News
Thailand news, politics, business, crime, lifestyle, and tourism—stay updated with breaking news and in-depth analysis from Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Pattaya, and beyond. The Thaiger delivers the latest national news that matters.
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12Go introduces Japan Rail Passes to enhance travel accessibility for international travellers
For those who have travelled throughout Thailand, 12Go is a well-known provider of various trips, though the platform itself has a much wider reach. Ranging from buses to planes, 12Go is undoubtedly a leading booking platform for travel throughout the...
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“Unruly” Aussie woman kicked off flight from Thailand to Sydney
Cheers erupted from passengers when an “unruly” Australian woman was kicked off a Jetstar flight from Phuket to Sydney before take off on Sunday. The woman apparently lost it “because she wanted to sit by the window,” said one passenger. Jetstar confirmed that the woman was removed for being “disruptive and using abusive and inappropriate language.” “An unruly passenger was…
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Thai couple’s 1,000km, 20 hours Songkran motorcycle odyssey
A Thai couple travelled 20 hours on a motorbike and over 1,000 kilometres from Bangkok to their hometown in Pattani province in the south of Thailand before Songkran because all train tickets were fully booked and flights were too pricey for them. The woman, Nurfatihah, posted a video of the epic motorcycle journey she took to Pattani with her boyfriend…
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Study: Balinese monkeys use stones to get their rocks off
Monkeys in Thailand need to step up their game. A, er, handy new study of monkeys in Ubud, Bali discovered that local macaques monkeys frequently rub or tap themselves with stones as a form of masturbation. The study was published in this month’s academic journal Ethology (because publishing it elsewhere might get you on a sex offender registry) and showed…
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Thailand’s acting PM Prawit tells Thai police to clean their act up
Acting Prime Minister of Thailand Prawit Wongsuwan – aka “Big Pom” – has ordered an end to corruption within the Royal Thai Police (RTP). Big Pom has wasted no time stepping up to his temporary ministerial duties after Thailand’s Constitutional Court suspended Prayut Chan-o-cha from the position last week. Acting PM Prawit has taken centre stage in Thailand’s never-ending political…
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Paradon the dolphin no ‘brotherly burden’ for Thai marine centre
The dolphin found drowning off the coast of Thailand last month is on the mend says the director of a Thai marine resource centre but added it will probably take a year before he makes a full recovery. Fishermen found the sick Irrawaddy dolphin calf drowning in a tidal pool near Rayong on Friday, July 22, and alerted marine conservationists.…
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Marketing in Thailand as a Foreigner: Volume #1 The Legend Thai Ads
Sometimes, It’s Okay to Wear Socks and Sandals. Matching socks and sandals is a universal fashion faux pas, but it is more severe in Thailand. They keep you warm and cold-free during winter, but we never merge them with sandals or flip-flops because it is confusing when you live in a country where the equator is only 15 degrees below.…
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Get freebies and special offers with this app launched by Tourism Authority of Thailand
The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) and partners have launched a mobile application called the “TAGTHAi Pass,” designed to be a handy tool for tourists to make the most out of their stay in the kingdom. Tourists who download the free TAGTHAi application will benefit from various freebies and deals. Not to be confused with the renounced Thailand Pass, the…
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Anti-Corruption Deputy Secretary-General fired for corruption
In politics, the phrase “every accusation is a confession” is a common cry, but the irony may be too on the nose after the National Anti-Corruption Commission Deputy Secretary-General Prayad Puangchampa was fired for having amassed an unusual amount of wealth. The commission asserted that the massive wealth gathered should become the property of the state and be confiscated from…
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Thailand ‘tourist tax’ to come into effect next year
Starting next year, foreigners entering Thailand by plane will have to pay an entry fee of 300 baht. The “tourist tax” was originally intended to be imposed at the start of this year, but its implementation was delayed to give Thailand’s tourism industry a chance to recover from the pandemic. The fee will be introduced “next year,” according to Thailand’s…
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Thailand in talks with US to bring home ancient heirlooms
The Thai Deputy Government Spokesperson Rachada Dhnadirek last night revealed Thailand is in talks with the US to bring home three antique artefacts. Rachada made it known the US Department of Homeland Security is in negotiations with the Denver Art Museum for the return of the Srivijaya-era Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara, and two bronze statues of the Dvaravati period, from the 7th to…
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Fake policeman allegedly rapes, beats and imprisons 20 year old in central Thailand
Police yesterday arrested a 27 year old man in Nonthaburi province, central Thailand, who posed as a police officer on a dating app and allegedly raped, beat, and kept a 20 year old woman imprisoned for two days. The victim – Ms. A (pseudonym) – met Weerapat, or ‘Boo,’ on a dating app. Boo told Ms. A he was a…
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Thai actor’s plan to swim from Thailand to Laos for charity
Famous Thai actor and singer Phakin “Tono” Khamwilaisak hopes to make a splash with his charity swim across the Mekong River from Thailand to Laos and at the same time raise awareness about environmental issues and raise funds for hospitals in the two countries. Tono announced his plan via his Instagram account last Thursday, August 25. He revealed that he…
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DDC declares no tomato flu outbreak in Thailand
Director-General of the Department of Disease Control (DDC) yesterday announced it is closely watching the ‘tomato flu’ situation after reports were made that about 100 cases have emerged in India. Dr Opas Karnkawinpong, Director-General of the DDC, declared no cases have been reported in Thailand as yet after an outbreak emerged in the Kollam district of Kerala on May 6,…
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Fallen scaffolding kills 3 year old in northern Thailand
A 3 year old boy was tragically killed by fallen scaffolding in Lampang province, northern Thailand, yesterday morning. Scaffolding at what appears to be an under-construction house fell on top of a 3 year old boy yesterday. The boy’s parents rang 191 and requested emergency help. Rescue workers from Lampang Rescue Association, an ambulance, and medical staff rushed to the…
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SCB-Bitkub deal fizzles as young investors lose big on crypto
As the crypto market cools and young, naïve investors lose big, the deal for Siam Commercial Bank Group (SCB) to acquire a majority stake in Thai digital asset exchange Bitkub Online has fallen apart. The deal, announced in November of last year, pushed Bitkub Online’s value over US$1 billion and drove the company’s cryptocurrency to triple in value overnight. SCB’s…
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Locals angry after public road shut for private party in S Thailand
The son in law of a police officer caused outrage in the local community of Trang in the south of Thailand after he blocked off a public road to have a housewarming party. Netizens in Trang demanded answers from the provincial government after a video emerged on social media of an ambulance being denied access to the road because it…
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Monopoly: Chiang Mai Edition being planned for next year
Coming off the success of the Phuket Edition that was released in March, the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) has announced the launch of Monopoly: Chiang Mai Edition. The new edition celebrating the northern city is scheduled to be released sometime next year. The perennial board game favourite has launched over 300 versions and thousands of custom editions ranging from…
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Royal Caribbean offers cruises to Thailand & other Asian locations in 2023
Royal Caribbean has announced a new series of Asian cruises on their ship ‘Spectrum of the Seas,’ setting sail in 2023 and 2024. Beginning in Singapore, travellers can set off on cruises for 5, 7, 9 or 12 nights, visiting various locations in Asia including Thailand, Malaysia, Vietnam, Philippines, Taiwan and Japan. Guests can choose from cruises which make stops…
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Healthy Siamese twins share teacher dream in Thailand
Thirteen-year-old Siamese twins in central Thailand are defying convention, living a healthy, happy life, and dreaming of becoming teachers. Conjoined twins are a rare phenomenon. Approximately half are stillborn while a third die within 24 hours of a mother giving birth. But the Siamese sisters from Nakhon Sawan province in central Thailand have bucked the poor health trend generally associated…
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Explosive device found hidden inside 7-Eleven in southern Thailand
An explosive device planted by suspected insurgents was discovered hidden on a shelf at a 7-Eleven convenience store in Narathiwat province in southern Thailand on Friday. Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) officers rushed to the scene and successfully disposed of the bomb. On Friday, a member of staff at a 7-Eleven store in the Yee Ngor district was restocking shelves when…
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Food vendors attack foreign tourist who dined & dashed in Pattaya, Thailand
An intense brawl broke out between a group of food vendors and a foreign tourist who allegedly didn’t pay for his meal on Pattaya’s Walking Street in Nong Phru subdistrict, Bang Lamung district, yesterday at 4.30am. The “European tourist” – whose name and nationality are unknown – allegedly ate from a Thai woman’s food stall and left without paying, so…
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Southeast Asia startup struggles at heart of this year’s Techsauce Global Summit
Press Release Startup funding, investor confidence and growth were just some of the pain points addressed at this year’s Techsauce Global Summit, which took place at ICONSIAM, Bangkok on the 26 and 27 August. The conference, which is back in physical form following a three-year hiatus, saw over 10,000 attendees, 1,500 startups and 300 speakers in attendance. Techsauce Global Summit acts…
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US plays mischief-maker in Taiwan Strait to infuriate China
To no one’s surprise, the United States provided further evidence of playing mischief-maker in other nations’ affairs yesterday when two US warships passed through the Taiwan Strait. It comes less than a month since US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visited Taiwan and made a number of crass comments to infuriate China. Washington says the two guided-missile cruisers, the USS Antietam…
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Divers in Singapore find 8 dead blacktip sharks
In the waters of Pulau Hantu, islands just south of Singapore, divers made a gruesome and heartbreaking discovery: the lifeless bodies of eight young blacktip sharks who appeared to have died from wounds to their gills. Sharks are rare to spot in the area, so it was especially gut-wrenching to discover them dead. The divers who discovered it were shocked…
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Car goes flying out of third storey of car park in central Thailand
CCTV footage has captured a car flying off the third storey of a carpark of a shopping mall in Thailand’s central province of Nonthaburi. The footage shows the car going through the car park’s wall before the vehicle falls onto the street below. Even though Bang Bua Thong Police found the car upside down, the driver only had minor neck…
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Resort & local government to cooperate cleaning Phuket beach
Littering is a problem at many Phuket beaches, but several sectors are working together to fix this. There’s a new initiative between a resort, and the local government, to collect garbage on Kamala Beach. The initiative titled the ‘Proud Kamala Project’ is a joint project between the Kamala Sub-district Administrative Organisation, and the Intercontinental Phuket Resort. The two parties signed…
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Bangkok police fail to stop fight between rival schools
Bangkok police tried and failed to stop a fight between about 110 students from two rival schools, Thai media reported on Friday. About 60 students from Pathumwan Institute of Technology clashed with about 50 students from the Rajamangala University of Technology in the area of Bangkok’s national stadium, located in the city centre. The Pathumwan students reportedly ran toward Rajamangala…
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VIDEO: Bangkok exhibition celebrates Thai-Saudi relations at Islamic centre
A new exhibition in Bangkok is celebrating Thai-Saudi relations after the two nations rekindled relations with each other this year following decades of bitterness. The exhibition, titled the “Thai-Saudi Bridge Exhibition,” is being held at the Foundation of Islamic Centre of Thailand until Thursday, August 31. The exhibition is open from 11am to 5pm. The exhibition aims to educate the…
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Popular Phuket-Penang route relaunched by Firefly Airlines
A popular route for expats is back in operation now Firefly Airlines recommenced its flight route between Phuket and Penang. On Friday, the trip resumed for the first time in over two years since being grounded, like so many other flights and routes, by the Covid-19 pandemic. The flight will run four times per week connecting the two popular island…
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Vietnamese man to be deported after robbing Dutchman on Koh Samui
A Vietnamese man who stole 15,000 baht and an iPhone from a Dutch tourist on Koh Samui is set to be deported after he faces penalties. The suspect, Tueng, snatched the iPhone and cash from the victim’s bag at an entertainment venue, according to Bo Phut Police. The victim, 25 year old Hanifi Mert, filed a complaint on August 20.…
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