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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Foul complaints prompt Phuket piggery inspection
PHUKET: An inspection of a chicken and pig farm led by Phuket Vice Governor Somkiet Sangkaosuttirak has resulted in several recommendations for the farm owners to follow, but otherwise found nothing untoward other than the foul odor emanating from the site. The inspection follows residents at the The Valley 2 housing estate filing a group complaint with the Damrongtham Center…
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Olympics: Medalists come home to heroes’ welcome
PHUKET MEDIA WATCH – Thailand news selected by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community Rousing welcome Phuket Gazette / The Nation PHUKET: Thailand’s Olympic athletes returned home to a resounding heroes’ welcome yesterday after capturing three medals – including two silver – at the London Games. The Kingdom finished 57th out of 205 countries that competed in the sporting extravaganza.…
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Protest pressures Phuket police to reopen teen death crash probe
PHUKET: Following a public protest yesterday, Chalong Police will reopen their investigation into a traffic accident in which a 16-year-old boy died on Sunday. About 20 people, including the aggrieved father, Sompong Sae-min, friends and family, gathered at Chalong Police Station at about 10am. According to the police report, Weerachat Sae-min, a 16-year-old first-year commerce student at Phuket Technology College,…
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Phuket Live Wire: What exactly is this new 4G?
PHUKET: Thailand has been bombarded with “3G” advertising for years. As befits a term with no real definition, “3G” is all about marketing. A phone company can call two tin cans and a piece of string “3G” and get away with it. Not so 4G. Internet Service Providers (ISPs) in the US and Europe have been taken to court over…
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Phi Phi islanders, resort tackle rising tide of monsoon trash
PHUKET: Island residents and local resort staff on Koh Phi Phi Don teamed up for a mass beach cleanup on Sunday, removing more than 100 trash bags worth of rubbish that had washed ashore.Local residents together with more than 45 staff from the Holiday Inn Resort Phi Phi Island tackled the rising tide of trash at Lanah Bay, one of…
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Fireball engulfs Phuket marina workshop
PHUKET: Police believe that children playing with fireworks may have accidentally started a fire that destroyed a workshop at Phuket’s Yacht Haven Marina last night. Prai Junnoo, a 33-year-old security guard at the marina, reported the fire at about 9pm. Firefighters from the Mai Khao Tambon Administration Organization (OrBorTor) and the Thepkrasattri Municipality fire brigades arrived swiftly and took 30…
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US court postpones trial of Phuket-based child porn suspect
PHUKET: The trial of a Ukrainian man arrested in Phuket and recently extradited to the United States for alleged involvement in international distribution of child pornography over the internet has been postponed to November. Maksym Shynkarenko, 33 at the time of his arrest, was taken into custody here in January 2009 at his luxury villa in Chalong through the collaborative…
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THAI’s low-cost carrier plan stalls
PHUKET: Plagued by financial losses, Thai Airways International (THAI) has decided to drop plans to establish a low-cost carrier airline by 2013.The chairman of the board, Ampon Kittiampon, confirmed on August 9 that, given the company’s recent financial under-performance, launching a low-cost carrier would not be included in this year’s strategic business plan.Dr Ampon told the press that he was…
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Phuket honors Queen’s birthday
PHUKET: Phuket Governor Tri Augkaradacha this morning led an offering of alms to 81 monks before a mass blessing was held to honor HM Queen Sirikit’s 80th birthday today, which is also honored as Mother’s Day in Thailand.The ceremony began at the auspicious time of 7:09am, with the Governor joined by his wife, Mrs Nalinee, as well as Phuket Vice…
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Police find “nothing suspicious’ in Chinese drownings
PHUKET: Chalong Police will not be conducting further investigations into two separate drowning deaths of Chinese tourists off Phuket this week, the Phuket Gazette has learned. Chalong Police Deputy Superintendent Boonlert Onklang told the Gazette yesterday that he received a report at about 11:30am on Tuesday informing him that a Chinese woman had died while on a snorkeling trip to…
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Phuket kindergarten students get head start on Mother’s Day celebrations
PHUKET: As Phuket gears up to celebrate HM Queen Sirikit’s 80th birthday on Sunday (August 12), which will also be honored as Mother’s Day in Thailand, Phuket Provincial Administration Organization (PPAO) President Paiboon Upatising yesterday led a Mother’s Day activity at the PPAO’s Sathit Ruam Pattana Kindergarten in Phuket Town. “We are holding this activity to honor HM The Queen…
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Phuket Sports: Laguna reigns over the Village
PHUKET: Defending T20 champions Laguna took on the Village in the Outrigger T20 league on Sunday, August 5 at Phuket’s ACG. The Village were hoping to avenge their defeat by Laguna in the final of the Island Furniture League. However, Laguna came out winners once again after setting a target of 152 runs, while the Village could only manage a…
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Phuket Gazette office closed on Monday
PHUKET: The Phuket Gazette would like to inform readers that our office will be closed on Monday, August 13, to observe the public holiday in honor of HM Queen Sirikit’s 80th birthday on August 12.All government offices and all bank main branches will also be closed on Monday.Advertisers in the Gazette Classifieds are assured that this will not affect any…
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Phuket set to celebrate Queen’s Birthday, Mothers’ Day
PHUKET: A host of special ceremonies are being held at different locations across the island to honor and celebrate HM Queen Sirikit’s 80th birthday and to celebrate Mothers’ Day on Sunday, August 12. Phuket Governor Tri Augkaradacha on Wednesday presided over the opening ceremony of a tree-planting event at King Rama 9 Park (Suan Luang) in Phuket Town to honor…
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Phuket Sports: Pair share Thailand Open lead
PHUKET: Korean Kim Hyung-tae and Japan’s Yasunori Yoshida made the most of near-perfect conditions yesterday to shoot eight under 64s and share a one-stroke lead after the opening round of the Thailand Open at Suwan Golf & Country Club.The winner of the Open will receive US $1 million in prize money.Early-starter Kim laid down a marker with nine birdies and…
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Resort developers charged over island land encroachment
PHUKET: Following the July 31 high-profile raid on a resort under construction on Rang Noi Island, off Phuket’s east coast, the Natural Resources and Environmental Crime Suppression Unit (NREC) has pressed charges against the developers for encroaching onto protected forest land. Kan Krao Company and Bridge Rang Noi Company were both charged yesterday with “possession [of] forest [land] without permission”.…
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Crash helmet saves minibiker at Phuket “curve of death’
SPECIAL REPORT By Thawit Bilabdullar and Orawin Narabal PHUKET: A high-quality crash helmet is credited with sparing a “minibike” enthusiast from critical injury after he lost control and crashed at one of Phuket’s most notorious traffic accident blackspots late last night. News of the crash was reported to Phuket Kusoldharm Foundation rescue workers at 11:30pm. At the scene, on Thepkrasattri…
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Top Muay Thai bouts to honor Queen’s Birthday
PHUKET: Thai kickboxing fighters will face-off in six World Muay Thai Council (WMC) championship bouts in Phuket on Sunday in celebration of HM Queen Sirikit’s 80th birthday.The event starts at 5pm and will be held at Bangla Boxing Stadium in Patong, which has a capacity of 3,000 people.VIP ticket prices start at 2,500; ringside tickets are 2,000 baht and stadium…
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Burmese worker nabbed for Phuket gold heist
PHUKET: Phuket Police today arrested a Burmese man who robbed a gold shop in Karon last night and made off with nearly two kilograms of solid gold, despite being shot by the shop owner. Burmese national Lacheman Kumar, 19, was arrested this morning at his home in Patak Rd Soi 10 in Karon, where he lived with his father, mother…
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Battle against rising prices continues with Blue Flag Fair in Phuket Town
PHUKET: The Department of Internal Trade (DIT-Phuket) kicked off its latest “Blue Flag Fair” in Phuket Town this afternoon. DIT-Phuket chief Supacha Bunthalit said the three-day event will feature 150 booths offering a wide variety of consumer goods at below normal market prices, including food products, garments, sheets, bedding and much more. The event is being held in the Mazda…
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Phuket Live Wire: Don’t get mugged by your mates
PHUKET: I have been holding off writing about more email scams, waiting so I can write about nailing somebody and getting them thrown in jail. So far, no luck. But in the past week I’ve received two messages from people I know, here in Phuket, who have had their email accounts hijacked. That’s quite a coincidence – if it is…
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Phuket FC sink Navy, 1-0
PHUKET: A beautiful second half goal by defender Nontaphan “Berm” Jiensathawong was enough to secure Phuket FC a 1-0 win over higher-ranked Navy in a match at Surakul Stadium in Phuket Town last night. Just over 2,000 fans turned up for the match, which was played in perfect conditions and heavy security, including a detachment of uniformed Navy servicemen. Navy…
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Prosecutor calls for new evidence in off-duty police shooting
PHUKET: The off-duty police officer alleged to have shot and killed a man in Phuket Town on May 5 has been placed on inactive duty pending a review of new evidence by the Provincial Prosecutor’s Office. The officer, Cpl Rachaporn Semaksorn, was assigned to the Patong Police at the time of the incident, during which it is alleged he shot…
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FC Phuket host Navy tonight
PHUKET: Beleaguered supporters of Phuket FC will be glad to return to the friendly confines of Surakul Stadium this evening, when their beloved Islanders will take on 7th-placed Navy. Kickoff is at 6:30pm. The match will be a reunion of sorts for the three Phuket cheer squadrons – The Hulks, The Mask and The Hardcore – who got an unusual…
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18-wheeler wipes out pickup truck, noodle stand: 1 dead, 6 injured
PHUKET: Thalang Police are searching for the driver of an 18-wheel truck and trailer that slammed into a pickup, plowing the vehicle into a roadside noodle stand in Phuket last night. The driver of the rig fled the scene, where one person was killed and six more injured. Thalang Police were notified of the accident, on Thepkrasattri Road northbound near…
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Surin dared killer into bag snatching, court told
PHUKET: The man who wielded the blade in the bungled bag snatch in which Australian tourist Michelle Smith was killed on June 20 was teased into it by his accomplice, the Phuket Provincial Court heard today. In presenting police evidence in the charges against the accused, Surasak Suwannachote and Surin Tadthong, Lt Col Boonlert Onklang of Chalong Police today read…
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57 candidates to contest Phuket OrBorJor election
PHUKET: The registration period for the upcoming Phuket Provincial Administration Organization (OrBorJor) council election, to be held on August 26, closed on Saturday with 57 candidates registering to contest the 24 council seats available.OrBorJor Chief Administrative Officer (Palad) Manop Leelasuthanon said the registration period, which opened on July 31, “received a great deal of attention from a great many people”.In…
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Raid on suspected Phuket casino ‘not spiteful’: Environmental Crime chief
PHUKET: The investigation of a suspected casino under construction on Rang Noi Island, just off the coast of Phuket Town, was carried out last Tuesday without prejudice and was not intended to defame or spite anyone, the top officer leading the raid has told the Phuket Gazette. Armed with a search warrant issued by the Phuket Provincial Court, more than…
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Online poll highlights fears of Phuket property “bubble’
PHUKET: A majority of Phuket Gazette online readers feel that real estate prices in Phuket will fall over the next five years due to oversupply, according to the most recent online poll. A total of 1,868 readers who took part in the 12-day poll were asked: Tanan Tanpaiboon, former head of the Phuket Real Estate Association, recently warned that over-development…
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Phuket Police investigate apparent stabbing suicide by Swiss expat
PHUKET: Police in Phuket are investigating the apparent suicide of a Swiss expatriate found with a fatal knife wound to the chest in his rented home in Rawai yesterday. Chalong Police at 11:30am were notified that a male Caucasian had taken his life by a stabbing at a home on Soi Naya. Arriving at the scene with Phuket Ruamjai Kupai…
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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