News
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5 hidden healthcare costs in Thailand and how to avoid them
Thailand's healthcare system is affordable and supported by the Universal Health Coverage (UHC) scheme, offering essential services to most citizens. However, hidden healthcare costs can surprise patients and lead to unexpected expenses. These include specialist fees, insurance gaps, emergency services,...
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Reward offered for alleged Phuket tour company fraudster
PHUKET: A 10,000-baht reward has been put on the head of a man who left hundreds of tourists stranded on their holiday, and is now wanted for allegedly defrauding a Phuket tour company of about 1.5 million baht. Peerapat ‘Deer’ Singhon, 25, was working as a freelance sales representative for Phuket Diamond Tours as he sold extraordinarily cheap holiday packages…
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Canadian tourists rescued after speedboat capsizes
PHUKET: Two Canadian tourists were safely rescued after their speedboat capsized off Krabi yesterday afternoon. The boat overturned near Koh Dang and Hang Nak Cape, to the west of the tourist-popular beach resort town of Ao Nang. The two tourists and their Thai driver were safely rescued by a nearby fishing boat. “We were fishing around Koh Dang, and a…
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Phuket beach wedding nightmare as couple’s plans bounced
PHUKET: There are no solutions for a distraught wedding couple who already booked everything for a beach wedding before discovering through a Phuket Gazette story (click here) that such ceremonies were banned on the island, confirmed Vice Governor Somkiet Sangkaosutthirak. “We’ve a small beach wedding planned for the end of March. When we paid deposits three weeks ago, nobody warned…
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Air strike kills at least 40 at Yemen camp for displaced
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Air strike kills at least 40 at Yemen camp for displaced Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: An air strike killed at least 40 people at a camp for displaced people in north Yemen on Monday, humanitarian workers said, in an attack which apparently targeted nearby Houthi…
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Human trafficking to become national priority in bid to avoid sanctions
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Human trafficking to become national priority in bid to avoid sanctions The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: The suppression of human trafficking will be made a national priority on Friday to avoid the risk of Thailand being downgraded under an international protocol against trafficking, Deputy Prime…
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Prayut promises to exercise absolute power ‘constructively’
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Prayut promises to exercise absolute power ‘constructively’ The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Prime Minister Gen Prayut Chan-o-cha yesterday promised to exercise his powers under Article 44 of the provisional charter “in a constructive manner” – an apparent bid to allay concerns over a new order…
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Germanwings crash pilot had been treated for suicidal tendencies
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Germanwings crash pilot had been treated for suicidal tendencies Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: The German pilot suspected of deliberately crashing a plane in the French Alps last week was treated for suicidal tendencies years ago before he received his pilot’s license, German prosecutors said on…
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Elephants banned from Nikki Beach Club Phuket following firestorm
PHUKET: Nikki Beach Club Phuket has vowed to stop granting requests for elephants at its parties, following public outcry about photographs surfacing of a baby elephant being ridden by patrons at the club. The pictures of the baby elephant being paraded around the club sparked a firestorm of negative reactions on various social media sites, such as Facebook and Twitter.…
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Phuket man killed in motorbike crash with parked 18-wheeler
PHUKET: A man died after crashing his motorbike into an 18-wheeled truck parked near Siam Niramit on the bypass road yesterday afternoon. At the scene, police found the body of Warodom Withayanithidilok, 25, with a broken neck and injuries to his face, said Maj Rachan Punwai of the Phuket City Police. The visor of Mr Warodom’s helmet was completely shattered…
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Opinion: Help tourists discover true Thainess
PHUKET: The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) recently launched a multi-million-baht tourism campaign to lure foreign visitors to the Land of Smiles under the banner ‘Discover Thainess’. What they did not do is explain what “Thainess” is before unleashing their latest marketing ploy. A catchy campaign and slogan with so much potential was immediately lost in translation. Tourists new to…
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Phuket fighters score gold at national youth games
PHUKET: Youngsters from Phuket won gold in seven competitions at the 31st National Youth Games, held in Chanthaburi last week. Thammawat Wongcharoenyot, president of Phuket Sports Association of Thailand Phuket office, was proud of the squad’s performance, especially in the martial arts events. “Phuket won 39 medals this year: 7 gold, 10 silver and 22 bronze. Now Phuket is ranked…
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Finance: Drop in oil prices can be a good thing
PHUKET: When it comes to investing, many make it more complicated than it actually is. What I try to do is use common sense and simplify the process. The two big factors driving global markets right now are central banks and the drop in oil prices. Banks have been pumping trillions of dollars into the global financial system ever since…
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Germanwings crash pilot was psychiatric patient, planned big gesture
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Germanwings crash pilot was psychiatric patient, planned big gesture Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: The co-pilot suspected of deliberately crashing an airliner, killing 150 people, had told his girlfriend he was planning a spectacular gesture so “everyone will know my name”, a German daily said on…
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Fighting and air strikes across Yemen; dialogue remains distant
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Fighting and air strikes across Yemen; dialogue remains distant Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Yemeni fighters loyal to the Saudi-backed President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi clashed with Iranian-allied Houthi fighters on Sunday in Aden, the absent leader’s last major foothold in the country. Hadi loyalists in the…
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Major 7.7 quake strikes off Papua New Guinea, tsunami warning issued
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – World news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Major 7.7 quake strikes off Papua New Guinea, tsunami warning issued Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: A major earthquake with a magnitude 7.7 struck off Papua New Guinea on Monday, official monitors said, and a tsunami warning was issued soon after. The epicenter of the 33km…
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Yingluck defends record on human trafficking, fishing ‘slaves’
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Yingluck defends record on human trafficking, fishing ‘slaves’ The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Former prime minister Yingluck Shinawatra yesterday defended her administration after Prime Minister General Prayut Chan-o-cha claimed that it did nothing to solve human trafficking or forced labour on trawlers. Yingluck posted a…
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Half-buried body of British national found on Phuket beach
PHUKET: Locals discovered the half-buried body of a British national on Nai Yang Beach this morning. The fully clothed body of Simon Lian Hua Soh, 67, was still partially covered in sand when rescue workers and police arrived at the scene. “We believe that he died about 10 hours before he was discovered. There was no sign of a struggle,”…
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![Expert fears Phuket touts feeding meth to slow lorises [video] | Thaiger](https://thethaiger.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/1_201532814735855_MJaHOSbtiFjelOfaruqgPAIKPhIyuEIBMLmZyqZM_jpeg.jpeg)
Expert fears Phuket touts feeding meth to slow lorises [video]
PHUKET: Police are looking into a wildlife expert’s concerns that slow lorises being touted in Phuket and other popular tourist destinations in Thailand are being drugged with methamphetamine or another stimulant. “My officers will be keeping an eye out for slow loris touts. After we make an arrest, we will be questioning them about whether or not they are drugging…
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Domestic tourist safe after longtail boat capsizes in Krabi
PHUKET: Five domestic tourists were safely rescued after their longtail boat capsized in Krabi yesterday afternoon. At about 3:40pm the longtail boat, Jaosapandaman, flipped over while taking the tourists from Koh Hong to Ao Nang. “Near the area of Saphanlek, close to Klong Muang Beach, the waves were too big. A wave broke the motor free from the boat, and…
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Drunk Australian perp caught pocketing prawns in Phuket
PHUKET: A drunk Australian tourist was arrested for stealing two tiger prawns from a seafood restaurant in Patong yesterday. “The man walked through our restaurant and took two prawns. Our staff asked him to put them back, but he refused, and then disappeared onto Soi Bangla,” 36-year-old Tropica restaurant manager, Aruni Mahasena, told the Patong Police. After receiving the report,…
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F1: Sepang Storms
PHUKET: Well, my forecast for the Australian GP was on the money: Mercedes, Mercedes, Sebastian Vettel. In Melbourne, the Mercedes were 30 seconds ahead of the best of the rest. The real problem is that I believe that their engines had been tuned-down, and that there was another 60 seconds in reserve. Now that is dominance – and it’s not…
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Phuket’s Eva Beach responds to probe into legality of beachfront resort
PHUKET: The management of The Eva Group has issued a statement in response to an inspection carried out earlier this year by a chief judge and a team of experts into an upscale property project under construction in Rawai. Tawatchai Sontiwanit, chief judge of the recently formed environmental division of the regional Administrative Court responsible for Phuket, led the inspection…
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Video Report: Phuket United unveil 2015 Futsal League lineup
PHUKET: The island’s sole team in the national Futsal League, Phuket United FC, unveiled their squad for 2015 Futsal League lineup, which gets underway on Saturday. The team, unveiled by Phuket Vice Governor Somkiet Sangkaosuttirak last weekend, includes two Brazilians: 26-year-old defender Francisco Da Silva Soares, and Jackson Santos, 29, who plays pivot. Headed by coach Chalermpong Saengdee, just 27…
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German tourist recovering after propeller slashes head
PHUKET: A German tourist who was struck in the head by the propeller of a longtail boat off Karon Beach on Wednesday (story here) is recovering well, a tourism official has confirmed to the Phuket Gazette. Santi Pawai, director of the Ministry of Tourism and Sports (MOTS) Phuket office, visited the injured tourist, 54-year-old Rudi Dann, at Bangkok Hospital Phuket…
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No Phuket tsunami warning after 4.9 earthquake off Sumatra
PHUKET: The National Disaster Warning Center has not issued a tsunami warning or alert after an earthquake measuring 4.9 in magnitude struck west of Sumatra this morning. “We are aware of the earthquake, and a tsunami warning has not been issued,” confirmed Trakul Thotham, director of the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation (DDPM) Region 8 office, based in Phuket.…
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Phuket expat murder charge: Police to hand Pendlebury case to prosecutor in late April
PHUKET: Patong Police expect to hand over their case against Mark Pendlebury, a long-time expat accused of murdering a Thai nightclub bouncer on March 11 (story here), by the end of April. “I think I will be able to compile all evidence and complete the investigation by late April. Then, we will handle to case to public prosecutor,” Lt Col…
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Opinion: Save and protect our fellow earth dwellers
Wanchai Supanaus, 56, from Nakhon Sri Thammarat, is the head of the Phang Nga Wildlife Nursery Station. He graduated from Phrae Forestry School in 1979, where he earned a vocational certificate for forestry. He has been head of the station for 15 years. Here, he discusses the illegal trade of touting protected species, which is prevalent in Phuket and other…
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Opinion: Keeping Phuket’s guns out of range
PHUKET: The Phuket Gazette joins the rest of the island in extending its condolences to the family of young Scotsman Liam Colven, who died at a newly-opened shooting range in Thalang from a gunshot to the head last weekend (story here). News of the death has resonated in the social media as the story touches on so many relevant issues…
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Slain insurgents were plotting attacks: Isoc
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Slain insurgents were plotting attacks: Isoc The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Following Wednesday’s operation in which four suspected insurgents were killed and 22 others arrested in Pattani’s Thung Yang Dang district, the Internal Security Operations Command (Isoc)’s 4th Region Front Command yesterday told the press…
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Democracy activist arrested, charged with violating junta’s order
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Democracy activist arrested, charged with violating junta’s order The Nation / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Pro-democracy activist Pansak Srithep was arrested early yesterday and charged with three offences, including violating the order of the military’s ruling National Council for Peace and Order forbidding political gatherings of more…
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