district. Police, firefighters, and rescue workers from the Por Teck Thung…
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Joe Ferrari revealed to have 1.3 billion baht in assets
By now, it is well known that disgraced and murderous Pol Col Thitisan “Joe Ferrari” Utthanaphon amassed a fortune in luxury cars and suspicious wealth. But today, the National Anti-Corruption Commission put a price tag on it: 1.3 billion baht. The staggering net worth was announced as the NACC argues a court appeal should be allowed to confiscate and liquidate his…
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Rare Asian golden cat spotted in northeast Thailand
Yesterday, Phu Khieo Wildlife Sanctuary posted photos on Facebook of a rare Asian golden cat spotted strolling through a road in Chaiyaphum province in northeast Thailand. In the Thai language, the Asian golden cat is called Suea Fai (Fire Tiger). The species is listed as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species due to habitat loss and…
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Locals queue to get access to their homes during APEC meeting
Residents and workers close to the APEC meeting location, Queen Sirikit National Convention Centre (QSNCC), queued up at Lumphini Police Station yesterday to get official passes to get access to the area. Yesterday was the last day Lumphini Police Station issued passes to residents or those who work in the area. Motorcycle taxis, taxi drivers, and food delivery riders were…
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Wrong spelling of ‘Welcom’ spotted on APEC banners
Thailand has made great efforts to ensure this week’s Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meeting goes smoothly, unfortunately, a double gaff by one of the government departments has left the nation red-faced. Dignitaries, VIPs, and visitors to the APEC Summit yesterday were greeted by banners along the Chalong Rat Expressway which read “Welcom to APEC 2022.” But that’s not all. If…
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Small earthquake shakes Chiang Rai in northern Thailand
A small earthquake struck along the Thai – Myanmar border in the Chiang Rai province in northern Thailand in the early hours of this morning, according to the Meteorological Department. No injuries or damages have been reported. At 3.38am, the department‘s Earthquake Surveillance Division reported that a 3.2 magnitude earthquake with a depth of 3 kilometres occurred in the Mae Salong…
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Thai FDA warns against drinking erectile dysfunction coffee
Thailand’s Food and Drug Administration (FDA) warned the public against consuming “Gomax Coffee,” a product advertised as treating erectile dysfunction. The FDA said consuming the coffee risks blindness and heart failure. Today, the FDA reported the results of their product testing on “Gomax Coffee” – serial number 122046610023 – produced by PY Intergroup Col, Ltd., in Nonthaburi province and distributed…
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Police arrest man for sexually assaulting two street dogs in Pattaya, Thailand
A Thai man was arrested and detained for sexually assaulting two dogs last night in Pattaya, Chon Buri province, eastern Thailand. Officers from Nong Prue Police Station received a call from a warehouse security guard who said a drunk man was “committing indecent acts” on a dog near the entrance of Soi Nong Mai Kaen 12 in Pattaya’s Nong Prue…
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SpiceJet launches new direct flight between Thailand and India
Budget Indian airline SpiceJet launched direct flights between Pune in India and Bangkok in Thailand operating four days per week. SpiceJet also flies directly from Bangkok to Delhi and Kolkata. A Boeing 737 will operate the Pune – Bangkok service on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays, and Sundays. Flight SG 82 will depart from the sprawling Indian city of Pune, just south of…
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Over 200 outlaw motorcycle riders arrested in Phetchabun
More than 200 touring motorcycle riders on a philanthropic mission to help poor schoolchildren were arrested while travelling in the north-central province of Phetchabun after they broke several traffic laws and caused a public nuisance. The altruistic group, called the No Shower Trip (ทริปน้ำไม่อาบ), revealed they gathered to ride to a school in a rural area and deliver classroom equipment…
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Airlines ask passengers to arrive early for flights during APEC Summit in Bangkok
Passengers flying out of Don Mueang Airport or Suvarnabhumi Airport between November 14-20 should arrive earlier than usual to facilitate delays caused by the APEC Summit which will be held in Bangkok this week. Nok Air requests that passengers arrive at least three hours ahead of their departure time for international flights and two hours ahead of their scheduled departure…
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Immigration cracks down on illegal foreigners ahead of APEC
With the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Summit getting underway, the Immigration Bureau is increasing security at all international airports in Thailand. The crackdown has already netted several foreign scammers hiding out within the kingdom. They are vowing increased scrutiny of those entering the country and a closer watch over suspicious foreigners who are already here. Immigration authorities have already blocked…
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Thailand’s water buffalo raising declared as global agricultural heritage system
Raising water buffalo at the Thale Noi Waterfowl Park in the southern province of Pattalung has been declared a Global Important Agricultural Heritage System (GIAHS) by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). The Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives proposed a water buffalo raising system at the Thale Noi Waterfowl to the FAO in October last year.…
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PM calls on Thai citizens to help APEC delegates have a smooth summit
Thailand’s Prime Minister is calling on Thais to help APEC delegates have a smooth summit by being good hosts. Prayut Chan-o-cha says the kingdom is ready to host the special summit on November 18. According to Thai PBS World, Prayut asked all parties to ensure orderliness throughout the summit and its related meetings. “This is an event of national importance.”…
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Thai baht soars against US dollar
The volatile Thai baht made a fierce comeback against the weakening US dollar, soaring to 35.93 against the greenback over the weekend. Just a few weeks ago, the baht depreciated to 38.35 against the dollar. At the end of September, the Thai baht plunged to 38 against the US dollar for the first time in 16 years amid aggressive interest…
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VIDEO: Thai husband chases wife and male friend in car, car crashes
A Thai husband chased his wife and her male friend in his car on Friday, and the wife and friend ended up crashing. The incident happened in the central Chachoengsao Province. The Thai husband, 42 year old “A,” said he secretly installed a GPS in his wife’s mobile phone. A then saw that his wife, 33 year old “Ying,” was…
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Russian tourist drowns in Phuket, Thailand
A Russian tourist drowned yesterday morning while swimming at Karon Beach on the west coast of Phuket island in southern Thailand. At 9.20am, lifeguards at Karon Beach called the Karon Municipality Rescue Foundation and informed them that a tourist had lost consciousness and did not have a pulse. The rescue team arrived and gave him CPR but it was not…
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Fire guts abandoned Pattaya sports club
A fire gutted an abandoned Pattaya sports club on Saturday. The huge blaze destroyed the Pattaya Land and House Village in Chon Buri’s Bang Lamung district. Firefighters took about half an hour to put out the flames. Most of the objects in the one-storey club were destroyed, but luckily there were no injuries. Firefighters said the blaze was believed to…
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Young travellers spend locally, raise tourism awareness
While Thailand has based their tourism strategy solely on attracting wealthy, mostly older tourists, an official with Tourism Australia has cautioned the world not to underestimate the value of young travellers. At the 2022 World Travel Market in London, the regional general manager for the UK and Northern Europe of Tourism Australia spoke about the importance of young backpackers. She…
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Cannabis flower bud now a controlled substance with restrictions
The walk-backs have begun for the unrestricted cannabis swell in Thailand. In a new edict coming into effect today, the Ministry of Public Health has tightened the rules on who can grow and sell cannabis, and where. The new edict, already published in the Royal Gazette making it official, now supersedes the original announcement legalising and decriminalising cannabis on June…
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4am curfew proposal protested by drunk driver victims
Entertainment venue and nightlife operators are fervently pushing for a 4am closing time and have gained support from many key government officials. But a protest outside Government House pushed back against a later curfew, fueled by victims of drunk drivers and a coalition of anti-drink driving activists. The 4am curfew extension is expected to be officially proposed to the Cabinet…
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