Northern Thailand News
Northern Thailand news, Chiang Mai news, business, tourism, and culture—stay updated with breaking stories, local events, and travel insights from Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Pai, and beyond. Get the latest from The Thaiger, your trusted Northern Thailand news source.
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Thailand’s warm weather, low cost of living, and good healthcare attract many long-term expats, including retirees and remote workers. Life here feels easy and affordable, but medical costs can be high if something goes wrong. Private hospitals are popular because...
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Agency reports deteriorating air quality in Thailand’s North and Northeast
Air quality in Thailand’s North and Northeast is deteriorating mostly due to farmers burning waste, and villagers lighting fires in forests. Thai PBS reports that the air quality “may” pose a risk to people’s health. The country’s Geo-Informatics and Space Technology Development Agency said that on Tuesday there were 1,060 ‘hot spots’ across Thailand. 110 of the hotspots were in…
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Northeastern deputy principal accused of flirting with female students
Yesterday and today, a Facebook page posted chat screenshots of the deputy principal of a Northeastern school offering to change a female student’s grades and buy her a phone if she visited him at his house. The names of the man and the school are not mentioned, but a hashtag trended on social media about the school’s colours and location,…
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Monks and novices caught drinking alcohol and involved in an intimate relationship
Thai social media has featured a video showing 8 monks and novices were celebrating and drinking alcohol inside their temple accommodation. Another video and a screenshot of the conversation also indicated that the monk had an intimate relationship with the novice. The party was identified to be happening at the Nikom Kitiyaram temple in the northeast province of Ubon Ratchatani.…
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Army general and two others swindled over 43 million baht in fraud case
An army general and two other people were charged yesterday with colluding to defraud others. The three swindled over 43 million baht from two companies between December 2017 and August 2018. They offered the companies services that didn’t exist. One of these fake projects involved telling a firm they could land it a state contract by installing LED lights in…
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Rock formation in Mekong said to be where Buddha met Naga serpents
Now that the water level in the Mekong has dropped to just one metre deep, a rock formation can now be seen above water, and locals believe the rock has Buddha’s footprints. A Thai legend says Naga serpents invited Buddha to preach in their underwater palaces. The serpents then asked Buddha to leave his footprints at the mouth of the…
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Six police in Thailand’s Northeast allegedly demand money to release drug dealers
Six cops in Nakhon Phanom, a Northeastern province in Thailand, allegedly demanded a drug dealer to pay them money in exchange for releasing his accomplices. A Facebook page posted a photo of a man and a woman with a sack that had 200,000 methamphetamine pills in it, with an audio clip of a man who claimed to be a drug…
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Robbers shoot and kill customer in Northern Thailand gold shop
Three robbers fired bullets through a glass door of a gold shop yesterday in Tak, in Northern Thailand, killing one customer. The customer was a 30 year old man. He died after being rushed to the hospital. The robbers smashed another glass door of the shop with a hammer. They then smashed the showcases where the gold was being displayed.…
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Northeastern cave forced to close for a week after tourists test positive
Nakee Cave in Nakhon Phanom, a Northeastern province, will be closed until Thursday now that seven people who visited tested positive for Covid-19. This included tourists, and tour guides. Authorities might make exceptions for tourists who already booked air tickets, or have arrived at the site, who can try to get permission from authorities to enter. Authorities will then look…
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Isaan students support free contraceptive initiative, say schools should offer sex ed
Students in Thailand are welcoming moves from the government to promote safe sex and the use of contraceptives. Earlier this month, the National Health Security Office handed out birth control plans and, in April, they plan to give away free condoms to students 15 years old and above. The effort is aimed at prevent teen pregnancies as well as the…
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Vin Diesel doppelganger in Thailand drives car inspired by Fast and Furious
Thought you’d seen Vin Diesel driving around Thailand in a lookalike of the iconic black 1970 Dodge Charger from Fast and Furious? Your eyes may not have been that far off. There’s a Thai Vin Diesel ‘sort of’ lookalike living in Chiang Rai who drives a black (makeshift) Ford Mustang. In one photo he captioned “Win Diesel Thailand.” The man…
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Police in Northeast find almost 2 million meth pills after car flees checkpoint
Police in Khon Kaen, a Northeastern province in Thailand, found almost 2 million meth pills in a car that drove away from them right before they began to search it at a checkpoint. The police eventually caught up with the driver when he jumped out of the minivan and ran into a sugarcane plantation (these drug couriers ALWAYS run off…
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Thailand approves Sinovac and Sinopharm for 6 year olds and up
Thailand will now allow children aged six and older to get Sinovac and Sinopharm vaccines without adjusting the dosage. Between January 1 and February 2 this year, 13,600 kids 5-11 years old tested positive, a 6% increase from April to December 2021. The Thai Food and Drug Administration (TFDA), wants children aged 3-17 to be able to get the vaccines.…
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Kids aged 3-5 in one Northeastern school get exam points deducted if they cry
Kids aged three to five years old taking an entrance exam to one preschool in Maha Sarakham, a Northeastern province, get three points deducted from the exam if they cry during it. The school’s director told Thai PBS the policy was created to make sure the exam was fair because when some children cried, it distracted other children. The director…
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Rock in Naga Cave looks like mythical snake, drives up tourism in Bueng Kan
A giant rock in Naga Cave, located in the Bueng Kan province of Northeastern Thailand, has bumps that look like snake scales. The rock is said to look like Naga, a mythical serpent that Northeastern Thais believe brings rain to their crops. The rock is now drawing tourism to Bueng Kan, and 20 hotels in the Bueng Khong Long district…
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24 Myanmar job seekers arrested in northern province for illegal entry
Thailand’s border security remains tight to dissuade border crossers over Covid-19 outbreak fears. Yesterday, a total of 24 Myanmar nationals, including ethnic Shan people (or Tai Yai as they prefer), were arrested in the northern province of Phitsanulok for illegal entry. Following a tip, Thai immigration police and border authorities detected the 17 women and 7 men on their way…
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Controversy for Khao Yai National Park Chief over wild party
After a video surfaced showing a wild party with sexy girls in tiny outfits held in Khao Yai National Park, the Park Chief has been transferred while a full investigation is conducted. The party was held on January 26 and seemed to be in violation of both the Covid-19 control laws and the National Parks Act. The event was a…
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Soldiers in Chiang Mai seize drugs after gunfire exchange, suspects still at large
Three armed men in Chiang Mai near the Myanmar border opened fire on Thai soldiers on Wednesday night. The soldiers shot back, and after five minutes of shooting between the two sides, the gunmen ran into the jungle. The soldiers then searched the area and found 200,000 methamphetamine pills and 750 grams of heroin. The methamphetamine pills were wrapped in…
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3 men arrested on prostitution charges involving a 16 year old girl
In the Northeastern province of Yasothon, police arrested 3 men on several charges relating to selling a 16 year old girl for sex. Police tracked the 3 men down as part of a larger investigation from a previous suspect they had arrested on similar charges for underage prostitution involving another girl also aged 16. 3 men, aged 27, 32, and…
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Rangers find man’s body in Nakhon Ratchasima national park
Yesterday, park rangers found a man dead in Thap Lan National Park in Nakhon Ratchasima in Northeast Thailand, known as the Isaan. The ranger team was on patrol when they stopped to rest at a waterhole. They then found the man lying on the ground, looking as though he was sleeping. The team called the national park chief, who reported…
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Local farmers accused of setting 100 elephant traps near sanctuary
Officials from the Phu Luang Wildlife Sanctuary in Loei province filed a complaint with police about neighbouring villagers, accusing them of setting more than 100 elephant traps. The neighbours were alleged to have set the traps to protect their farms from elephants eating their crops. The sanctuary officials brought several of the elephant traps with them to the police as…
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Youtube star discovers new species of tarantula in Thailand
Wildlife Youtuber JoCho Sippawat made a wild discovery when, on one of his many outdoor expeditions in Thailand, he stumbled upon a tarantula species not previously known to humanity. The species, which scientists have officially named “Taksinus Bambus,” lives only in hollowed bamboo stems. JoCho discovered the species in a forest of Mae Tho, Mueang Tak district, Tak province, where…
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Storms in Northern Phayao province create a snowlike sight
“When it snows in Thailand” sounds like an alternative version of “when pigs fly”, a snappy way to say that something will never happen. But, photos in the Phu Kamyao district in the Phayao province in Northern Thailand show a thin layer of snow-like ice on the roads after heavy storms. The province sits on the Laos border and includes…
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19 year old arrested for allegedly smuggling 2 million methamphetamine pills
A 19 year old was arrested for alleged smuggling of more than 2 million methamphetamine pills to northeast Thailand’s Nong Khai province from the Mekong River on Saturday night. The suspect is identified as Phayu Phikhawong and was recruited for 300,000 baht to deliver 2,164,000 methamphetamine pills, known as “ya ba” meaning “crazy drug,” from Phon Phisai district in Nong…
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Bus driver who fled 2007 accident with multiple deaths finally arrested
A tour bus driver who fled a horrific accident in Nakhon Ratchasima that left multiple injuries and fatalities and that he was deemed at fault for in 2007 has finally been caught and arrested. The now 52 year old man was arrested in Bangkok for the crime of negligent driving that led to the accident on the Friendship Highway 15…
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Khao Yai hotel threatens 3 million baht lawsuit over negative review
It wouldn’t be the first time, but a Thai hotel is threatening to sue a customer over a negative review they left after their stay. The hotel, located in the northeastern province of Nakhon Ratchasima around the popular tourist destination of Khao Yai National Park, is threatening a 3 million baht lawsuit over a review where the past guest rated…
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North-east province closes schools, theatres and fitness facilities
Ubon Ratchathani’s Governor Pongrat Phiromrat has ordered all schools, cinemas, fitness clubs, gyms, sports stadiums and sports grounds to be closed until at least January 17. Ubon Ratchathani is in north east Thailand. For restaurants, only air conditioned venues will be allowed to provide take away food, unless there is ‘natural ventilation’. 329 new Covid infections have been reported in…
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Officials blame Kalasin bar for Omicron spread, poor disease prevention measures
The Department of Disease Control says the Kalasin couple who inadvertently sparked a cluster of Omicron infections visited 3 restaurant/bars unaware they were infected. Of those, “Bar K” has come in for some harsh criticism from DDC boss, Dr Opas Karnkawinpong. The Bangkok Post reports that the cluster has now spread to 248 patients across 12 provinces in the north…
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64 Omicron infections in Kalasin yesterday, rapid spread predicted
A doctor at Siriraj Hospital believes half of all new Covid-19 infections in January could be the Omicron variant. In Kalasin province, 64 new Omicron infections were found on Christmas Day as a pub and restaurant has seen the rapid spread of the new strain of the virus. A married couple visited on December 12, unaware that they had the…
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Provincial governor confirms 2 cases of Omicron variant in Khon Kaen
The north-eastern province of Khon Kaen has reported its first 2 cases of the Omicron Covid-19 variant. According to a Thai PBS World report, governor Somsak Jungtrakul confirmed the infections in a press statement yesterday. The governor has urged residents not to panic over the development, assuring them that strict disease control measures were in place. Addressing a media conference,…
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Soldier dies, another seriously injured, after plunging off cliff in northern Thailand
A soldier has died after falling from a cliff in the northern province of Tak yesterday, while on duty patrolling for drug traffickers. Another soldier has been seriously injured in the incident at the mountain of Doi Montha, in the district of Mae Sot. The Bangkok Post reports that army spokesman Sirichan Ngathong says military personnel from the Naresuan Force…
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