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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Hot-headed somtam vendor wanted for Phuket shooting
PHUKET: Phuket Police are on the lookout for a somtam (spicy Thai salad) vendor following a local building supplies shop staffer being shot in the head at point-blank range with a homemade zip gun south of Phuket Town last night. Somjit Chueajan, 21, from Lampang province in northern Thailand, remains in the intensive care unit at Vachira Hospital Phuket, in…
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Children’s Day play starts tomorrow
PHUKET: Tomorrow Thais across the country will be celebrating the annual Children’s Day festivities. In Phuket Town, the Phuket Provincial Administrative Organization (OrBorJor) will be staging its activities at the Provincial Hall (map here) from 8am to 4pm. Among the activities, 83 bicycles will be given away as prizes, a “Children’s Playland” will be set up and gifts, games, prizes,…
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Rescued baby dolphin and mother losing deadly battle at Phuket Marine Biological Center
PHUKET: Serious internal infections have left a mother striped dolphin and her baby in critical condition, despite the pair being rescued on January 4 in Phang Nga and receiving round the clock care at the Phuket Marine Biological Center (PMBC). “The mother dolphin has been unable to swim since she was first rescued. She had wounds on her skin and…
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After Phuket, ambassadors target tourist safety in Krabi
PHUKET: The British, Canadian and Dutch Ambassadors to Thailand met with the top cop in Krabi yesterday to discuss tourism-safety measures and to follow up on several prominent police cases. The visit comes just two days after the three ambassadors spoke with Phuket Governor Maitri Inthusut to highlight their chief concerns for tourists’ safety in Phuket. Speaking with Krabi Provincial…
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Unidentified body found in Phuket canal
PHUKET: The body of an unidentified Asian man with head wounds and heavy bruising was found floating in a canal near Layan Beach (map here) on Phuket’s west coast, in the early hours of this morning. “We received a report at about 3am from the fisherman who discovered the body. We believe the body was in the water for about…
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Police reinforcements to bolster Phuket tourist safety
PHUKET: A 30-day boost in tourist-safety measures on Phuket sees an additional 400 Royal Thai Police, sourced from every division of the force, stepping foot on the island today. The desperately needed extra “troops” on the ground comes days after Ambassadors to Thailand from Canada, the Netherlands and UK visited Phuket Governor Maitri Inthusut to voice their concerns about tourist…
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Two Russians charged over beach assault; search on for two more suspects
PHUKET: Two out of the four Russian men who allegedly led an unprovoked attack on a well-known local couple at Catch Beach Club on Surin Beach have been charged with assault.Phuket Police are still searching for the two other men.Canadian Tom Travers, managing partner of Indigo Real Estate agency, was beaten unconscious and had his cheekbone broken in three places…
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Phuket Gazette Sports: Chelsea slump to shock home loss to Swansea in Cup
Swansea upset Chelsea in League Cup Reuters / Phuket Gazette PHUKET: Swansea City inflicted the second shock home defeat in eight days on Chelsea, goals from Michu and Danny Graham giving the Welsh club a 2-0 win in their Capital One (League) Cup semi-final first leg last night. Michael Laudrup’s Swansea, playing in their first major semi-final for 49 years,…
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Migrant worker deportations still on hold: Phuket Employment chief
PHUKET: Migrant workers in Phuket still waiting to complete the nationality verification process, in order to become legally registered laborers, have at least a one-week reprieve from any deportation crackdown, the Phuket Provincial Employment Office (PPEO) chief Yawapa Pibulpol confirmed this morning. The news follows the Cabinet, headed by Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra, not discussing the issue of whether or…
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Tuk-tuk, jet-ski, taxi scams: Ambassadors name the bane of Phuket
PHUKET: In their first official visit to Phuket, the British, Canadian and Dutch Ambassadors to Thailand today plainly described their chief concerns about the scams and cheats continuing to plague Phuket’s tourism industry. Speaking with Phuket Governor Maitri Inthusut at Provincial Hall this afternoon, ambassadors Mark Kent of the UK, Philip Calvert of Canada and Joan Boer of the Netherlands…
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Iranian tourist attacks Phuket parking attendant
PHUKET: Iranian tourist Khalili Sina today attacked a Phuket parking service operator who was trying to shift the tourist’s rented jeep.Khalili Sina allegedly smashed a broken beer bottle over the head of Muhammad Manoch, 21, and slashed his cheek.The incident happened on Rat-U-Thit 200 Pi Road in Patong at about 12:45am, Lt Col Jongserm Preecha of the Patong Police said.“Witnesses…
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Phuket Live Wire: Infections of epidemic proportions
PHUKET: My fellow editor at InfoWorld, Robert Lemos, published a story in eWeek last month that took Thailand to task for its incredibly lousy record with different kinds of malware. Quoting a study from antivirus company Sophos, Lemos says that Thailand is the third worst country in the world for PC infections. According to the eWeek report: “A user surfing…
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Two locals attacked by Russian men in Surin
PHUKET: An allegedly unprovoked attack by several Russian men at a Phuket beach club early this morning has left two well-known local residents in hospital awaiting surgery.Canadian Tom Travers, managing partner of Indigo Real Estate agency, was knocked unconscious and had his cheekbone broken in three places during the attack. His girlfriend Jen Khamsorn suffered a broken nose when she…
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World Sports: Messi named the best – again
PHUKET: Lionel Messi, still only 25, was named the world’s best player for the fourth time in a row last night after a year in which finally produced his best form for Argentina as well as Barcelona. Messi was handed the award after a typically cheesy ceremony which featured a performance from a giant dancing armadillo named Fuleco, the mascot…
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UK, Canadian ambassadors put tourist safety on agenda
PHUKET: British Ambassador to Thailand Mark Kent and fellow ambassador Philip Calvert of Canada today placed their tourists’ safety squarely on their agenda with official visits to Phuket.This morning, Ambassador Kent and British Consul Michael Hancock focused their talks with Phuket Vice Governor Sommai Prijasilpa on what measures authorities have taken to help protect tourists on holiday in Phuket.“We are…
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Phuket Red Cross Fair lucky draw winner yet to claim B500k in gold
PHUKET: The lucky person who holds the winning ticket for the Red Cross Fair lucky draw top prize has yet to step forward and claim gold valued at nearly half a million baht. Phuket Governor Maitri Inthusut led the draw for the prize at 10:30pm on Saturday night at the central stage area at Saphan Hin (map here), where the…
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Phuket United sink Royal Navy
PHUKET: Phuket United unveiled new Brazilian winger Marcos Vinicius De Mendonco before their GMM Thai Futsal Premier League (TFPL) home game against Royal Navy on January 5. Phuket United won their last home game 7-3 against Lampang United to move up to 7th in the league. The newly installed floor covering at Saphan Hin was looking a bit worse for…
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Dubious Dane fined, sentenced but not kicked out of Phuket
PHUKET: The 18-year-old Danish man who was found guilty of falsely reporting a gang attack on Phuket’s Kamala Beach on New Year’s Eve has been fined 500 baht and handed down a two-year suspended jail sentence – but has not been deported.An officer at the Phuket Provincial Court told the Phuket Gazette this morning that Morten Budtz Berthelsen, reportedly the…
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8 injured as Phuket pickup flips, rolls into field
PHUKET: Two youngsters, a 12-year-old boy and an 18-year-old woman, are in hospital with serious head injuries after the pickup truck they were travelling in flipped and rolled down an embankment while returning to Phuket from Krabi last night. Natchanon Kaewrua, 12, and Jinta Petchkrua, 18, were thrown out of the back of the pickup when driver Somchai Kaewrua, 48,…
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Russian tour counters closed in Phuket, pending probe
PHUKET: All Russian tour counters in the Kata-Karon beach areas have been ordered to close until further notice and the local Labor Office has been requested to investigate them for possible breach for foreign worker regulations. The news came at a meeting at Kata-Karon Municipality yesterday, held to resolve the ongoing dispute between local tuk-tuk and taxi drivers and Russian…
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Phuket mangrove deforestation probe whittles down encroachment claim
PHUKET: The 70 rai of protected mangrove forests investigated on Phuket yesterday in fear it was being illegally encroached on was whittled down to only two rai after a followup probe this morning. “After I examined the Klong Mudong area in Chalong again today, I was able to determine that only about two rai of the land being reclaimed by…
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Migrant workers can stay “for now’: Phuket Employment Chief
PHUKET: Migrant workers in Phuket will not be deported while waiting to complete the nationality verification process, the Phuket Provincial Employment Office (PPEO) has confirmed. “Whether or not illegal workers will be deported will be announced after the Cabinet meeting on January 8,” PPEO chief Yawapa Pibulpol told the Phuket Gazette today. “It all depends on the Cabinet. We will…
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Marine police hook Phuket fish smuggler
PHUKET: A local resident in Rawai, at the southern end of Phuket, was arrested yesterday trying to smuggle more than 200 protected-species fish to Bangkok.Marine Police and Department of Marine and Coastal Resources (DMCR) Region 5 office in Phuket arrested Boonsuan Raknawa, 41, after officers received information about protected fish being smuggled to Bangkok via a public bus.“The suspect was…
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Anxiety key factor in Australian tourist death: Phuket hospital staff
PHUKET: While Phuket police continue their investigation into the death of 21-year-old Australian tourist Sebastian Eric Faulkner, staff at Patong Hospital have reported that the young man was showing signs of anxiety when he presented himself to the hospital just hours before his death.On recognizing the symptoms, doctors at Patong Hospital admitted him for minor depression.Mr Faulkner, from Melbourne, plunged…
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Phuket United beat Lampang United
PHUKET: Phuket United beat Lampang United 7-3 in their third home game of the Thai Futsal Premier League (TFPL) season on January 2.The match was played in front of 600 supporters at the 4,000-seat Indoor Sports Complex at Saphan Hin.Before the game, Phuket United’s head coach Suphol Senapeng told the Phuket Gazette: “Our main objective for this game is concentration…
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Villagers battle Patong tunnel to save ancestral homeland
PHUKET: With a history going back over 200 years, Baan Mon is the “original” Patong community. However the community members, numbering more than 1,000, are now in the front line as they scramble to protect their homes from the construction of the Patong tunnel – Phuket’s first road tunnel project. Baan Mon villagers claim that 90 per cent of residents…
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Phuket Opinion: Examine Phuket’s crackdown culture
PHUKET: The majority of readers who took part in the Phuket Gazette‘s recent online poll called for local authorities to strictly enforce existing laws in regards to illegal “black plate” taxis. Unfortunately, the inability or unwillingness of traffic police to consistently seek out and punish violators virtually guarantees no change in the status quo. Thus, recent efforts by the Phuket…
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Phuket suffers deadly “Seven Days of Danger’
PHUKET: The nationwide Seven Days of Danger road-safety campaign ended at midnight last night with three more deaths on Phuket’s roads than during last year’s safety efforts, but far fewer accidents reported. Nine deaths and 24 injuries in a total of 27 accidents were recorded by the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Phuket branch (DDPM-Phuket). Last year, six people…
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Phuket Police closing in on Phi Phi speedboat driver’s killers
PHUKET: Police have made headway in identifying and capturing the murderers of a Phi Phi speedboat driver who was stabbed to death in Phuket Town just before dawn yesterday. Ronnachai Chayliang, 26, was found dead in front of Wat Wichit Sangkharam, on Narisorn Road, at about 5:20am. He had suffered knife wounds to his neck, chest and back. “The body…
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Human Rights Watch urges Thailand: “Don’t deport Rohingya boat people’
PHUKET: International human rights agency Human Rights Watch today called for the Thai government to immediately halt its plan to deport ethnic Rohingya back to Burma. Thai authorities should allow the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the UN refugee agency, unhindered access to these and other boat migrants from Burma’s Arakan State to determine whether they are seeking…
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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