Phuket News
-
Russian runner protests Phuket race organiser, throws medal away
A Russian runner criticised the organiser of a running event in Phuket after being accused of following the wrong route and being disqualified, insisting that the mistake was caused by the organiser rather than by him. The Russian runner, Sergey Zyryanov, shared a video on social media showing himself throwing a medal from the Running@Wichit event into a rubbish bin.…
-
Phuket man falls from pickup while confronting foreign hit-and-run driver
A Thai Good Samaritan fell from the back of a pickup truck on a road in Phuket while attempting to stop a foreign driver who fled the scene after crashing into three motorcycles. Footage of the incident was shared on the Newshawk Phuket Facebook page on Sunday, February 2. According to the page, the incident itself occurred the previous night,…
-
French couple deported and blacklisted after sex on Phuket tuk tuk
A French couple are facing deportation and blacklisting from Thailand after being arrested for engaging in a sexual act while travelling on a tuk tuk in Phuket last month. The case came to light after a Thai motorist, who was driving behind a tuk tuk on Patong Hill in Phuket on January 29, noticed the inappropriate behaviour of a foreign…
-
Phuket’s Big Buddha viewpoint set to reopen after renovations this month
The Big Buddha viewpoint, located between Chalong and Kata in Phuket, is anticipated to welcome visitors again this month, bringing cautious optimism to locals and tourism operators alike. Phra Khru Wisutkitiyaphon, abbot of Wat Kittisangkharam, has announced that the reopening will occur once renovations and cleaning are completed, with an exact date still pending confirmation. Temple officials continue to coordinate…
-
Foreign couple caught on video getting frisky in Phuket tuk tuk
A foreign couple were caught engaging in sexual activity inside a tuk tuk while crossing Patong Hill in Phuket yesterday, January 29, openly disregarding passing traffic and other motorists on the busy route. The video, recorded by a driver following behind, quickly went viral after being shared by the Facebook page Phuket Times today, January 30. In the clip, the…
-
Dutch man held at Phuket Airport over assault on Thai vendor
Police arrested a Dutch man at Phuket International Airport yesterday, January 29, after he and three friends assaulted a Thai street vendor during a parking dispute in Patong last week. The owner of a beverage stall called Isaan Cafe, whose name was withheld, filed a complaint with Patong Police Station following the incident, which occurred at around 9.30pm on Saturday,…
-
Pakistani man caught and beaten for stealing cannabis in Phuket
Cannabis shop owners and witnesses in Phuket chased after and assaulted a Pakistani man after he stole a jar of cannabis from a store in Patong before handing him over to police. A female cannabis shop owner filed a complaint with officers at Patong Police Station yesterday, January 28, after a group of tourists, reported to be Pakistani nationals, stole…
-
Turkish motorcyclist killed in crash with two vans in Phuket
A Turkish motorcyclist lost his life after colliding with two vans on Patak Road in Phuket in the early hours of today, January 28. Officers from Karon Police Station investigated the accident at the Le Meridien Hotel intersection on Patak Road in the Karon district at around 12.35am. Rescuers from Kusol Dham Phuket Foundation also rushed to the scene in…
-
Phuket hotel’s six-figure service charge stuns netizens
A Facebook post revealing high annual service charge payouts at a hotel in Phuket has drawn attention online, with the maximum amount reportedly reaching 111,889.45 baht (approximately US$3,589.82) per person in 2025. The post, shared by the Thailand Hotel Service Charge group, included images of what appeared to be internal figures from JW Marriott Phuket Resort and Marriott Vacation Club,…
-
German thief arrested after trying to return stolen cash to Phuket spa
A German tourist attempted to return stolen cash to a spa in Phuket in an apparent bid to avoid legal consequences, but the spa owner refused to drop the case and called police to have him arrested yesterday, January 20. The incident took place at THAN Spa & Massage, located on Ranong Road in Phuket’s Talat Nuea sub-district. An employee…
-
German man wanted for stealing 2,000 baht from Phuket spa
A foreign man, reportedly a German national, remains at large after stealing 2,000 baht in cash from a spa in Phuket yesterday, January 20. The theft occurred at around 5pm at a spa located on Ranong Road in the Talat Nuea sub-district. The suspect arrived with two companions, but was seen in the CCTV footage committing the crime alone. In…
-
Russian fraud fugitive on Interpol list arrested in Phuket
Police arrested a Russian national wanted under an Interpol warrant yesterday, January 29, after locating him hiding in the city centre of Phuket. Officers from the Phuket Provincial Immigration Office said they received an alert from the Foreign Affairs Division regarding the suspect, whose name was not disclosed. The Russian man was listed on an Interpol warrant after fleeing his…
-
Foreign man seen rolling on Phuket street near EDC event
A video clip showing a foreign man rolling around in the middle of a busy road in Phuket was shared online today, January 19, quickly going viral on social media. The incident itself took place two nights earlier, on January 17, near the site of the EDC Thailand 2026 event, during heavy traffic. The 12-second video, originally posted by the…
-
Danish woman breaks arm and leg while hiking in Phuket
A Danish couple sought assistance from rescuers after the woman suffered broken bones to her arm and leg during a hiking trip along the Ton Sai–Bang Pae route in Phuket. Rescuers from Guardians of Life Medical & Rescue received a distress call from the foreign couple on Friday, January 16, reporting an accident on the popular hiking trail. The incident…
-
Thai man loses diamond ring in Phuket EDM festival, ruining proposal plan
A Thai man lost a diamond ring worth about 300,000 baht and multiple credit cards to a pickpocket at an EDM music festival in Phuket on Saturday, January 17, shattering his plan to propose to his girlfriend. The victim’s girlfriend shared details of the incident on her Facebook account, Acare Alice, yesterday, January 18. The theft reportedly occurred during the…
-
Phuket hotel security guard arrested for attempted break-in of DJ’s room
Police arrested the head of a hotel’s security guards in Phuket on Saturday, January 18, after he attempted to break into the room of a female DJ late at night earlier this week. The victim, Thai DJ Mirinda Malinrattanawadee, took to her Facebook account to demand accountability from a hotel in Phuket after an unidentified man tried to enter her…
-
Phuket Airport sees flight and passenger surge in 2025 recovery
Phuket International Airport recorded strong growth in both flight movements and passenger numbers in 2025, reflecting a continued recovery in the aviation and tourism sectors and renewed traveller confidence, according to airport director Monchai Tanod. Performance over the past year exceeded 2024 levels and approached figures seen in 2019, the airport’s peak year before the Covid-19 pandemic. The results underline…
-
Phuket hotel staff issued key to intruder targeting female guest’s room
Phuket hotel admits a staff member issued a Master Key to an intruder caught on video trying to enter a female guest’s room. Police are investigating the security breach. PHUKET – A female tourist staying at a hotel in Phuket experienced a severe security breach after an intruder attempted to enter her room using an unauthorized key card. The events…
-
Steel bar dropped from condo crane pierces through Phuket home
A steel bar reportedly fell from a crane at a high-rise condominium construction site and pierced through a home near Surin Beach in Phuket on the night of Wednesday, January 14. Fortunately, no injuries were reported, despite the close call. The female homeowner shared a video of the shocking incident on social media, showing a long steel bar embedded through…
-
Phuket unveils ‘Dheveena’ sea goddess sculpture as new landmark
Phuket unveiled a new landmark, “Dheveena,” a large-scale public sculpture installed along the seafront at Saphan Hin Park in the Wichit sub-district, as part of the Thailand Biennale 2025. The fourth edition of the Thailand Biennale returned to Phuket on November 29 last year and will run for five months until April 30 this year. Under the theme “Eternal Kalpa,”…
-
6 boat workers at Chalong Bay Pier in Phuket tested positive for drugs
Phuket Tourist Police intensified safety measures at Chalong Bay Pier following a fatal speedboat accident involving a drug-fuelled driver, with random drug tests revealing that six boat workers tested positive for illegal substances. Officers from Phuket Tourist Police, Marine Police, Chalong Police Station, and Marine Department Region 5 jointly announced stricter controls targeting drug use among workers in the tourism…
-
Russian drug dealers arrested during ‘mushroom temple’ raid in Phuket
Police arrested two Russian men and seized around 10 kilogrammes of magic mushrooms during a raid on a property dubbed the “Mushroom Temple” in the Rawai district of Phuket today, January 13. A Russian woman managed to escape from the arrest. Officers from Chalong Police Station launched the operation after receiving complaints that Russian nationals were illegally selling magic mushrooms…
-
Egyptian man arrested for illegally working as barber in Phuket
Police arrested an Egyptian man in Phuket yesterday, January 12, for illegally working as a barber after he was caught providing services to a foreign customer. Officers from Patong Police Station acted on a complaint from a local resident who reported that a foreign national was operating a barbershop on Phang Mueang Sai Kor Road in the Patong sub-district of…
-
Foreign man exposes himself to Thai woman in Phuket car park
A Thai woman exposed a foreign man after he exposed his genitals in front of her in the Kamala area of Phuket yesterday, January 11. The woman shared photos of the foreign suspect with the Phuket Times Facebook page. In the images, the man was seen wearing a light blue Hawaiian shirt left unbuttoned and white shorts. He was standing…
-
British man arrested for traffic island stunt, indecency, and Yaba use
Phuket police arrested a British national after a viral video showed him driving on a traffic island, using methamphetamine (Yaba), and urinating on road. The 24 year old British national, Lee Terry Obrien, was arrested yesterday, Sunday, January 11, after footage of the incident circulated widely on social media. The video, originally shared by local news outlet Newshawk Phuket, showed the…
-
British-Australian man found dead on yacht off Phuket coast
A man holding both British and Australian citizenship was found dead aboard his private yacht anchored off Khao Khad beach in Phuket yesterday, January 11, with the cause of death still under investigation. The discovery was made around 12.30pm when a German friend, 54 year old Matthias Lepke, who had been moored nearby, became concerned after not seeing the man…
-
Phuket police tighten drug checks for Electric Daisy Carnival
Phuket police are set to intensify their measures to prevent drug entry at the Electric Daisy Carnival (EDC) concert, in response to two fatalities at last year’s event. Phuket Provincial Police Commander Sinlert Sukhum announced that more than 200 officers will be deployed to safeguard the venue, with stringent drug checks at all entry points. Authorities stressed that these checks…
-
Tourists warned: Monkey bites pose rabies risk in Phuket
A British volunteer in Phuket, Vinnie Modell, who founded the Rescue Team Volunteers Phuket, is urging tourists to exercise caution around local monkeys due to risks of injury and potential rabies transmission from bites. Modell reported that at least ten tourists received treatment for monkey bites during the recent Christmas and New Year holiday period. These incidents underscore ongoing risky…
-
Saudi tourist fined, deported over public indecency in Phuket
A Saudi Arabian tourist has been fined and is set to be deported following an incident of public indecency in Patong, Phuket. The tourist, identified only as Alharbbi, was seen in a video recorded on Soi Paradise, Kathu district, engaging in inappropriate behaviour with another foreign man. The incident reportedly occurred around 5am on January 4. Locals who witnessed the…
-
Phuket taxi drivers threaten strike over illegal app-based drivers
Taxi drivers in Phuket threatened to stage a strike on January 15, demanding government action against illegal taxi drivers who operate without official registration, especially ones on ride-hailing applications. The local news Facebook page Phuket Andaman News reported today, January 7, that a group of taxi drivers in the province is planning to protest and has asked the media to…
Phuket is a province in the south of Thailand. Phuket's beaches face the Andaman Sea allowing the west coast beaches fantastic sunsets right throughout the year. If you're looking for news in Phuket, go to thethaiger.com/phuket Or follow our instant news in our Facebook pages.
The good news is that Phuket is famous for its foodie scene with an enormously diverse range of local and international foods - Phuket and southern favorites, street food along with international choices catering for the 12 million visitors to the island each year. Thaiger follows Phuket news and information 24 hours a day with regular updates.
Phuket is only 'just' an island with a 300 metre bridge linking it to Thailand's mainland. We're always reporting in the news that the channel beneath is frequently dredged to maintain Phuket's status as an island. On the other side of Sarasin Bridge is the Province of Phang Nga.
Getting to Phuket is easy as the island has land, air and sea connections. Phuket is also used as a take-off point for local island trips as Thailand's largest island is surrounded by over 30 pristine islands. Koh Phi Phi and the famous Maya Bay are always in the news and would be the best known of the island's just off Phuket's shores.
Phuket is an island and a province. It's the largest island in Thailand – 48 km north to south, 21 km east to west.
It's about 20% smaller, in area, than Singapore but much less densely populated. Whilst the island nation of Singapore boasts a population of nearly 6 million, Phuket has a permanent population of around 400-450,000 (but varies a lot with the influx of tourists and a workforce that is always changing). Most of Phuket remains jungle and tropical rainforest despite an acceleration of development over the past 20 years.
Unlike some of Thailand's other popular islands (that are in the Gulf of Thailand), the news is that Phuket is located in the Andaman Sea.
Phuket is 878 km north of the equator.
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.