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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Light-fingered Phuket woman undone by iPhone app
PHUKET: Phuket Police used a location app today to track down within 10 minutes a woman who had stolen a Danish tourist’s iPhone. Michael Dybdahl, 51, from Denmark, reported that his iPhone was missing to the Patong Police at 11:30am. “He said a woman visited his room at Bangla House last night, but he could not find his phone after…
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Local flowboarders head to Singapore
PHUKET: Phuket’s rising stars are set to depart our sunny shores for another installment in the new sport of flowboarding (surfing on an artificial wave) when they head to Singapore for the the final round of the Asian FlowJam series at Sentosa Island, Singapore. Locals may know that Annissa Flynn, who won the Asian Women’s surfing trophy in 2012 when…
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Chinese tourists, skipper injured in speedboat collision off Phuket
PHUKET: Four Chinese tourists and one Thai national were injured yesterday after two speedboats collided at the docks on Koh Khai Nok, off the east coast of Phuket. “The Nontasak was heading toward the pier at about 3pm and crashed into the Star Andaman, which was carrying 32 Chinese tourists, as it was reversing from the pier,” said Lt Col…
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Local sailors head to the Top of the Gulf Regatta
Leading Phuket yachtsmen Scott Duncanson and Alfie Rowson are travelling to Pattaya this week to compete in the 2014 running of the prestigious Coronation Cup. The royally affiliated regatta is held annually at Ocean Marina, Jomtien, in celebration of His Majesty the King’s accession to the throne. Now in its 19th year, the event is unique in that competitors race…
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PACC anti-graft squad begins investigation of Phuket police extortion allegations
PHUKET: More than 10 officers from the Public-sector Anti Corruption Commission (PACC) are on the island investigating allegations that Chalong Police officers extorted money from the Phuket dive community. The team arrived in Phuket yesterday and have yet to set a date for their departure, the team’s lead investigator, who asked not to be named, told the Phuket Gazette. “We…
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Frenchman murdered in his sleep, confesses suspect
PHUKET: French tourist Fabrice Boigeol was bludgeoned to death in his sleep, Myanmar national Shwe Oo confessed yesterday. The body of Mr Boigeol, 37, was found in a pool of blood partially under a mattress in a room at the Moragot Resort, located off Saiyuan Road in Rawai, on April 18 (story here). After days scouring the area for clues,…
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Lifeguards walk off Phuket beaches as PPAO drops ball on contract
PHUKET: Lifeguards abandoned the island’s tourist beaches today after the Phuket Provincial Administration Office (PPAO) failed to break the deadlock surrounding a 22-million-baht lifeguard contract that expired yesterday. “Since the contract has ended, it is no longer our responsibility to patrol the beaches. All 108 lifeguards have quit their jobs,” Phuket Lifeguard Club President Prathaiyut Chuayuan told the Phuket Gazette…
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Phuket blockade over “100 bodies curve’
PHUKET: A blockade on Chao Fa West Road, lasting nearly three hours, was lifted yesterday afternoon after Phuket Governor Maitri Inthusut agreed to have short-term safety measures installed at the dangerous “100 bodies curve” within five days. A temporary barrier, warning lights and safety signs will be erected at the curve, Governor Maitri told the press. “As a long-term solution,…
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Phuket’s black wastewater oozes toward tourists
PHUKET: Alarmed officials are concerned how the weather has turned the flow of black wastewater from a canal at Bang Tao toward a beach area where tourists swim. “All tourists are afraid to swim here. They are going to Layan Beach instead,” said local resident Jumnong Korkaew. When Governor Maitri Inthusut inspected the site on April 12 (story here), the…
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Phuket teens waive police brutality claim
PHUKET: Two of the three teenagers allegedly struck by police officers investigating the rape of a pregnant woman in Phuket last Sunday night have publicly declared that the officers never struck them. The declaration was made during a public meeting this morning at Provincial Hall in the presence of Phuket Governor Maitri Inthusut. “Police did not hit or threaten any…
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Phuket faces no lifeguards on beaches as contract debacle ebbs on
PHUKET: There may be no lifeguards patrolling Phuket beaches on Monday if compromise is not reached between the island’s lifeguard club and Phuket Provincial Administration Organization (PPAO) over the new, hotly-debated 22-million-baht club budget. Though the current contract expires today (April 27), Phuket Lifeguard Club President Prathaiyut Chuayuan is holding firm to his desire to increase salaries for his staff…
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Road-raged Russian attacks Australian tourist, knocking his teeth out
PHUKET: A Russian national has been charged with attacking an Australian tourist walking down the street with his family on Wednesday night. Police were called to the scene by customers at the nearby Spice House Restaurant on Karon Beach at about 9:30pm, said Maj Theeradech Jiruksa of the Karon Police. The Russian, 27-year-old Evgenii Baturin, had already fled the scene…
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QSI Kid Expo kicks off this Sunday
PHUKET: Prep the kids for this Sunday because QSI International School Phuket will hold its first-ever “Kid Expo” from 1-5pm. Dozens of local business will be on-site offering services and activities for children, aiming to provide “everything a family needs” in one place. The expo will see companies offering an enormous range of activities aimed at young children and teens,…
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Phuket Pride Week’s Grand Parade to block beach road on Sunday
PHUKET: Phuket Pride Week 2014 will go out with a bang on Sunday with its Grand Parade – the highlight of the eight-day event – marching down Patong’s beachfront road. The beach road will be blocked during the parade, which starts at 3pm at Soi Tan and will present a plethora of floats, fantastically dressed people, street entertainment and music.…
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“She begged for her life’: Phuket mother tells of pregnant daughter’s rape ordeal
PHUKET: The mother of the pregnant woman raped by twin teenage brothers in Phuket last Sunday night has told the Phuket Gazette how the men ignored her daughter’s pleas for mercy. “She begged them not to do it, but they didn’t listen,” the mother told the Gazette. “They didn’t only rape and rob her. They choked her very hard as…
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Traditional cures on offer at Phuket Expo
PHUKET: The 6th Thai Traditional Medicine Expo started Wednesday at Jungceylon and will continue through Sunday, showcasing Thai herbs, therapeutic reflexology and acupuncture. A cooking contest with Thai herbs and demonstrations of massage with shells, wooden hammers and coconut husks will be among the attractions offered free of charge. Diagnostic exams using Thai traditional medical techniques will also be complimentary,…
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Patong alcohol ban as Pian guns for mayor
PHUKET: The sale of alcohol will be banned throughout Patong tonight and tomorrow (including tomorrow night) as residents go to the polls to elect a Patong Mayor and several new councilors. Former Patong Mayor Pian Keesin will run for re-election. He will face two candidates in the race: Phuket Democrat Chalermluck Kebsab and former councilor Kittisan Kuru of the Patong…
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Asean disaster specialists meet in Phuket to prepare for the next big one
PHUKET: Doctors and disaster medicine specialists from nine Asean countries are in Phuket to attend a workshop aimed at sharing knowledge and upgrading disaster response systems. Participants at the “Asean Disaster Medicine Workshop”, being held from April 23 to 25, described emergency response systems and international cooperation mechanisms in their own countries. They also took part in a simulation at…
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Phuket’s one-stop yacht center trial period hits first software snag
PHUKET: The long-awaited, 70-million-baht one-stop yacht center at Chalong Pier opened on Monday only to see system bugs force officers to register all inbound yachts and crews by hand. “Monday was our first trial day for the center, and we had a lot of tourists come to Chalong Pier,” explained Phuket Provincial Administration Office Transportation Division Chief Prasit Yotharak. “We…
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Phuket Police brutality at heart of mega-blockade
PHUKET: Four police officers were removed from active duty last night to bring an eight-hour blockade of Phuket’s critical Thepkrasattri Road to an end at about 11:30pm. The officers – Lt Akarapol Siwilai, Sub Lt Manus Faipetch, Sgt Maj Sansak Choti and Sgt Yongyuth Ritplud, all of the Tah Chat Chai Police Station – were transferred to Phuket Provincial Hall…
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Angry Phuket mob stages blockade over twin teen rape suspects
PHUKET: A mob of angry residents this afternoon blockaded Phuket’s critical main artery, Thepkrasattri Road, amid outrage over the twin teenagers who raped a pregnant woman in the area on Sunday night. The blockade, just north of the turnoff to Phuket International Airport, formed at about 2pm after villagers realized that police would not be bringing the twin brothers to…
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Anything to declare? Airport officials asked to target bags of undisclosed cash
PHUKET: Officers at Phuket International Airport have been asked to target people carrying large amounts of undisclosed cash in the ongoing battle to crack down on transnational crime. The request comes from Glenn Tankard of the Australian Federal Police (AFP). Mr Tankard was in Phuket early this month in his role as head of the Thai Transnational Crime Coordination Network…
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Phuket airport health officials ramp up MERS surveillance
PHUKET: Health officials at Phuket International Airport have ramped up efforts to identify any travellers arriving in Phuket who are suspected of carrying the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome-Coronavirus (Mers-CoV). The news follows the death of a Malaysian man from complications caused by MERS after returning from Saudi Arabia, in what appears to be the first fatal case of the disease…
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Teens confess to rape of pregnant Phuket woman
PHUKET: Twin brothers confessed yesterday to the rape, sexual assault, assault and robbery of a 25-year-old pregnant woman along a dark stretch of road in northern Phuket on Sunday. “The suspects face all four charges, including ‘use of a vehicle, in a robbery and evasion of police,'” Phuket Provincial Police Deputy Commander Peerayut Karajedee told the Phuket Gazette. “They claim…
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Blackout in parts of northern Phuket tomorrow
PHUKET: Thalang District Electricity Authority (TDEA) has announced a major blackout scheduled to affect residents in Thalang tomorrow from 9am to 5pm. The scheduled blackout will affect areas along the southbound lane of Thepkrasattri Road, from the Bank for Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives Thalang branch to the LPG gas station in Baan Li Porn. Thalang Hospital will be affected, but…
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Phuket residents approve north-south Chalong underpass
PHUKET: Local residents yesterday voted to approve a route for the Chalong underpass: a two-way underpass stretching one kilometer long that joins Chao Fa West Road and Wiset Road. The selected route was chosen at the second public hearing for the project, held at The Metropole Hotel in Phuket Town. The chosen route was among four options presented yesterday. The…
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Twin brothers arrested for rape of pregnant Phuket woman
PHUKET: Police are questioning 17-year-old twin brothers suspected of raping a pregnant woman along a dark stretch of road in northern Phuket on Sunday night. Tah Chat Chai Police have the pair in custody and are currently questioning them over the incident. The brothers are suspected of kicking a 25-year-old woman who is five months pregnant off her motorcycle, causing…
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Kuwait’s MG7 Cricket Club take out Cup Final; CBBs win Plate Final
The 11th Annual Phuket International Cricket Sixes Tournament 2014 wrapped up on Sunday after eleven hard-fought matches. Match oneThe final play-off match one saw Wild Men From Borneo (WMFB) against the Southern Stars. The Wild Men went out and scored 33 runs with Scarface retiring hurt on 11. The Southern Stars won. Match twoThe first semi-final in the Plate division…
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Pregnant woman kicked off her motorbike, raped in northern Phuket
PHUKET: Two men kicked a pregnant woman off her motorcycle, causing her to break a leg, then dragged her off the road and raped and robbed her in Mai Khao on Sunday night. The 25-year-old woman is five months pregnant. She was riding home alone from her job as a convenience store cashier when the attack occurred at about 10:30pm…
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Police believe French national killed during robbery
PHUKET: Police believe a French national found dead in his rented Phuket bungalow on Friday was killed in the midst of a robbery. Officers are now working on identifying two suspects recorded by the resort’s CCTV cameras. The body of Fabrice Boigeol, 37, was found lying in a pool of blood partially under a stripped mattress in a room at…
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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