Phuket News
Discover the latest news and updates from Thailand’s most famous and beautiful island, The Thaiger’s hometown, having previously operated as the Phuket Gazette.
Our team brings you breaking news, in-depth analysis, and exclusive stories from Phuket, covering everything from local politics and business to lifestyle and tourism. Learn about the island’s stunning beaches, vibrant nightlife, and thriving expat community, as well as keeping updated on events, and attractions.
The Thaiger is your ultimate guide to staying connected with Phuket’s ever-evolving landscape. To keep up with the most reliable news source on the island, subscribe to our newsletter and follow us on social media.
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Four electrocuted in hotel water treatment pond
SAMUI: One man was killed and three others were hospitalized on Saturday night after they were electrocuted while working in a wastewater retention pond at a hotel on Koh Samui. The men were using a pump to drain water from the pond at a hotel in Baan Cherng Mon, Bo Phut, when the pump became submerged in the water, electrocuting…
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French tourist drowns at Nai Thon
PHUKET: A French woman drowned after swimming in a red-flag zone on Nai Thon Beach on Saturday afternoon. Anne Sophie Marie Torrijos-Faisant, 23, reportedly drowned as her friends looked on. They were unable to help as she was dragged out to sea by a rip current. “We were told that Ms Torrijos-Faisant was swimming with her friends when she was…
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Phuket Vegetarian Festival dates announced
PHUKET: Phuket Vice Governor Prajiad Aksornthammakul announced the dates of this year’s Vegetarian Festival, as well as a special prayer ceremony to honor HM King Bhumibol Adulyadej, earlier this week. The nine-day festival is slated to take place from October 1-9. The event attracts thousands of visitors to Phuket to witness the festivities, which include fire-walking, bladed-ladder climbing, hundreds of…
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Island-wide security center for foreign nationals promised
PHUKET: The Royal Thai Police announced yesterday morning that new safety measures will be taken by Provincial Police to boost tourist “confidence” in light of the August 12 bombings. At a meeting of local officials and consular representatives, the police responded positively to the requests of 15 consuls to assign officers to a contact and information center in case of…
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Visa-on-arrival fee to double from Sept 27
PHUKET: The fee for visa on arrival in Thailand, enjoyed by citizens of 18 countries around the world, will double from 1,000 to 2,000 baht, with effect from September 27. Visa on arrival is available at many points of entry throughout Thailand and is good for a single use. The 18 countries on the list are Bulgaria, Bhutan, China, Cyprus,…
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Four-year-old finds father hanging from tree
PHUKET: A four-year-old girl found her dead father hanging by his neck from a tree near the Tah Rua Temple this morning. The 43-year-old man, named Wirot Jadsang, used to work as a hotel cook. He reportedly died about two hours before his daughter found his body, on her way to school. Lt Col Sanich Nookon of Thalang Police arrived…
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Another car mysteriously bursts into flames
PHUKET: The driver of a Honda Accord had to make an emergency stop when his car burst into flames last night. The car’s owner, Nantapol Saelim, 34, was driving from his house in Koh Kaew and heading into town about 10pm, when he smelled burning and promptly pulled in to the Merlin Hotel car park on Yaowarat Road, police told…
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Phuket Town bars raided, managers charged
PHUKET: Proprietors of two bars in Phuket Town were charged yesterday morning for selling alcohol after-hours in raids conducted by police and public health officials. At 12:30am, the officers paid a visit to the venue Harem, located on Phang Nga Road in Talad Yai, where they found alcohol still being served to customers. Regulations allow entertainment venues to open until…
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Samui money share dispute ends in murder-suicide
SAMUI: The manager of a popular bar near Chaweng Beach on Koh Samui reportedly shot dead his friend last night before turning the gun on himself after a shootout with police and a five-hour standoff. Bor Phut Police officers arrived at Bar Solo around 1:30am to find the body of Chulit Somakert lying on the floor. His alleged killer, Samroeng…
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Israeli ambassador thanks gov for M’bala ban
PHUKET: Israeli Ambassador Simon Roded met with Phuket Governor Chamroen Tipayapongtada at Phuket Provincial Hall yesterday, where he thanked the governor for not allowing a controversial French comedian to take the stage in January this year. A performance by controversial comedian and hate-speech convict Dieudonne M’bala M’bala was scheduled to take place at the Illuzion night club in Phuket, but…
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Sinkhole threatens to swallow road in Krabi Village
KRABI: A sinkhole that appeared overnight in a village in Krabi is threatening to swallow up a road and nearby houses if it gets any larger. District officials went to inspect the 3.5-meter deep hole that opened up on a roadside yesterday in Lam Tab district after heavy rainfall. After climbing down into the 1.5-meter-wide hole, inspectors discovered that it…
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Thailand named ‘least miserable’ by Bloomberg
PHUKET: Thailand has been named the least miserable country in the world, according to the 2016 ‘Misery Index’ compiled by Bloomberg. A total of 74 countries were included in the survey. The index was first introduced in 1980 by American economist Arthur Okun and is determined by adding the inflation rate to the unemployment rate. Factors such as the strength…
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Phuket’s top cop issues Pokemon Go warning
PHUKET: Phuket’s top cop is warning islanders to play Pokemon Go with caution. Phuket Provincial Police Commander Teeraphol Thipjaroen expressed his concerns earlier this month, addressing both players and game developers. “As we all know, the game is played by connecting your smartphone with real time Google maps. As the game can be played in public places, players may trespass…
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Five arrested with 400kg of kratom
PHUKET: Five suspects were arrested with 400 kilograms of kratom leaves during a raid in Rassada last night. Governor Chamroen Tippayapongtada revealed details of the arrests at a press conference held at the Phuket office of the Narcotics Control Board (NCB) this morning. The suspects were named as Sirichai Madlerdsak, 35, Chaisiri Sekpatan, 30, Usaman Mani, 25, Samlee Yapa, 25…
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Search continues for missing fishing crew
PHUKET: The Royal Thai Navy resumed their search this morning for five fishing boat crew members still missing after their boat sank off southern Phuket in stormy conditions on Sunday. Four men were found floating in the sea on Tuesday, including the stricken vessel’s captain, who was later pronounced dead (story here). A fifth crew member was rescued by a…
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Fifth missing crew member found
PHUKET: A fishing boat this morning picked up one of six crew members still lost at sea after their vessel sank off the south coast of Phuket yesterday. Four of the crew – comprising nine Burmese men and their Thai captain – were rescued by the Third Area Naval Command this morning (story here). The crew member was found floating…
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Three rescued after boat sinks off Phuket, 6 still missing
PHUKET: A Royal Thai Navy search and rescue team this morning plucked four men from stormy seas after their fishing boat sank about two nautical miles off Promthep Cape. One of the men was pronounced dead on arrival. Six other crew members are still missing. The Third Naval Area Command responded to a call at 9:20pm yesterday from a person…
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Mazda blows up in Krabi dentist’s driveway
KRABI: The driver of a Mazda 2 escaped serious injury last night when her three-year-old hatchback burst into flames as she pulled into her driveway. Nattira Phumchat, 27, a dentist at Krabi Hospital, was arriving home from the market in Krabi Town at around 8pm, when smoke began billowing out from under the car’s hood. “I stopped the car and…
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Rewards for would-be Patong bombing suspect
PHUKET: Another explosive device was found in Patong yesterday, police confirmed. A phone-based explosive device was found in China Town Plaza, near where a security guard recovered a similar device on August 10. The device’s recovery comes in the wake of bombings across Thailand’s south this weekend, that killed four and left more than 30 injured. Phuket Provincial Police released…
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Light rail plans approved for submission to ministry
PHUKET: Phuket Governor Chamroen Tipayapongtada met with private and public sector officials at Phuket Provincial Hall today, where the multi-billion-baht light rail project plans were finally agreed upon. The news comes in the wake of a push by Governor Chamroen earlier this month, when he called on the Office of Transport and Traffic Policy and Planning (OTP) in Bangkok to…
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TMD issues storm warning for Andaman region
PHUKET: The Thai Meteorological Department (TMD) this morning issued a storm warning for the Andaman region as monsoon rains continue to batter the southern provinces and the Gulf of Thailand. All ships should proceed with caution and small boats stay ashore until August 18, as strong wind whips up 2-3 meter high waves in the Andaman Sea and the upper…
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Thai tourism takes brief hit after bombings
PHUKET: Phuket hotel and tourism organizations issued a joint statement yesterday evening in the wake of a string of bombings across southern Thailand, including twin bombings in Patong yesterday (story here). The Phuket Tourist Association, Thai Hotel Association, Patong Hotel Association and the Kata Karon Hotel Business Association’s declaration stated that they expect the bombings to briefly affect the numbers…
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Update: Security stepped up nationwide after bombings
PHUKET: In a statement issued this morning, Phuket Governor Chamroen Tipayapongtada said has ordered additional security personnel to be deployed across the island, in the wake of two blasts in Patong this morning. The governor’s comments come after a meeting with military and police advisers at Phuket Provincial Hall. The province was put on ‘high alert’ yesterday, after a bomb…
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Blasts in Patong, across south, kill 3, injure dozens
PHUKET: Eleven explosions have rocked southern Thailand in less than 24 hours, including two blasts in Patong (story here). Explosions in Trang, Hua Hin and Surat Thani provinces have left three dead and more than 30 wounded. The blasts began yesterday in Trang, where an explosion killed one and injured seven others while vendors were setting up stalls in a…
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Governor urges calm in wake of Trang bombing
PHUKET: The Phuket governor has put the province on high alert in the wake of last night’s bomb scare in Patong and this afternoon’s bombing in Trang. At least eight people were injured after a bomb exploded at a walking street market in downtown Trang city today. The blast occurred while vendors were setting up their stalls along Ruenrom Road,…
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Vachira, PRBC hold blood drive to honor HM Queen
PHUKET: Representatives of Vachira Phuket Hospital and the Phuket Regional Blood Center (PRBC) are urging people to donate blood today and tomorrow in honor of HM the Queen’s birthday under the nationwide ‘Give Blood for Mom’ campaign. Vachira Phuket Hospital is accepting blood donations until 8pm tonight on the fourth floor of the hospital in Samkong, Phuket Town. Donors will…
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Double bomb scare in Patong turns up duds
PHUKET: Frightened locals alerted police of two suspicious, possibly explosive objects found in Patong last night. “We received reports of suspicious objects placed in two spots – one in China Town on Soi Sai Nam Yen road, and the second on Sai 2 Road in front of a nearby hotel. We ordered Patong Police officers to look into the matter,”…
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Rajabhat University to host ‘Science Week 2016’
PHUKET: Rajabhat University is inviting the public to visit its Phuket campus for ‘Science Week 2016’, which runs August 17-19. The annual exposition of the university’s science education facilities is part of an initiative sponsored by the Ministry of Science and Technology to motivate interest in science subjects. University students are putting on demonstrations of the institution’s science tech in…
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One dead in stabbing incident on Bypass Road
PHUKET: Phuket City Police are searching for two unidentified men, believed to be Myanmar nationals, who stabbed another Burmese man to death on his first day of work at a wood factory on the bypass road last night. The police received reports of the stabbing from staff at the factory at about 7pm. “Ar Naing, 42, was sprawled face-up over…
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Elderly tourist dies while swimming on Koh Phi Phi
KRABI: An elderly tourist is dead after reportedly suffering health complications while swimming off Phi Phi Island Monday afternoon. Krabi tourist police reported that 67-year-old Hongzhu Tang, a Chinese national, was swimming with a life vest at Loh Mu Di Beach when he reportedly cried out in distress. “Mr Tang was part of a Garden Hill Company tour group, which…
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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