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.
-
Sponsored Limited-time deal: Save 20% on Cigna's expat health plans forever
Starting a new life abroad is exciting—new culture, new lifestyle, and new chances to grow. But living far from home also means taking steps to protect your health in unfamiliar surroundings. Without the right coverage, even small health issues can...
-
Gov in drive against encroachment
PHUKET: Phuket Governor Udomsak Uswarangkura has ordered the Phuket office of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MNRE) to step up efforts to protect the island’s natural resources after four cases of encroachment on Government forest land were reported in February. Speaking at the monthly meeting of government department heads at Phuket Provincial Hall this morning, Gov Udomsak ordered…
-
Dirty water spurs Patong “seaweed’ surge
PATONG: Nipawan Bussarawit, a marine biologist at the Phuket Marine Biological Center (PMBC), has confirmed that the rising level of “organic contaminants” in Patong Bay has been a contributing factor in the explosive growth of stinking brown seaweed that has been washing up on Patong Beach for the past month.K. Nipawan said that the water quality in Patong Bay was…
-
Phuket gears up for April elections
PHUKET: Voters in Phuket and across the country will be busy in April with two national elections: the Parliamentary election slated for April 2 (though that date may be changed)and the Senatorial election on April 19.Dr Sriyada Palimapan will be the Thai Rak Thai (TRT) party candidate for Phuket’s Parliamentary District 1 while Wisut Santikul will stand for District 2.Whether…
-
“New’ reef bigger than any in the region
PHANG NGA: Marine scientists are still charting the extent of an uncharted reef off Tai Muang, Phang Nga, covering, they say, at least four square kilometers – far larger than any known reef in the region.The discovery of the reef, made in the first week of January, was documented by Songpol Tippayawong, Head of the Thailand Marine and Coastal Conservation…
-
Mysterious seaweed invades Patong Beach
PATONG: Tourists strolling along Patong Beach now have an extra something to remember about their stay in Phuket – a slimy, brown seaweed with a stench to match its looks. This is not the first time seaweed has invaded the Patong shore. Two years ago bright green seaweed covered the sand (See story here). This year, however, the seaweed is…
-
Supermodel kickboxers heading for Phuket
SAPHAN HIN: NS Sport and online flower delivery service Misslily.com will jointly host the “Miss Lily Super Model Muay Thai Championships 2006” featuring a bevy of female kickboxers from the United States. The event will be held at the Saphan Hin Sports Complex on March 10, starting at 5 pm.Organizers Surasak Mookpradap of NS Sport (Thailand) and Rawat Chindapol, Managing Director…
-
Suwat pushes for fast action on Phi Phi
PHUKET: In an abrupt government about-face after more than a year of blocking rehabilitation of Koh Phi Phi Don following the tsunami, Deputy Prime Minister Suwat Liptapanlop has urged redevelopment of the island be pushed ahead to hasten the island’s return to its former status as a tourism hotspot.At a meeting held at the Royal Phuket City Hotel on Wednesday,…
-
Motorbike smash victim recovering
PHUKET CITY: Bangkok Hospital Phuket has listed motorcycle crash victim Steve Donnelly of Britain as conscious and in stable condition, though he is still connected to breathing apparatus. On Tuesday the hospital issued an urgent appeal through the Gazette and other avenues for donations of rare A-negative blood for Mr Donnelly, who was involved in a road crash in which…
-
Plan to relax license rules for yacht skippers
BANGKOK: The Ministry of Tourism and Sports (MoTS) is planning to put before Cabinet a proposal to allow people with foreign captain’s licenses to skipper Thai-registered sailing yachts.The proposal, intended to give a boost to the marine tourism industry, would do away with an existing regulation that requires foreign skippers wanting to sail boats in local waters to obtain Thai…
-
12 tsunami towers to be tested tomorrow
PHUKET: Twelve of Phuket’s tsunami warning towers will be tested by the Nonthaburi-based National Disaster Warning Center tomorrow morning.Arun Keodsom, Chief of the Phuket Office for Disaster Prevention and Mitigation (ODPM), told the Gazette, “The 12 towers to be tested are those at Chalong, Laem Tukkae, Rawai, Saphan Hin, Cape Panwa, Kata, Karon, Kamala, Nai Yang, Bang Tao, Mai Khao…
-
Sondhi addresses Phuket rally
PHUKET CITY: More than 20,000 people attended a rally at Saphan Hin last night, addressed by Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra’s nemesis, Sondhi Limthongkul. K. Sondhi and Sarocha Porn-udomsak, his co-host on the weekly political talk show on the ASTV satellite channel, Muang Thai Rai Sapda (Thailand Weekly), were the main speakers at the rally, holding forth in front of a…
-
Overstay charge hiked to B500 a day
PHUKET: The fine for remaining in Thailand past the expiry date of a permit to stay, currently 200 baht a day, will rise to 500 baht a day with effect from March 15.However, the maximum fine payable will remain the same, at 20,000 baht, Pol Lt Gen Suwat Thamrongsrisakul, Commander of the Immigration Bureau, stated in a document posted in…
-
Real Estate Club to stage property show
PHUKET: The Phuket Real Estate Club (PREC) will stage an exhibition showcasing property in Phuket and on Koh Samui, at Central Festival Phuket from April 6 to 10.PREC President Phummisak Hongsyok said that the exhibition is partly to support Governor Udomsak Uswarangkura’s aim of having more activities staged in Phuket, now that the tsunami anniversary ceremonies are over.“This is the…
-
Prem School feasibility study nearly complete
KATA: Architect and developer ML Tridhosyuth “Mom Tri” Devakul, says that a study into the feasibility of building a new private school in Phuket should be complete in about two months.Mom Tri, owner of Mom Tri’s Boathouse, the hotel in Kata, and developer of top-end projects such as the Trisara resort and the Baan Kata residential development, is also the…
-
Frenchman found dead in Karon guesthouse
KARON: A Frenchman was found dead in a guesthouse in Karon on Sunday, the victim of an apparent suicide.Pol Maj Chana Suttimard, of Chalong Police Station, told the Gazette that he received a call from a maid at the Lucky Guesthouse at 11 am after she found the body of Bernard Roger Servel, 61, in one of the rooms.“The maid…
-
Talbot murder trial to start next January.
PHUKET CITY: Phuket Provincial Court Judge Yupawan Pirisinsith was briefed this morning on defense and prosecution witness lists in the case of Briton Paul Chetwynd-Talbot, accused of murdering his girlfriend, fellow Briton Debra O’Hanlon.The judge scheduled the next hearing in the case for January 18 next year, to allow the prosecution time to question eight witnesses. Judge Yupawan, who will…
-
Low-cost carriers keen on Krabi
KRABI: Low-cost carrier Thai AirAsia will launch daily direct flights from Bangkok to Krabi on March 1, while Singaporean low-cost carrier Tiger Airways has announced it will extend its Singapore-Krabi service to run throughout the low season. Thai AirAsia Public Relations Executive Jaqueline Mercader told the Gazette that the new service, designated FD 3165, will depart Bangkok daily at 5:05…
-
Plan to legalize foreign guides under fire
PHUKET: Panomphol Thummachartniyom, President of the Phuket Professional Guide Association (PPGA), has blasted a proposal to legalize foreign tour guides, arguing that there are already enough qualified Thai guides, while slamming the authorities for not cracking down on foreigners working illegally as guides.“Phuket already has problems with foreigners working as tour guides, especially Koreans and Russians. Thais who have already…
-
Gov proposes new Patong-airport road
PHUKET: Phuket Governor Udomsak Uswarangkura yesterday ordered the Phuket Provincial Highways Office (PPHO) to conduct a study into the feasibility of building a road between Phuket International Airport and Patong.“Right now, a lot of properties are being developed along the main road from the airport [Route 402], and soon Phuket will have traffic congestion problems,” he said.“The same happened in…
-
Poison warning to Nai Harn dog owners
NAI HARN: Dog owners who take their animals for exercise on Nai Harn Beach are advised to keep them on the leash – or walk them somewhere else – as poisoners are once again at work.David Couchman, a retiree who lives in the area and walks his dogs on the beach, told the Gazette this evening that he knows of…
-
Jet-ski races get thumbs-up
PATONG: Despite the Governor’s announced policy to rid Phuket of jet-skis by 2011, Phuket Province has given the green light for Patong to host the first round of the 2006 Jet Ski Thailand Championship, on March 4 and 5.The go-ahead for the event was confirmed yesterday at a meeting between Vice-Governor Niran Kalayanamit and members of the Thai Jet Sports…
-
Ranong 12 finally set free
RANONG: “The Ranong 12”, a group of 12 foreign tourists arrested on the morning of February 8 for overstaying their visas, were freed on Sunday. The most that any of the 12 had overstayed was six days. Others were just 24 hours over the limit. During their five-day ordeal they spent the first two nights on dirty police cell floors…
-
Second printing of Guide distributed
PHUKET: The second printing of the 2006 Gazette Guide, Phuket’s English-language “Yellow Pages”, is now on the shelves at bookshops, bakeries, coffee shops and other outlets around Phuket, Khao Lak and Krabi. Guestroom copies have already been distributed to Phuket’s leading hotels and resorts. The new Gazette Guide has 3,115 listings in 465 pages – making it 11% larger than…
-
Patong porn peddlers pinched
PATONG: An undercover investigation team from Kathu Police Station led by Pol Maj Serm Kwannimitra raided two VCD outlets opposite the Patong Tourist Police office on Thaweewong Rd recently, arresting two people and confiscating some 5,000 obscene VCDs.The alleged offenders were Nattaporn Sornram, 33, and Jirawit Nonthapanthawat, also 33, both Phuket natives. They were found to be in possession of…
-
Promthep wind power project stalled
LAEM PROMTHEP: A ban on structures taller than eight meters at Laem Promthep has stalled the construction of three 50m-tall wind turbines, each costing 40 million baht, at Phuket’s premier sunset tourist attraction.Ong-ad Thanachanmongkol, Chief of the Phuket office of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, said on Tuesday that he must first obtain the go-ahead for the project…
-
Jungceylon white knight unmasked
PHUKET CITY: The mystery white knight who has ridden to the rescue of the Jungceylon project was revealed this afternoon as Real Estate Capital Asia Partners (Recap), a private real estate investment fund owned by US and Singaporean interests.Recap is a Cayman Islands-registered 50:50 joint venture between the Baupost Group of Boston, Massachusetts, and Singapore’s City Developments Ltd.It was set…
-
Moves to make Patong Beach “more orderly’
PATONG: Vice-Governor Worapot Ratthasima on Tuesday was appointed chairman of a committee charged with cleaning up Patong Beach and ensuring that beach operators are regulated.Committee member and Patong Municipality Chief Administrative Officer Poonsak Naksena said that the known 55 renters of beach chairs and umbrellas have until by February 24 to tidy up the layout of their 2,300-odd umbrellas and…
-
Police arrest 12 on Ranong “visa run’
RANONG: Twelve foreign tourists were pulled off a “visa run” bus just 40 miles from Ranong and confined to a jail cell overnight for overstaying their visas. The company that arranged the tour claims that the arresting officers, from the Tourist Police and Highway Police, demanded 5,000 baht from each of the overstayed tourists in exchange for letting them go.…
-
Ticket scam accused skips bail
PHUKET: The Phuket Provincial Court has issued an arrest warrant for 24-year-old Briton Jonathan Duncan after he failed to appear in court on February 6 to face fraud charges.Duncan was arrested on August 30 last year, following complaints by people who had bought cheap air tickets from him.It is alleged that Duncan bought the air tickets by fraudulently using other…
-
Thaksin should listen more, says TRT party-list MP
PHUKET CITY: In the wake of anti-Government protests in Bangkok last weekend, Thai Rak Thai party-list MP Dr Premsak Pearyura yesterday called for Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra to make changes to his leadership style.Visiting Phuket in his capacity as Vice-President of the Parliamentary Natural Resources and Environment Committee, the outspoken MP from Khon Kaen made a vague call for the…
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.