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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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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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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Low hanging cable flings a man off his motorbike – VIDEO
A low hanging electricity cable caught a man by the neck and dragged him off his speeding motorbike in Khon Kaen, north eastern Thailand. The rider, who also was wearing a full face helmet, was able to bounce back, repair his broken bike, and continued on his journey. The footage was captured by a security camera at a car maintenance…
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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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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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Nok Air announces domestic flights from Korat to Chiang Mai, Phuket, and Hat Yai
The low-cost carrier Nok Air has been given the “okay” to run round-trip domestic flights from the Isaan province Nakhon Ratchasima, also known as Korat, to the popular tourist destinations Chiang Mai, Phuket, and Hat Yai. The Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand is allowing the airline to offer seven flights per week to each destination starting in the second quarter…
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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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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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Korat has 7 Covid-19 clusters
Seven schools in Korat, a Northeastern province, have Covid-19 cluster infections. Buayai Technical College is the most recent school to be hit. 19 students there tested positive, and teachers and students are now doing online learning until February 9. Students and staff took ATK tests on Saturday, and there were no new infections found. Health officials are monitoring the Covid-19…
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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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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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Government allocates 851 million baht for organic farming and projects
Thailand’s government will give 851 million baht to organic farming projects. 552 million will go to projects on production and management. 176.8 million will go to projects on research and development, innovation, database development and knowledge transfer to farmers. 122.2 million will go to projects improving marketing and standards. An agriculture ministry spokesperson said in the past five years, around…
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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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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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Truck with 20 tonnes of smuggled pork caught at Laos border
With pork prices skyrocketing and shortages looming, people are turning to chicken until it began being affected too, then crocodile meat, while many merchants call for an increase in the importation of pork products, and accusations fly of companies hoarding frozen pork. Now, instead of the more common busts of trucks full of meth pills or marijuana, police at the…
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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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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 threatening 3 million baht lawsuit for bad review named
More details have emerged as the hotel in Khao Yai in Nakhon Ratchasima has held tight in their vow to sue a woman who left a slightly negative review for 3 million baht. The names of the resort and the woman involved were made more public as a lawyer representing the woman gave details about the incident. Sittra Biebangkerd said…
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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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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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First Test & Go land entry will remain closed due to Omicron
Just a few days after confirming plans to open the land border between Thailand and Laos in Nong Khai tomorrow, the reopening was tabled indefinitely for fears of the highly transmissible Omicron variant. The cheerily-named Thai-Lao Friendship Bridge that links the 2 countries will remain closed for the time being to prevent the spread of Covid-19, having been planned as…
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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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Security forces sent to Burmese refugee camp in Tak following riot
A riot broke out at a camp for Burmese refugees Tuesday night and security reinforcements were sent to Mae La refugee camp in Tambon Mae La, where officials have yet to get access to roughly 40,000 Myanmar nationals, to avert another possible furore. Rangers, border patrol officers, local officials, and territorial defence volunteers are stationed at the camp where refugees…
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Man arrested for allegedly stealing 50,000 baht in railway property
A 51 year old man in northern Thailand’s Phrae province was arrested on Tuesday for allegedly stealing rail track screws and plates valued at around 50,000 baht. The man was detained by the Railway Police Division in Den Chai district and was charged with theft of official property. Railway authorities had been curious if someone was constantly stealing the screws…
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