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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Long-time Phuket resident, developer Stephen Paine passes away
PHUKET: Well-known property developer and long-time Phuket resident Stephen Paine suddenly passed away peacefully this morning. For nearly two decades, Mr Paine was a respected and admired member of the Phuket community. His property development achievements included Surin Heights and the Malaiwana Estate. “Stephen was a generous, compassionate and loyal friend to many on the island and will be greatly…
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No ban on chartered flights, confirms AoT Phuket official
PHUKET: Phuket International Airport has no plans to ban chartered flights, despite a Department of Civil Aviation (DCA) directive ordering the airport to give priority to commercial passenger flights, an AoT Phuket official confirmed today. “Chartered flights have not been banned from landing at Phuket Airport. However, we must follow the DCA’s directive, which states that commercial passenger airlines with…
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Police move to stem sky lanterns, fireworks at Patong Beach
PHUKET: Police have ramped up their campaign against fireworks and khom loi, the traditional “floating sky lanterns” used in celebrations throughout Thailand, in an effort to stop them being launched on Patong Beach. The campaign began in earnest on Thursday night, when officers arrested vendor Chaichana Khuepkrathok, 38, at his house in Patong for selling floating lanterns on public land…
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Phuket Chinese New Year tour bus slams into motorcyclists, houses
PHUKET: A bus hired by a tour company to take Chinese tourists on a four-day excursion from Krabi to Phuket slammed into two motorcyclists last night, before careening into five shophouses. One of the motorbike riders remains in hospital with head injuries. The 13 Chinese tourists on the bus were unscathed, receiving only minor cuts and bruises. “We received a…
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Phuket sports office appeals to Tourism Minister for better facilities
PHUKET: Saroj Angkanapilas, president of the Sport Association of Thailand Phuket office, recently made a special appeal to Tourism and Sports Minister Kobkarn Wattanavrangkul to help develop the island’s sports facilities. “Phuket has held many sports tournaments, both national and international, some of which were very important,” Mr Saroj told the minister. “But as people can see, although we do…
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VIDEO REPORT: Muaythai champ heads to Bangkok for MMA showdown
FORMER Lumpinee and Rajadamnern muaythai champion Jomhod Kiatadisak will make his transition to pro MMA complete today, when he takes on top Cambodian fighter Vorn Viva at Full Metal Dojo 4 in Bangkok. Keeping the fight even, Vorn Viva will also be competing in his first MMA fight, to be held at Live House, located near Bangkok’s famed Chatuchak Market.…
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Packaged snacks approved as Phuket beach eats
PHUKET: Packaged snacks have, for the moment, been given an official stamp of approval for consumption on the beach, while Phuket’s local administrative bodies determine what other types of food they might permit us to eat. The clarification comes in the wake of Governor Nisit Jansomwong on Tuesday announcing that smoking and eating would be banned from Phuket’s beaches as…
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Police nail Phuket drug dealer with weapons of war (video)
PHUKET: The arrest of a petty drug user on Wednesday led to police busting a major drug dealer who was found in possession of an M16 assault rifle yesterday. Surasak Rabeabdee, 32, was arrested in a raid on a house in Kuku, north of Phuket Town, Phuket Provincial Police Deputy Commander Peerayuth Karajedee said today. “In the house, officers found…
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Felling of 143-year-old Krabi tree to boost environmental awareness sparks outrage
PHUKET: The felling of a 143-year-old ma haard tree, to be turned into a sculpture for Krabi Town, sparked social media outrage after pictures circulated on Facebook of the downed tree this week. Krabi Municipality Mayor Kittisak Phukaoluan took credit for the idea and responded to the criticism by explaining that the structure would be a positive way to promote…
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Breaking News: No tsunami warning after Phang Nga earthquake
PHUKET: No tsunami warning was issued following an earthquake off Koh Yai Yai, east of Phuket, this afternoon. The earthquake, which registered 4.0 on the Richter magnitude scale, was centered in Koh Yao district, at about a depth of two kilometers, explained Santhawat Riwleung, chief of the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation (DDPM) Phuket office. “Many people in Phuket…
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Video Report: Governor disbands Muslim protesters threatening Phuket resort
PHUKET: Governor Nisit Jansomwong was forced to disband a mob of more than 100 Muslims protesters who were threatening to blockade the Phuket Panwa Beachfront Resort today. The angry members of the Baan Ao Makham community, in Wichit, were demanding an explanation from the owner of the resort, who they said was behind a complaint filed about the level of…
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Phuket Police balk at linking French expat hatchet attack to deadly Russian kidnapping
PHUKET: Police have yet to investigate whether or not a brutal hatchet attack on a French expat this month could have been connected to a Russian kidnapping case in Phuket last year. Frenchman Eric Seigneurin, manager of Blue Garden Resort and Spa in Cherng Talay, was attacked with a hatchet outside his home in the area on February 8 (story…
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Lighthouse Market back with big new package of goodies at Boat Lagoon
PHUKET: They’re going to do it again this weekend – on the docks, in the water, and in the air. The Lighthouse Market is back with a raft of new delights and great entertainment at Phuket’s hippest family fun spot, the Phuket Boat Lagoon. Back by popular demand, the Market returns tomorrow and again on Sunday, offering two more vibrant…
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Phuket FC win season opener in Trat
PHUKET: Phuket FC opened their 2015 campaign in the Yahama League 1 with a win over Trat FC last weekend: the “Ronins” defeated the “White Elephants” 0-1. Wasan Samansin, sporting jersey number 11, scored the only goal of the match, beating the Trat goalkeeper in the 18th minute. Trat FC replied well, and in the 58th minute Salahudin Arware came…
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Legendary Chinese National Acrobatic Troupe to launch Phuket Chinese New Year celebrations
PHUKET: More than 50 performers from the legendary Chinese National Acrobatic Troupe, hailed as being among the best acrobats in the world, will be the highlight of celebrations for the Chinese New Year in Phuket tonight. The festivities in Phuket Town will be held at Sanam Chai, opposite Phuket Provincial Hall, where the troupe will take to the stage at…
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Phuket beaches return to TripAdvisor ‘Best in Asia’ rankings
PHUKET: Nai Harn Beach and Kata Beach, both on Phuket’s southwest coast, have ranked in TripAdvisor’s top 10 list for Asia, with two beaches in Krabi also making the grade. Nai Harn beach ranked third (click here), while Kata beach returned to the rankings, coming in at number eight. Railey Beach and Phra Nang Beach, in both Krabi, ranked seventh…
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Phuket Governor stands strong against beach chairs
PHUKET: Governor Nisit Jansomwong stood strong in his anti-beach chair campaign today, amid some tourists denouncing Phuket and its beaches following the recent “no beach chair” rule. “Today, I would like to make it clear. We will continue to strictly enforce the rules prohibiting beach chairs on Phuket sands,” Governor Nisit said. The governor’s statement flies in the face of…
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French tourists survive Phuket airport van crash
PHUKET: Three French tourists escaped serious injury when the passenger van they were in blew out a front tyre and tumbled onto the median guard rail en route to Phuket International Airport this afternoon. Yassin Bouhou, 31, suffered a broken left leg and compatriot Franky Legueulle, 33, broke his left arm in the accident, confirmed Lt Col Watcharin Jirattikarnwiwat of…
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Locals file complaint against construction of LPG gas station
PHUKET: Chalong Mayor Samran Jindaphol led a group of 20 local residents to Phuket Provincial Hall yesterday to formally request that Governor Nisit Jansomwong halt the construction of a new LPG gas station. Construction started on the station, on Chao Fa East Road south of Soi Ta-iad, but was soon put on hold after residents filed a complaint with the…
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Missing girl found safe in Phuket
PHUKET: Saowaluk ‘Nong Mai’ Thappan, the 15-year-old girl reported missing from Ranong two days ago, was reunited with her mother at the Chalong Police Station last night. Deunphen Tongtirum made a public plea to find her daughter after she went missing from their family home on Sunday (story here). Also reported missing was Nong Mai’s friend, named only as “Nong…
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Tourists’ protests drive call for beach chair compromise
PHUKET: Patong Mayor Chalermluck Kebsup is calling for a compromise following several incidents on Patong Beach this week during which tourists became outraged after police asked them to remove their sun loungers from the sands in compliance with the new “no chair” policy. Several videos and pictures have been circulating on social media sites capturing groups of tourists becoming upset…
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Man stabbed in teen gang attack meters from Patong Police Station
PHUKET: A man is in critical condition at Vachira Phuket Hospital after a gang of teenagers dragged him out of his pick-up truck and stabbed him in the chest within meters of the Patong Police Station early yesterday morning. Yet, police did not learn of the attack until staffers at Patong Hospital called them at about 3:30am. The staffers reported…
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Ranong girl missing in Phuket
PHUKET: A mother is desperately searching for her 15-year-old daughter after she disappeared from her home in Ranong and hopped on a bus to Phuket with a friend yesterday afternoon. Saowaluk “Nong Mai” Thappan and her friend, named only as “Nong Prae”, went missing at about 3pm yesterday, Nong Mai’s mother, Deunphen Tongtirum, told the Phuket Gazette today. “After she…
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Japanese man found dead off Kalim Beach
PHUKET: Police are investigating the death of a Japanese national after his body was found off Kalim Beach on Saturday. Patong Police and Kusoldharm Foundation rescue workers arrived to the scene, opposite Phra Baramee Soi 9 in Kalim, at about 1:30pm to find the man’s clothes and passport lying on rocks near the shore. The body of 48-year-old Hiroshi Yoshiki,…
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Russian tourists injured in Phuket head-on van crash
PHUKET: Two Russian tourists were injured in a head-on collision that caused long tailbacks on the coastal road north of Patong late Saturday night. Tuii Bulatovskii and Lrina Alexeemko, both 29, suffered minor injuries when a black Chevrolet driven by Pramot Suthipithak, 36, crossed the center line and slammed head-on into the van they were in at about 11pm. The…
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Bar staffer charged for baseball bat attack on Phuket expat
PHUKET: An employee at a bar in Rawai who brutally attacked a British expat with a baseball bat has been charged with assault, police have confirmed. Sarawuth Kongphat, 37, an assistant at the Green Leaf Bar, beat customer Christopher Stark with the bat and fractured his skull, after Mr Stark discovered he did not have enough cash to pay for…
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Lost in translation: Phuket police hand out fliers proclaiming “No Summer Dream On Beach’
PHUKET: Police are rushing to fix fliers that were handed out to tourists at Patong Beach yesterday that mistakenly read in English “No Summer Dream On Beach, Start 12 Feb 2015”. “It was a translation error. The A4 flier was supposed to say something that would mean ‘no beach loungers’, as it did in Thai below the English translation,” Deputy…
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Ladyboy busted dealing meth in Phuket Town
PHUKET: A ladyboy drug dealer in possession of 58.48 grams of ya ice (crystal methamphetamine) and 145,000 baht in cash was netted in a sting operation this morning in Phuket Town. Police were informed by undercover officers that Thiwa Saengreung, 38, had been selling ya ice to teenagers in the area, said Lt Col Chaiyadej Kaiyarit, an inspector for the…
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Bicycles banned on Phi Phi Island
PHUKET: Bicycle were banned on Phi Phi Island’s public walkways today following complaints from tourists about crowded streets and reckless cyclists. “The bicycle problem started about three years ago. Since then, the number of bikes on the island has increased significantly,” said Prasert Wongma, deputy chief executive officer of Ao Nang Administration Organization (OrBorTor). “No vehicles are allowed on the…
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Online 90-day immigration check-in yet to be launched in Phuket
PHUKET: Foreigners living in Thailand will be able to report to immigration for their 90-day check-in via the immigration website no sooner than April, an immigration officer confirmed to the Phuket Gazette yesterday. The news follows an experimental launch of the online reporting system in Bangkok last month. “The online 90-day reporting service is being tested now. For the time…
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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