Phuket News
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Sunk costs: Phuket tourists rescued as dive trip springs a leak
Five foreign tourists had to be dramatically rescued off the Phuket coast after their dive boat sprang a leak and started taking on water mid-voyage. A dive trip turned into a soggy nightmare on Wednesday afternoon when a tour boat carrying five foreign holidaymakers began leaking on the way back from the idyllic islands of southern Thailand. The drama unfolded…
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Phuket to host Kebaya Festival celebrating Peranakan heritage in 2025
Phuket will take centre stage in the global cultural arena with the upcoming Kebaya Festival, which is a celebration of Peranakan heritage as part of the Phuket Creative City Festival 2025. Scheduled for August 9 to August 10, the event will be held in Phuket Old Town and Suan Luang (King’s Park), featuring a comprehensive programme of cultural exhibitions, performances,…
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Phuket tourism boom: 223 billion baht from Russian, Chinese visitors
Phuket has emerged as a popular destination for Russian, Chinese, and Indian tourists in the first five months of this year, contributing approximately 223 billion baht in revenue, according to the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT). Kamolphan Chalermsakulrat, deputy director of TAT Phuket, reported yesterday, July 9, that the island province received 5.85 million visitors between January and May, reflecting…
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Meth-fuelled mayhem: Thai cops nab drugged driver on Patong Hill
Patong police swooped late last night to arrest a Thai man who was not only high behind the wheel but also carrying methamphetamine on Phuket’s notorious Patong Hill. The dramatic arrest unfolded at around 1.30am today, July 9, at the Patong Hill intersection on Phra Metta Road, a busy route popular with late-night revellers. Under orders from Police Colonel Chalermchai…
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Close shave: Phuket cops rescue woman after scarf snags (video)
A routine patrol turned into a dramatic roadside rescue in Phuket after a woman narrowly escaped serious injury when her scarf tangled in her motorcycle wheel. Today, July 9, at 8.30am Police Senior Sergeant Major Thanakrit Kodi and Police Senior Sergeant Major Nattawich Kaewprom, squad leaders from the Riot Control Unit, Crime Suppression Division Region 8, were carrying out their…
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Rainy horror: Phuket-bound tour bus topples in ‘killer curve’ crash
A late-night bus journey turned into a terrifying ordeal after a Phuket-bound tour bus flipped over on a notorious bend, injuring 11 people and stranding dozens more in the pouring rain. At 8.30pm yesterday, July 8, Police Lieutenant Sunantha Rotphet of Phetchaburi City Police Station received reports of the accident on the southbound stretch of Phetkasem Road at kilometre 151…
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Drug suspects in Phuket: 1 pill, 1 gun, 1 boat shop of trouble
It was an early wake-up call with handcuffs for three drug suspects in Phuket after a series of dawn raids uncovered meth pills, crystal ice, and a stash of illegal firearms, including a boat mechanic armed to the teeth. The dramatic swoops kicked off at 3am yesterday, July 8, in Srisoonthorn and Koh Kaew, led by narcotics chief Chaiporn Yangchin…
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Disaster at sea: RTN drills for shipwreck chaos off Phuket
Phuket is gearing up to tackle maritime catastrophes head-on, staging an elaborate simulation of a passenger ship disaster that could save lives when real tragedy strikes. The Thai Maritime Enforcement Command Centre Region 3 (Thai-MECC 3), based at the Royal Thai Navy (RTN)’s Third Naval Area Command at Cape Panwa, spearheaded the operation yesterday, July 8, in Phuket Town as…
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Phuket woman escapes car crash at roadside stall with minor injury
A Thai woman narrowly escaped serious injury after a car crashed into her roadside beverage stall in Phuket on Sunday, July 6. The driver later accepted full responsibility for the incident. The vendor, Naruemon Thorthip, shared CCTV footage of the crash on Facebook the same day. According to the timestamp in the video, the incident occurred at around 2pm near…
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Thai Vietjet launches cheap Mumbai-Phuket flights
Holidaymakers dreaming of sun-soaked Phuket get ready to pack your bags – budget airline Thai VietJet Air is turning up the heat on the India-Thailand travel scene with a brand new direct flight from Mumbai to the island paradise. The low-cost carrier, part of the larger VietJet Aviation Group, is set to launch the highly anticipated route in August, giving…
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Burmese family in Phuket apologises after viral motorcycle photo
A Burmese family in Phuket issued a public apology after a photo of all seven members travelling on a single motorcycle went viral and sparked controversy on Thai social media. The image, showing a family of seven riding a motorcycle through the Sam Kong Tunnel in Phuket, was widely circulated on social media yesterday, July 7. In the photo, the…
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Tsunami fears rattle Phuket as officials urge calm
Thailand urged the public to “stay aware, not scared” after a spate of offshore earthquakes sent social media into meltdown and raised awkward questions about tsunami preparedness in Phuket and along Thailand’s Andaman coast. The call for calm came during a high-level emergency briefing chaired by Deputy Interior Minister Thirat Rattanawanich yesterday, Monday, July 7, as Phuket officials joined a…
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Family of 7 on motorcycle sparks safety outrage in Phuket
A couple in Phuket sparked online criticism after a photo showing them dangerously transporting five children on a motorcycle circulated on Thai social media. Phuket Hotnews, and Newshawk Phuket, shared images of the family of seven riding on a single motorcycle yesterday, July 6, accompanied by a caption reading, “How many people can you count?” According to the pages, the…
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Phuket’s got night fever as new market hits the spot
Phuket Town has a new reason to stay up late, a sprawling night market has officially opened near Surin Circle, giving a boost to small businesses and offering a fresh hotspot for locals and tourists alike. The Plern Pao Night Market was launched with a flourish on Saturday, July 5, with Phuket MP Thitikan Thitiphrutikul presiding over the opening ceremony.…
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Kuwait too late: Pensioner dies in Phuket beach tragedy
A 74 year old Kuwaiti man who ignored warnings not to swim in rough seas drowned at a Phuket beach, the latest in a string of tourist deaths in treacherous Thai waters. A holidaying Kuwaiti pensioner died after being pulled unconscious from the sea at Bang Tao Beach in Phuket early on Saturday morning, July 5. Police arrived at the…
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Naked Russian plunges from Phuket flat in midnight meltdown
A naked Russian man is fighting for his life after a bizarre late-night plunge from a third-floor dormitory in Phuket Town. Maksim was found unconscious and stark naked outside the company dorm on Luang Pho Road after jumping from a balcony in a wild, unexplained episode that left witnesses stunned. Emergency crews from the Kusoldharm Foundation and an ambulance team…
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2 Iranian men arrested for stealing trainers from Phuket shoe shop
Police on Friday arrested two Iranian men for stealing a pair of trainers in the Patong neighbourhood of Phuket. Officers from Patong Police Station reviewed CCTV footage from a second-hand shoe shop on Phang Mueang Sai Kor Road, in the Patong sub-district of Kathu District, Phuket, after being alerted to the theft on Thursday, July 3. Two foreign men were…
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Spare us change! Thai minister begs tourists not to feed beggars
Instead of tackling Thailand’s growing homelessness crisis head-on, a top Thai minister has urged the public to stop giving handouts to beggars, especially in tourist hotspots like Phuket, Bangkok, Chiang Mai and Chon Buri. Varawut Silpa-archa, the Minister of Social Development and Human Security, claimed well-meaning generosity was actually making the problem worse. “Begging has existed for years but it’s…
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Burmese duo busted after luxury handbag theft in Patong
It was a brazen late-night grab that stunned beachgoers—but police didn’t take long to track down the culprits. Patong Police have arrested two Burmese suspects accused of snatching a luxury handbag from a tourist in the early hours along Patong Beach. The arrest took place yesterday, July 4, when officers swooped on a property at 122/4 Soi Prom Phriang, in…
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Andaman manhunt: Bomb suspects vanish, truck seized
Thailand’s tourist heartlands are still reeling after last month’s coordinated bomb attacks in Krabi, Phang Nga and Phuket and the manhunt to catch the suspects is far from over. Police have now arrested five of the 20 suspects believed to be behind the shocking explosions that sent locals and holidaymakers scrambling for cover in the Andaman coastal provinces. Fifteen suspects…
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Busted: Phuket grocery shop doubled as Yaba drug den
A quiet neighbourhood grocery shop in Phuket has been exposed as a brazen front for drug dealing, after stunned officials swooped in on a sting operation that netted hundreds of methamphetamine (meth) pills. The arrest unfolded on Wednesday evening, July 2, at around 6.30pm, in Baan Phru Samphan, Thepkrasattri subdistrict. Phuket Provincial Defence Officer Akkara Suwatthikul led the raid, backed…
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Norse Atlantic soars with new Thailand routes, slashes US services
Norse Atlantic Airways is ramping up its winter schedule, adding four exciting new routes connecting Europe with Thailand as part of its ongoing expansion into Southeast Asia. Set to launch in October and December, these new flights are designed to tap into the surging demand for travel to Thailand, one of the top destinations for European leisure travellers. The carrier…
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Phuket kicks off health expo to boost wellness tourism
Phuket is on a mission to become the world’s top wellness tourism hub, and the island is off to a strong start with the launch of the Phuket Health Expo 2025. Kicking off yesterday, July 2, the five-day event, held at Central Festival Phuket, aims to position the island as the ultimate destination for health, wellness, and lifestyle tourism. The…
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Karon love triangle turns deadly: 2 men stabbed in brawl
A fatal knife fight between two Myanmar nationals has left both men dead after a violent confrontation over a suspected love affair in Karon. The brutal clash, which took place near the entrance of a hotel staff dormitory, shocked the local community. Police were called to the scene at approximately 10.45pm yesterday, July 2, where they found the two men,…
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Phuket double whammy leaves locals with no water and no power
Locals in a swanky corner of Phuket are set for a scorching Friday as power and water supplies are cut off simultaneously, thanks to scheduled maintenance works by the island’s utilities overlords. The Provincial Waterworks Authority (PWA) Phuket warned that the entire Kamala area and parts of Cherng Talay will go dry from 9am to 4.30pm tomorrow, July 4, all…
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Shocking victory: Russian fighter’s electrifying celebration (video)
A Russian MMA fighter got more than just a buzz from the crowd after winning a bizarre cannabis-fuelled fight in Thailand, he got electrocuted while celebrating. Ivan Parshikov, a former ONE Lumpinee contender, had just won his bout at the controversial Weed Boxing Championship, where fighters are allowed to blaze up before stepping into the ring. But as Parshikov clambered…
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Thalang thief caught red-handed with stolen bike hidden in room
A man has been arrested in Thalang after being caught hiding a stolen motorbike inside his room just hours after it was reported missing. The theft unfolded yesterday, July 1, when police swooped in on 38 year old Supachai Kaewplod at his residence in the Keha U-Athorn housing estate in Srisoonthorn. The arrest was led by Police Colonel Nikorn Chuthong,…
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Lights out in Bang Tao: Friday blackout warning for Phuket locals
Hundreds of homes, hotels, and businesses in Phuket’s Bang Tao area are set to be plunged into darkness this Friday, July 4, as part of a planned power cut to upgrade the local grid. The Provincial Electricity Authority (PEA) Thalang Branch says the blackout, scheduled from 9am to 4.30pm, is needed to safely carry out high-voltage upgrades and install new…
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Phuket boosts security with 98 million baht ‘Phuket Eye’ expansion
Phuket is about to get a major security upgrade as local officials unveil plans to expand the “Phuket Eye” initiative, a groundbreaking security model aimed at making the island safer. With crime suppression, tourist safety, and traffic management as top priorities, the initiative promises to bring peace of mind to both residents and visitors. Police Major General Sinlert Sukhum, a…
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Filipina killed in horror Patong crash as SUV ploughs into bikes
A Phuket holiday turned into a nightmare after a Filipina woman was killed and several others injured when an SUV smashed into motorbikes in a horrific evening pile-up. A serious multi-vehicle collision claimed the life of a Filipina woman and left several people injured on the main road through Kalim, just north of Patong, last night. The crash occurred 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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