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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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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Today’s tourists can hit Thailand’s island-hopping heights
When it comes to Thailand’s southern beaches, island-hopping on the less well-known east coast appeals to more adventurous tourists. Three main islands – Koh Samui, Koh Tao, and Koh Pha Ngan –surrounded by many smaller islands still offer surprises to even the most jaded of beach bums. Overnight it for a day or two on the big names, and make…
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American Entrepreneur running a restaurant empire in Thailand ft.Greg Lange | Thaiger Podcast Ep.11
Greg Lange. American Entrepreneur, Restauranteur, Philanthropist and Businessman runs a restaurant empire in Thailand consisting of 12 subway outlets and 14 Mexican food restaurants called Margherita Storm & Sunrise Tacos. One of the more famous and successful expats in Thailand, Greg is not only known for his successful restaurant chain Sunrise Tacos but also for his philanthropic charity work in…
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Life of A Sex Worker In Bangkok
Sex tourism is something that happens around the world. A potentially unfortunate byproduct of the tourism industry, it’s particularly prevalent in tourism in Thailand. Statistics for sex tourism in Thailand are hard to come by. Estimates suggest there are anywhere between 250,000 and two million sex workers in the country. Many still like to paint sex workers as a different…
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AoT bans lanterns near airports for upcoming festivals
Loy Krathong is upon us, and with it, Yi Peng, the lantern festival. Thousands of lighter-than-air lanterns drift up into the sky in a peaceful show for celebrating onlookers. But the Airports of Thailand (AoT) have issued a reminder warning that flying lanterns are strictly banned in the areas around the six main airports in Thailand. As beautiful and tranquil…
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Police bust 2 drug parties, arrest 43 teenagers
Move over adults, it’s time for the kids to join in. After a series of high-profile raids on entertainment venues around Thailand, in part as a crackdown on drugs after the meth ties to the daycare centre killer, police busted two parties full of mostly teenagers in Chon Buri this week. Police officials announced that in the early hours of…
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U-Tapao Airport expansion plan approved by Cabinet
For tourists to Pattaya, travel may be getting a lot easier. The Cabinet has approved a plan for a massive expansion of U-Tapao Airport, the hub in Rayong province nearest to the popular tourist town. The project would grow the airport’s capability for commercial flights to land. It would expand by building a new runway and adding facilities to accommodate…
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Khon Kaen Zoo treats tigers and hippos to Loy Krathong feeding festival
Today, staff from Khon Kaen Zoo in northeast Thailand held an untraditional Loy Krathong festival for their resident tigers and hungry hippopotami. Loy Krathong translates to “floating banana tree trunk.” Traditionally, Thais celebrate the festival by making a buoyant decorative basket (Krathong) and float (Loy) it on a river. The Krathong floats away, along with all your worries, anger, and…
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Cricket ice cream, anyone? Another quirky food at APEC Summit in Bangkok
On top of noodles with sandworm sauce, another adventurous food is competing at the APEC Summit in Bangkok this month: cricket ice cream. The cricket ice cream is one of several “future foods” competing in the “plate to planet” competition. The competition’s website describes the ice cream, called ProTim Magnet, as a Magnum-style ice cream. It is made with crickets,…
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Delivery driver finds huge stash of Thai, Laos and Japanese banknotes under a tree
A delivery driver stumbled across a stash of Thai, Japanese, and Laos banknotes scattered beneath a tree in Udon Thani city centre, northeast Thailand, this morning. The cash – amounting to over 500,000 baht – is suspected to be fake. The driver, 43 year old Somsak Sirikhan, was sitting waiting for a job with five or six other rides. He…
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Myanmar kleptocracy boosts rhino horn trafficking
Rhino horn trafficking remains a severe problem that needs to be addressed with a new sense of urgency. During 2012-2021, more than 7.5 tons of rhino horn was seized in 674 incidents Asian rhino horns are less frequently seized than African, but there have been several recent reports of Indian rhino horns being seized at border points in Myanmar and…
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Business exodus from China will ensure Southeast Asia will flourish
One of Thailand’s leading business executives believes Southeast Asia will flourish on the back of Chinese President Xi Jinping securing an unprecedented third term as leader of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). The reelection of President Xi as CCP leader tightened his grip on the mainland and also ensured an exodus of businesses looking to relocate from China to Southeast…
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Phuket vehicle crash kills Russians and Thai
A motorbike and car crash in Phuket killed a Russian man, Russian woman, and a Thai woman in the early hours of this morning. The three lives were tragically taken after a big bike, a motorbike, and a taxi car all collided in the town of Rawai. Rescuers arrived to find the damaged vehicles scattered over the road. Nearby, they…
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Yellow peril – Mascot man fears family will waste lottery winnings
A man from Guangxi, one of China’s poorest provinces, recently dressed as a bright yellow mascot to collect his US$30.6 million lottery winnings so he could keep his identity a secret from the public – and his family. The man, identified only by nom de guerre Mr Li, won 219.4 million yuan (US$30.3 million, 1.1 billion baht) on the Guangxi Welfare…
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Married Thai woman hits younger lover with massive palimony claim
A young Thai man’s married older lover has responded with a massive palimony claim after he tried to break up with her. The lover also claims that the young man raped her. The 24 year old man, “A,” said he met the 46 year old woman last year when he got an internship at a train station. He said he…
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Singaporean dies in Kamala motorcycle crash
A Singaporean man died when he lost control of his motorbike on the coast road south of Kamala and crashed head-on into an oncoming truck yesterday. This follows this week’s death of an Australian resident, the death of a police officer in Bangkok, and the death of a passenger in a car driver by a Danish man last night in…
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Fight breaks out on island off Pattaya
A fight broke out in front of a resort on an island off Pattaya on Wednesday night between two groups of people. Security footage captured 6-8 people on motorbikes passing by the resort on Koh Larn and glancing back at another group that was marching toward them on foot. After the group on motorbikes exited the footage, the group was…
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TAT wants US tourists to ‘Feel Thailand’
The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) yesterday revealed a deal to bring more tourists to the kingdom from the United States and boost the nation’s ailing economy. TAT Governor Yuthasak Supasorn announced the state-sponsored industry organized an event this week, Feel Thailand with Delta Air Lines and Korean Air, to take 50 US tour operators to popular tourist destinations in…
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FBI tells synagogues in New Jersey to keep safe after credible threat
The FBI is warning synagogues in the US state of New Jersey to keep safe after it says it has obtained credible threats online. The threats were apparently broad in scope, but the FBI has urged all synagogues to “take all security precautions to protect your community and facility.” According to NPR.org, the online threat did not target any specific…
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81-year-old Japanese man arrested for murder after pushing wife’s wheelchair into sea
Police arrested an 81-year-old Japanese man after he allegedly pushed his wheelchair-bound wife into the sea. The man, Hiroshi Fujiwara, was arrested in the Oiso, Kanagawa Prefecture in Japan with police saying he then admitted to killing his 79-year-old wife. Fujiwara said he was worn out from looking after her as she had been in a wheelchair for the past…
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New foreign land ownership law in Thailand can be scrapped if Thais don’t agree
If Thai people aren’t happy with the newly proposed foreign land ownership law in Thailand, the whole plan can be scrapped, said Minister of Interior General Anupong Paochinda in Parliament yesterday. “We can improve the regulation, such as by increasing the investment to 100 million baht. The plan can be scrapped if people have serious concerns. We won’t see it as…
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Thai artist scoops UOB Painting of the Year award
A Thai artist yesterday scooped the 41st UOB Painting of the Year award, one of the most prestigious competitions in Southeast Asia. Bangkok-born artist Chomrawi Suksom claimed the illustrious prize for his painting titled Dystopia and prize money of US$32,000. The work, created in oil, acrylic and foil on canvas artwork, is a detailed depiction of a world undergoing constant…
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Danish man crashes car into Chiang Mai moat, killing 1
A Danish man crashed a white sedan into Chiang Mai moat in northern Thailand in the early hours of this morning. He survived but his female Thai passenger could not escape the vehicle in time and drowned. A 30 year old Danish man was driving through Chiang Mai’s Mueang district “at a high speed” when he lost control, crashed into…
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Loy Krathong: the stories of the Thai holiday’s origins
If you live in Thailand, you’ve most likely heard of the Loy Krathong festival by now. You may likely be planning on going to a Loy Krathong float event to get a taste of the holiday. But how did this holiday come into being? Understanding the origins of Loy Krathong might help you understand its significance in the hearts of…
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Bangkok police arrest 15 scammers, seize US$1 million
Bangkok police arrested 15 suspected scammers involved in a barrage of illegal businesses, seizing assets worth more than over 42 million baht (US$1.1 million) yesterday. The arrests follow a series of disturbing incidents, including a raid on a nightclub disguised as a car wash in the Yannawa district, and the death of a tourist after a night out at a…
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Grab delivery drivers protest in Bangkok, Thailand
Around 800 Grab delivery drivers in green jackets gathered in Bangkok today to protest new policies implemented by the company which they say have significantly reduced their income. The protesters started outside Central World and later moved to Grab’s head office, completely blocking traffic on Phetchaburi Road. Recently, Grab introduced a “zoning system” which forces drivers to book a time…
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Motorcycle rider takes a nap in the middle of a main road
A weary motorcycle rider was awakened by a group of men after he slept on his parked motorcycle in the middle of a main road. The men recorded a video of the sleepy motorcycle rider and sent it to a local news Facebook page named Hear On Board (เฮียขับรถ). The video reveals the men trying to wake the man sleeping,…
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Biologist warns that upcoming Songkhla Lake Bridge construction will hurt dolphins
A marine biologist warned that a new bridge planned across Songkhla Lake will hurt the inhabitant Irrawaddy dolphins. Dolphins are considered a vulnerable species by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. The biologist, Thon Thamrongnawasawat, said the number of Irrawaddy dolphins in the lake is likely to drop every year. He noted that the future of dolphins is uncertain,…
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Activist charged with assault and child exploitation
Secretary-general of the Amphawa district Child Protection Foundation in Samut Sakhon Montree Sinthawichai, his wife and son, met police investigators at Amphawa district police station today to hear charges against them. Montree, better known as Khru Yun, is accused of assaulting children and using child labour. Previously, activists from the Zendai Foundation took children under Montree’s care to file a…
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Inaugural flight from Uzbekistan arrives in Phuket
An inaugural flight from Uzbekistan arrived in Phuket this morning. Sharq Airlines flight HH2203 arrived at Phuket International Airport from Uzbekistan’s capital city of Tashkent. The flight carried 238 passengers, who received HKT We Care waterproof bags from the airport, The Phuket Express reported. This news comes after Thai tourism officials announced last month that they were seeking more tourists…
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Lucky escape for children after pickup crashes into school bus, driver dies
Several school children and their bus driver escaped relatively unscathed after a pickup vehicle crashed into their school bus this morning. The pickup driver was killed in the collision in the Bang Khan district in southern Thailand. The two vehicles collided in front of Ban Lam Nao post office in tambon Ban Lam Nao. Police Captain Bunlue Mian-o, the deputy…
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