Phuket News
Phuket news, politics, business, tourism, and nightlife—stay updated with breaking stories, events, and expat updates from Thailand’s top island destination. Get the latest from The Thaiger, your trusted Phuket news source.
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Journalists slam government over press freedom
BANGKOK (AFP): Thai journalists and academics have attacked the government over what they say is an unprecedented attempt to control the press and curtail media freedom, a report said today. At a meeting organised by the Thai Journalists Association, participants accused Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra’s administration of using its business links and strong mandate to intimidate the media. “Unlike in…
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HRH Princess Chulabhorn here tomorrow
PHUKET: HRH Princess Chulabhorn Valayalaksana will arrive in Phuket tomorrow (August 16) for a three-day visit, which will include a performance in a concert of traditional Chinese music and dance at the Royal Phuket City hotel in Phuket Town. Her Royal Highness will arrive from Chiangmai at 11:30 tomorrow morning, going first to the Dusit Laguna Resort Hotel and then,…
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Safari firm ordered to move elephants
RAWAI: Baanchang Safari Phuket was today given until October 1 to remove its 13 elephants from premises next to a local school, or face prosecution. The order was given at a meeting at the offices of the Rawai Tambon Administration Organization (OrBorTor). “Muang Phuket School lodged an official complaint about the elephants and we asked for them to be removed…
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Governor coy over CEO appointment
PHUKET: Governor Pongpayome Vasaputi today deflected questions about Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra’s plan to turn Phuket into an experimental province with a Chief Executive Office, or CEO, instead of a governor. At his bi-weekly press briefing, Gov Pongpayome pointed out that the name of the CEO will be announced by the government at the end of next week. “Don’t ask…
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Call for flood-relief donations
PHUKET TOWN: The Phuket Provincial Public Welfare Office (PPWO) today urged the public to donate water, food, clothing and cash for the thousands of people left homeless by the recent floods in northern Thailand and Isarn. Worst hit in the floods were seven villages in Phetchabun province’s Lom Sak district. Agence France Presse reported this afternoon that 90 corpses have…
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Environmentalist warns of action over expo center
MAI KHAO: Thanu Naep-nien, spokesperson for the environmentalist group Wildlife Fund Thailand, today warned that action will be taken if protected sea turtles that lay their eggs on Nai Yang Beach, in Sirinart National Park, are affected by the proposed international convention and exhibition center (CEC). “If the site is near Nai Yang beach, it will affect every sea turtle…
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Christina Aguilar booked for StarAid 2001
CHERNG TALAY: One of Thailand’s most popular singers, Christina Aguilar, will be headlining this years’ StarAid 2001 charity gala dinner, which will be held at the Sheraton Grande Laguna Phuket on September 29. Ms Aguilar will perform two 30-minute sets, accompanied by her own band and four dancers. Also performing will be the Phuket-based Safari Band. In addition to the…
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Man found dead with 37 stab wounds
KOH SIREH: The body of a murdered man was found washed ashore near the Rassada Fishing port on Thursday morning. Pol Lt Khaneung Pitakkullatorn of Phuket Town Police Station said that he arrived at the scene at 8.30am to find the 25- to 30-year-old man lying face up, dressed only in a blue T-shirt and green underwear. He had been…
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Murder-suicide in Kuku
PHUKET TOWN: Two bodies were discovered yesterday morning in a rented room on Soi Tah Cheen, Baan Kuku, apparently the victims of a murder-suicide. Pol Lt Kanuang Pitakkulthorn of Phuket Town Police Station told the Gazette that police broke down the door to the room after receiving complaints from neighbors about a bad smell. Inside, they found the body of…
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International call rates slashed
PHUKET: The Communications Authority of Thailand (CAT) has announced that it has cut its overseas call rates between 7% and 40%. In addition to these savings, those making international calls between 7 am and 9 pm on Sundays receive a further 20% discount. Phone calls to Australia and North America now cost 22 baht a minute at peak rate (between…
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Phuket chosen for experiment in bureaucracy
PATTAYA: Phuket is one of five provinces chosen for a one-year experiment in bureaucracy that will see them run, not by governors, but by Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) who will have much greater autonomy. At a seminar on bureaucratic reform in Pattaya over the weekend, Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra proposed the idea of provincial CEOs with greater flexibility to manage…
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Dead man was stabbed 25 times
PHUKET: The body of an unidentified man was found yesterday in a tin-roofed shack near the deserted Phya Thai Phuket Hospital building. Pol Lt Parichat Jaturonpun of Phuket Town Police Station said that the victim, estimated to have been between 25 and 30 years old, had been dead for at least seven hours when found. He said that the body…
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German tourist drowns at Nai Harn
NAI HARN: Olaf Gerlach, a 30-year-old German tourist, drowned off Nai Harn beach on Wednesday afternoon. Pol Maj Jetsada Sangsuri told the Gazette that a Thai local resident saw Mr Gerlach swimming alone around 4 pm. He was pushed underwater by a large wave and then a current carried him out to sea. The Thai man took a speedboat out…
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Ex-mayor’s detention extended
PHUKET TOWN: The former mayor of Patong, Dr Anan Ananthanawat, has been remanded in custody for a further 12 days, this time in the Phuket Provincial Prison, while police continue investigations into charges against him. Yesterday, armed with a search warrant, officers took Dr Anan to his house on Mae Luan Rd, Phuket Town. What they found astonished them, said…
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Thaksin cleared of financial wrongdoing
BANGKOK (AFP): By the tightest of margins, Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra was this afternoon found not guilty in a historic assets concealment case that threatened to bar him from political office. In a surprise decision, the Constitutional Court’s 15-member panel voted eight to seven to clear Thaksin of the charges. “Thaksin will continue to be prime minister, by a vote…
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Governor suspends seven bars
PHUKET: Phuket Governor Pongpayome Vasaputi today announced the temporary closure of seven entertainment venues for breaking a variety of laws and regulations. In Phuket Town, the Pe-Tai, near Saphan Hin Stadium, will be closed from August 4 to August 18 for staging lewd shows. The Candy Pub, on Ong Sim Phai Rd, will be closed from August 4 to August…
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Gambling still the No. 1 vice
PHUKET: Gambling remains Phuket’s favorite illegal pastime with 276 people being arrested in 82 raids between July 1 and July 25, according to the latest statistics released by police. Narcotics held the No. 2 spot with a total of 79 arrests for the period, of which 61 involved ya bah (methamphetamine). The statistics show that 781 tablets of the drug…
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Passenger figures up on last year
PHUKET: Passenger throughput at Phuket International Airport was up in June by 7.56%, compared with the same month last year, according to figures just released by airport officials. The statistics show that 224,178 passengers arrived at or departed from the airport, compared with 208,426 last June. The number of international passengers rose by 9.19% to 98,623, while the number of…
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National players dominate volleyball contest
SAPHAN HIN: One hundred and thirty-two volleyballers blocked, dug and spiked their way through the First Annual Phuket Town Municipality Beach Volleyball Competition, which was held at Saphan Hin over the weekend. The tournament was dominated by the three Cheua Saphan Ruam teams, each of which included players from Nakhon Sri Thammarat who are in the Thai national squad. In…
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Boat import taxes demystified
PHUKET: Taxes for importing a yacht into Thailand have long been a matter of confusion, discussion, argument and speculation. Now, however, Gazette inquiries with the Customs Department, both in Phuket and in Bangkok, have uncloaked the way that the various taxes are applied. For a start, it has been confirmed that there is no such thing as a “luxury tax”…
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Thais dominate Malaysia in friendly sports
PHUKET: About 200 Malaysian immigration officers were in Phuket on Tuesday to compete in the now traditional friendly clash, the Annual Thai-Malaysian Immigration Department Games, at the Saphan Hin sport center. The games consisted of badminton, table tennis, sepak takraw, bowling, soccer and golf. The home side dominated the badminton, winning the men’s and women’s singles, the men’s doubles and…
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New Chamber Chairman slams smear attempt
PHUKET: Pamuke Achariyachai, the new chairman of the Phuket Chamber of Commerce, today called a press conference to slam a report in the national newspaper, Matichon. The report, in this morning’s issue of the newspaper, quoted an unnamed member of the Chamber as saying, “It’s such a shame. The Chairman of the Chamber should be a person of good image,…
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TAT launches Phuket web site
PHUKET: The local branch of the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) today announced the launch of its own web site, https://www.phukettourism.org. The web site contains tourism-related information such as details of hotels, festivals, events, businesses and tourism services in Phuket, Phang Nga and Krabi. Patpong Abhijatapong, Deputy Governor for Marketing of TAT, told a press conference at the Royal Phuket…
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Two sites short-listed for expo center
PHUKET: The province’s plans for the construction of an international convention and exhibition center (CEC) have taken one step closer to realization with the short-listing of two potential sites – one near the Sirinart National Park on Mai Kao beach, in the north of the island, and the other in the area around the Provincial Mineral Resources Office in Phuket…
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Gov to stay in Phuket for now
BANGKOK: Despite strong lobbying for Phuket Provincial Governor Pongpayome Vasaputi to be appointed Director of the Southern Border Administrative Center (SBAC), the Cabinet has handed the controversial job to the front-runner, Banyat Jansena. Muslim community leaders and teachers in the South of Thailand had lobbied for Gov Pongpayome to get the job because of his track record of dealing with…
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Pamuke the winner in Chamber chaos
PHUKET: Pamuke Achariyachai, President of the Kata Group of Hotels, was elected Chairman of the Phuket Chamber of Commerce today, following three months of confusion that climaxed in the resignation yesterday of his predecessor, Charn Wongsatayanont, Managing Director of Phuket Jet Tour. K. Charn resigned as the result of a protest from a member that the former chairman’s membership and…
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Judge denies bail for ex-mayor
PHUKET TOWN: Accompanied by a heavy police escort, the former mayor of Patong, Dr Anan Ananthanawat, yesterday made his first appearance in the Phuket Provincial Court on charges relating to the slaying of an ex-policeman in Phuket Town in December 1998. Pol Col Paween Pongsirin, superintendent of Phuket Town Police Station, told the Gazette that the police requested that the…
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Governor backed for top job in the South
BANGKOK: Powerful forces appear to be lobbying for Phuket Provincial Governor Pongpayome Vasaputi to be promoted to Director of the Southern Border Administrative Center (SBAC), a senior position with the Ministry of Interior. The previous holder of the post, Palakorn Suwannarat, resigned in mid-July amid criticism of his handling of a recent spate of bombings in the South of Thailand,…
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Vicious murder at fishing port
KOH SIREH: The body of a viciously murdered man was found washed ashore behind Asia Stannum Co Ltd at Laem Tokkae, near the fishing port, on Thursday. Pol Maj Jiradaej Kawinkij of Phuket Town Police Station said that he arrived at the scene to find the 25- to 30-year-old man lying face down. The victim was dressed in a black-and-white…
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Hospital cancels call for blood
PHUKET TOWN: Wachira Phuket Hospital has called off its appeal for donations of type O negative blood because it now has ample supplies for current needs. The hospital told the Gazette that it wishes to thank all donors for their prompt help.
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.
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