News
Stay up-to-date with the latest news from across Thailand and beyond with The Thaiger. Our dedicated team brings you breaking news, in-depth analysis, and exclusive stories from this stunning part of the world, covering a diverse range of topics, including local politics, business, culture, and tourism. Keep yourself informed about the Kingdom’s rich history, stunning landscapes, and thriving expat communities, as well as updates on events, attractions, and transportation.
The Thaiger is your essential resource for staying connected with Thailand’s captivating blend of tradition and modernity. To remain in the loop with the country’s most trusted news source, subscribe to our newsletter and follow us on social media.
-
Sponsored
Black Friday starts now - Grab 10% off your health insurance plan
If you’re an expat living in Thailand, you’ve likely experienced the complexity of navigating healthcare abroad. With Black Friday rolling in, it’s the perfect time to secure a health insurance plan that provides peace of mind and a safety net...
-
TOT offers cut in phone installation fee
PHUKET: Residents of Thailand – Phuket included – have a chance this month to get a new phone line for 2,000 baht less than usual. To celebrate its 46th anniversary, the Telephone Organization of Thailand (TOT) will give a discount until the end of March on the installation fee for a fixed-line telephone. The installation fee has been reduced from…
-
Fire destroys shops in Kata
KATA: Three small stores across from Kata Beach Resort were destroyed by fire yesterday morning. Pol Capt Chana Sootthimat of the Chalong Police Station told the Gazette that the fire started at about 9 am in a clothing store made of bamboo and galvanized iron. The fire quickly spread to an adjoining optical store and then further down to a…
-
Boy, six, drowns in channel
NAI HARN: Thanat Massatool, a six-year-old boy from Koh Kaew, drowned in a water channel near Nai Harn Beach on Sunday. Pol Maj Sanae Panmee of Chalong Police Station said the accident took place at the south end of Nai Harn beach, where the channel connects Nong Harn pond and Nai Harn Beach. The boy and his family had been…
-
Tourist killed by boat propeller
KURABURI: A 40-year-old German tourist was killed by a boat propeller while snorkeling off Koh Tachai, Phang Nga Province, on Thursday. Pol Lt Col Narongyot Aunhabandit, deputy superintendent of Kuraburi District Police Station, told the Gazette that the tourist, whom he named as Beatrix Hannelore Miczuga, was on holiday in Phuket when she and friends decided to take a day…
-
Paiboon wins Senate seat
PHUKET: Paiboon Upatising won election on Saturday as Phuket’s representative in Thailand’s Senate. K. Paiboon received 51,059 votes, just 3,290 votes ahead of Chaiwat Narukatpichai, managing director of the Phuket Arcadia Hotel and Resort. Trailing in third place was Dr Sirinit Ratanadilok Na Phuket, with only 8,435 votes. Of Phuket’s 168,356 eligible voters, 132,801 (or 78.86%) voted in the election,…
-
FantaSea to build theme park in Langkawi
PHUKET: Pin Kewpaisal, president and CEO of Phuket Fantasea, has revealed that Dr Mahathir Mohamed, Prime Minister of Malaysia, has asked him to build a new theme park in Langkawi, and he has agreed. In an interview with Tansettakit newspaper, K. Pin said that he had already had two conferences with Dr Mahathir to discuss the Prime Minister’s plan. K.…
-
Dulwich students hospitalized
KOH KAEW: Two students from Dulwich International College ended up in Phya Thai Hospital this morning with serious diarrhea after attending a dinner party at the school last night. The dinner was part of the festivities surrounding the FOBISSEA sports tournament, which this year took place at Dulwich, and which involved students from all over Asia. Dr Jesada Chaikunrat, preventive…
-
Con men pick the wrong target
PHUKET TOWN: Two alleged con artists from Africa were arrested late Tuesday night for trying to pull one of the world’s best-known con-tricks – the black-paper-into-cash scam. Unfortunately, their target was a cop who, instead of taking them up on their offer, took them downtown. Pol Lt Akanich Darnpitaksart, deputy inspector at Phuket Town Police Station, said 30-year-old Tchouffang Moukeumen,…
-
Masked men rob grocery store
PHUKET: Three robbers, all wearing ghost masks, robbed a grocery store off Chao Fa Nai Rd near Suanluang Park last night, taking 67,000 baht in cash and gold jewelry belonging to the owner and his family. Pol Maj Winai Kongkaew of the Phuket Town Police Station said that Witoon Pinta, 35, the owner of the grocery store in a camp…
-
City bus service “to start next month’
PHUKET TOWN: Phuket Town’s first real bus service – originally scheduled to start in May last year and then postponed to January this year – is expected finally to be up and running some time in April. Introduction of the service has been delayed because PB Holdings, the bus operator, was not able to find 26 buses of the right…
-
Death sparks “dangerous road’ warning
KATA: Police have warned about the dangers of the road outside the Marine Cottage resort after a 22-year-old motorcyclist, Supit Kaminkaew, died there on Sunday afternoon, after she was run over by a bus. Supit is the fifth person to die on that stretch of road in the past few months. Pol Capt Chana Sootthimat of Chalong Police Station said…
-
Schmid proves he’s top mountain biker
PHUKET: Switzerland’s Marco Schmid, 28, stormed to victory in Sunday’s 30-km Muang Chaofa Mountain Bike Race, repeating his victory a week ago in Surat Thani over Thailand’s Satit Ruanpae. Third was Direc Pamornchat. Satit finished in one hour, 18 minutes and 19 seconds, seven minutes and 10 seconds behind Schmid’s 1:11:09. Direc clocked 1:20:22. The super-fit Schmid admitted he could…
-
PhoneNET cards offer up to 30pc discount
PHUKET: Between now and June 30, holders of PhoneNET cards in Phuket can take advantage of a new discount of up to 30% on calls to 27 countries around the world. Worawit Worapibulpong, chief of the office of telecommunication services at the Communication Authority of Thailand (CAT) in Phuket Town, explained that the 500-baht cards may be used with every…
-
12 die in bus crash
KANCHANABURI (AFP) – Twelve Thais were killed and eight seriously hurt when a tour bus traveling to a Buddhist temple near the border with Burma plunged into a deep ravine, police said today. The bus, carrying 45 mainly elderly people from Bangkok, left the road and plunged 50 meters before coming to a stop in Kanchanaburi province’s Sangkla district early…
-
CAT to hike prices for EMS delivery
PHUKET: The Communication Authority of Thailand (CAT) is to raise the charges for domestic deliveries by its Express Mail Service (EMS) with effect from Wednesday. For mail weighing less than 20 grams, the fee will be increased from 15 to 20 baht. For mail between 20-100 grams, the fee will be increased from 17 baht to 25 baht. For those…
-
Ten arrested for illegal immigration scam
PHUKET AIRPORT: Two Malaysian women, a Singaporean woman and a Thai man were arrested yesterday at Phuket International Airport for involvement in an attempt to sneak six Chinese illegal immigrants out of Thailand and into Singapore. The six Chinese were also caught. Pol Lt Col Annop Suwanchatri, an immigration inspector at Phuket International Airport, said there were actually 12 people…
-
11 die in helicopter crash
KANCHANABURI (AFP) – A Thai army helicopter crashed in western Kanchanaburi province today, killing at least 11 people, including seven senior officers, an army spokesman said. Maj Gen Sanchai Rachtawan, commander of Ninth Army division, was among the top army officers who died, along with two pilots and two technicians. Army Lt Gen Lertrat Ratanavanich said the aircraft went down…
-
Chinese cadres head for Phuket
PHUKET: After the brief holiday enjoyed by China’s President, Jiang Zemin, in Phuket last year, it seems that the island is becoming a vacation choice for senior communist cadres from the People’s Republic. Tomorrow sees the arrival of 17 communist officials, led by the president of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, Li Tieying, who is also a member of…
-
Industrialists may become more “eco-friendly’
PHUKET TOWN: Wiboolchai Na Ranong, managing director of Toyota Pearl Co Ltd, was elected on Tuesday as the new president of the Phuket chapter of the Federation of Thai Industries, and immediately pledged to steer the chapter’s members toward being more eco-friendly. After being elected, K. Wiboolchai said that his first priority is to get more people, especially businesspeople in…
-
Microsoft apologizes for Bangkok sex slur
BANGKOK (AFP): Microsoft has apologized to Thailand for describing Bangkok as a commercial sex center in the Deluxe 2000 version of its Encarta Encylopedia CD. “I regret any misrepresentation that the Encarta segment may have caused,” said Robert Bach, vice-president of Microsoft’s Home and Retail Division, in a letter to local media. “As soon as we were made aware of…
-
Soldiers kill student after row over girl
PHUKET TOWN: Two Thai soldiers and a friend were arrested last night and charged with the murder of a Rajabhat Phuket Institute student earlier in the evening after an argument over a girl. The student, 23-year-old Sakda “Tuk” Thongsongsri from Trang, was riding his motorcycle past the Muang Mai auto dealership showrooms on Thepkrasattri Rd at 8:30 pm with his…
-
Banana forager finds skull
KARON: A local man looking for wild bananas in woods to the east of Karon yesterday afternoon found something rather less appetizing: a human skull. Pol Maj Thanate Poungmanee of Chalong Police Station told the Gazette that the man immediately reported what he had found to officials of Tambon Karon, who in turn reported the discovery to Chalong Police Station.…
-
Dragonflies fell All-Stars in fund-raiser
PHUKET TOWN: Mang Por Lor Kluen – “Wave-Playing Dragonfly” – beat the All-Star Actors 3-2 on Saturday in front of a large crowd at a special fund-raising soccer match between the two teams of Thai celebrities. Pop singer “Teh” Utane Prommin took the first goal for the All-Stars just before half time at Surakul Stadium in Phuket Town. The Dragonflies…
-
Japanese tourist stabbed four times
PHUKET TOWN: A Japanese tourist who wanted to call his family – to tell them he had arrived safely in Phuket – was robbed and stabbed four times just after midnight yesterday, on his way to make the call. Pol Maj Adul Nirapai of Phuket Town Police Station said that Terai Osamu, 27, came to Phuket with friends and was…
-
Runaway snakes cause chaos in Soi Katoey
PATONG: Tourists and denizens of the night scrambled for safety when a bunch of snakes got loose in Soi Katoey, off Soi Bangla, in the early hours of yesterday. The snakes got loose after a team from the Phuket Provincial Forestry Office, led by Sumran Cheanloy, the office’s chief, and accompanied by police, launched raids on bar areas in Patong,…
-
Grass fire frightens Chuanchuen Lagoon residents
KOH KAEW: A fire at Chuanchuen Lagoon that shook the up-market community two days ago was just grass burning, firefighters said today. Pol Maj Amnuay Kraiwootthinan of Phuket Town Police Station said he received a phone call at 8:30 pm on Wednesday from an unidentified person reporting that there was a big fire burning at the old deserted tin factory…
-
Parliament acts to drive out evil spirits
BANGKOK (AFP) – Authorities held a multi-faith exorcism in parliament today to drive out evil spirits believed to be responsible for a recent spate of deaths among members of parliament. Since elections in November 1996, eight of the 393 MPs have died in accidents or of natural causes while 11 more have resigned. Yesterday, an MP from the ruling Democrats…
-
OrBorTor member held for theft of cigarettes
PHUKET TOWN: The police in Phuket Town were astonished when they managed to arrest three burglars who broke into the Phuket Provincial Cooperative Office’s store on Yaowarat Rd last Saturday and stole 59 boxes of Thai cigarettes worth about 897,000 baht. It wasn’t the theft that surprised them, nor the speed with which they caught the robbers – two on…
-
Health Office in hygiene drive
PHUKET: In a bid to raise the standards of local restaurants and food stalls, the Phuket Provincial Health Office has begun inspecting them and awarding those that meet its standards with a ‘Clean Food, Good Taste’ sign and certificate. Dr Boonrieng Chuchaisangrat, Chief of the Health Office, explained that Phuket is still very competitive in the regional tourism industry, and…
-
Marine police capture fuel smugglers
PHUKET: Six Thai fuel smugglers were arrested in the Andaman Sea on Saturday afternoon and 110,000 liters of low-grade diesel, worth about 330,000 baht, was seized from their vessel, the Fakthong 47. Pol Gen Narongwit Thaithong, Deputy Commissioner of the Royal Thai Police, said that the modified fishing vessel was stopped near Surin Island, 21 nautical miles off the coast…
Don't forget to check out some other things to do in Thailand - get help starting a business or finding a job in Thailand, buy Thailand property, rent a yacht or book a medical procedure worldwide.