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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5 hidden healthcare costs in Thailand and how to avoid them
Thailand's healthcare system is affordable and supported by the Universal Health Coverage (UHC) scheme, offering essential services to most citizens. However, hidden healthcare costs can surprise patients and lead to unexpected expenses. These include specialist fees, insurance gaps, emergency services,...
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New crab trap regulations not causing a snag in Phuket
PHUKET: Compliance with a new crab trap regulation established in late June was highlighted as one of the hot topics for the Traditional Fishing Preservation Group meeting held yesterday in response to their letter of complaint filed with the Phuket Provincial Office. In their complaint, the group highlighted two major issues facing the smaller local fishing operations: compliance with the…
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Phuket lifeguards save 333 swimmers after return to beaches
PHUKET: Officially back on the beaches May 28, after another contract signing saga, Phuket lifeguards saved 333 people in the following 31 days, according to an announcement made by Phuket Provincial Administration Organization (OrBorJor) President Paiboon Upatising yesterday. “Despite the work of the lifeguards, four people have drowned this year. They drowned because they either ignored the red warning flags…
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Blade runner – I will run quick
PHUKET: The London Olympics are just over a week away and one man knows he is lucky to be going. South African Oscar Pistorius, known as Blade Runner, had both his legs amputated below the knee when he was a baby and runs with the aid of carbon fiber lower legs. Pistorius will compete in the individual 400 meters and…
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Bangkok again top destination city in Asia
PHUKET: Good news for the Phuket tourism industry comes from a recently-released report by MasterCard that has Bangkok nestled into third place on the credit card giant’s list of major cities with the most tourist arrivals. The MasterCard Global Destination Cities Index report by economist Yuwa Hedrick-Wong projected 2012 tourist arrivals in the Thai capital at 12.2 million, behind only…
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Pickup crashes into Phuket beer garden, 8 injured
PHUKET: Eight people were injured and numerous vehicles damaged when an out-of-control pickup truck full of Burmese workers slammed full force into a restaurant on Monday night. At about 10pm, Phuket City Police were informed of an accident at the River Beer Garden on Pracha Uthit 1 Road, which runs parallel to the bypass road in Rassada subdistrict. Police led…
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Phuket vendor wins Bt4m in Thai National Lottery
PHUKET: A kind-hearted Phuket vendor won a 4 million baht grand prize in the Thai National Lottery draw on Monday. The winner, 35-year-old Kaewtaa Khan-asa, reported the win to Chalong Police yesterday, asking that her possession of winning ticket number, “904050”, be recorded in the daily log as evidence. Mrs Kaewtaa, listed as a resident of Ban Doong District in…
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Man found dead floating in the sea with 13 stab wounds
PHUKET: Police believe the stab-riddled body of a man recovered in the waters off of the Rassada Fishing Port this morning is that of a Burmese fisherman. Phuket City Police at 7.30am received a report from staff at the Por Phichainava Company Pier, off Sri Sena Road in Rassada, about a body floating face-down just offshore. Led by Lt Col…
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Counterfeit luggage bagged in Phuket
PHUKET: Customs Department investigators on Sunday intercepted a shipment of counterfeit luggage with an estimated street value of more than 900,000 baht, but no arrests were made. At a press conference held at the Port Customs House yesterday, Phuket Investigation and Suppression Unit chief Jaroen Chamnigarn revealed that 351 copies of famous brand-name suitcases and bags were recovered in an…
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Crackdown on illegal loan sharks called for
PHUKET: A Rassada Municipality council member called for a crackdown on loan sharks after his brother was attacked and brutally beaten by a group of armed men he claims were hired by illegal moneylenders. Rassada Municipality council member Chainarong Pillavas and his brother Suthipong Pillavas, who claims to have been attacked by some 20 thugs hired by the loanshark, made…
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Phuket Live Wire: Why the Internet died
PHUKET: It is my sad duty to report to you how and why the Internet died last Monday (July 9). The DNSChanger virus took down the internet, and I for one will lament its passing. All of the major news sources warned you about it. Huffington Post said, “The end is nigh, according to the FBI. Internet Doomsday will strike…
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Chinese snorkeler saved in chopper rescue is recovering
PHUKET: The Chinese snorkeler who was found face-down and unconscious in the water off Koh Racha Yai, just one day after the Royal Thai Navy opened a helipad at Koh Racha Yai, is recovering well. The facility was used to airlift the unconscious Chinese tourist back to the main island for emergency medical treatment. The Third Naval Area Command received…
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Three more suspects in custody for shooting of Phuket cop
PHUKET: Police in Phuket have arrested three more suspects wanted for the shotgun shooting of a Chalong police officer in a live music venue last month. The victim, Snr Sgt Maj Nikom Jeenyuen, received shotgun wounds to the neck, chest, stomach and arm in the June 19 shooting at Saraphanpleng Bar, a live music venue on Patak Road, about 300…
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More parking, CCTV for Phuket Bus Terminal 2
PHUKET: The committee responsible for operation of Phuket Bus Terminal 2 say the station will soon get additional parking and CCTV cameras. The announcement came following a meeting on Thursday of the ten-person committee that oversees operation of the station, which opened in April this year, 28 months after it was completed. Phuket Land Transport Office (PLTO) chief Teerayut Prasertpol…
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Tawee Thongcham re-elected Karon Mayor
PHUKET: The preliminary vote count in yesterday’s Karon Municipality elections shows that Tawee Thongcham has been re-elected as Karon Mayor, with 2,388 votes from the 3,929 voters who showed at the polls. Mr Tawee’s only opponent in the election, Narong Natang, secured 1,345 of the votes. Yesterday’s result marked Mr Tawee’s third successive win as Karon’s mayor. Almost 73 per…
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Abhisit Vejjajiva collects data for Phuket “blueprint’ at Simon Cabaret
PHUKET: Democrat Party leader Abhisit Vejjajiva called on the people of Phuket recently to help develop a “blueprint” to solve the problems facing the tourism industry on the island. About a thousand local people who joined the seminar at the Simon Star Theater in Rassada were asked to help construct a clear picture of the issues to be faced. “Phuket…
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Phuket Deep Sea Port ‘not deep enough’
PHUKET: In an effort to kick-start the stalled Phuket Deep Sea Port expansion project, the head of the local Marine Department Office escorted representatives from two major cruise line companies to a meeting with Governor Tri Augkaradacha on July 12 to discuss the problems encountered by large ships using the facility. Located at Cape Panwa, the deep sea port has…
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Toyota races back to Phuket
PHUKET: The Toyota Motor Sport Series is set to return to Phuket with organizers hoping to repeat the resounding success of last year’s edition. This year’s program was announced last week at a press conference held at the Royal Phuket City Hotel. Presiding over the conference were Phuket V/Gov Sommai Prijasilpa and Vice Director of Toyota Motor Thailand Company Nikorn…
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Two elephants join Phuket migrant labor force
PHUKET: Two young elephants were approved to work in Phuket this week, bringing the total number of registered pachyderms on the island to 190, which is 14 more than the existing limit set by the Provincial Office in 2003. The increase in the number of elephants beyond the set limit was noted during the meeting by Phuket Provincial Livestock Chief…
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Phuket FC scorched by ‘Fire Power’, Joksic resigns
PHUKET: Serbian national Milos Joksic has resigned from his post as Phuket FC head coach, with a former Thai national team defender expected to fill in the vacancy immediately. First reported in Thai language on the Nok Sanarm website, the announcement comes at the climax of a tiring week marked by three back to back losses – the last two…
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Harsher sentencing the best approach to violent crime: Phuket poll
PHUKET: Readers see harsher sentences for convicted criminals as the best deterrent to violent crime in Phuket, the results of the latest Phuket Gazette online readers poll revealed. The poll was launched in the wake of a particularly heinous crime that rocked the island last month: the slaying of Australian travel agent Michelle Smith in Kata. Given these crimes and…
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National Parks Dept to charge Phuket resort owner with encroachment
PHUKET: The owners of a Phuket beach resort project will likely face legal action for encroaching on national park land following an inspection of the site this week by the Director General of the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation (DNP). The resort is one of ten the agency will be investigating for possible land encroachment. “In May…
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Phuket Sports: F1 – A quick look back
PHUKET: The next race will be at the Hockenheimring and will mark the half way point of the F1 season, so it’s a good time to sit back and review where everyone is. At the start of the season, McLaren looked unbeatable except by error. They seemed exhausted by Silverstone. Why? Because Ferrari and Red Bull had upgraded their aerodynamics,…
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Bus from Phuket to Narathiwat crashes in Phang Nga
PHUKET: A tour bus full of school directors from Narathiwat province overturned in Phang Nga late this morning, causing numerous injuries, but fortunately no deaths. The bus was en route to Krabi when the accident occurred on a sharp curve known locally as “Chong Kub Tha Yu“, located on the road from Lo Yung to Tha Yu in Takua Thung…
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B500 million Phuket Historical Park approval given
PHUKET: The approval for the 500 million baht Phuket Historical Park project was announced in a meeting at Provincial Hall on Tuesday. The project, which is to be established on 96 rai of land in Thalang, will be managed by the Public Works, and Town and Country Planning, Phuket Office with the cooperation of the Ministry of Tourism and Sports,…
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Full budget for Chalong hospital project unlikely to materialize
PHUKET: The mayor of Chalong handed a formal letter of complaint to Public Health Minister Witthaya Buranasiri for the ministry’s failure to provide 186 million baht in funding for the establishment of a new hospital. The financial package, provisionally agreed to by the Cabinet at the mobile meeting on Phuket in March, was to turn the “Chalong Health Promoting Station”…
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Drug-addicted thief confesses to murder of Phuket teen “Nong Som’
PHUKET: Security is expected to be very tight in Chalong this morning, when police and the confessed drug-addicted killer of 17-year-old Sunisa “Som” Saiyoy re-enact the brutal strangling, attempted rape and robbery that took place on Tuesday. Confessed murderer Kittikhun Wonghajak, who goes by multiple aliases including “Aek”, “Mac” and “Goong”, told the press yesterday that he did not intentionally…
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Phuket Sports: A look ahead to this weekend’s action
PHUKET: Three-time Olympic track champion Bradley Wiggins is looking to become the first British man to win the Tour de France. He is currently in first place after he and his Sky Team held off numerous attempts by other riders on stage 11 to unsettle him. Fellow Brit and Sky team member Chris Froome is in second place on the…
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Combating rising crime in Rawai
PHUKET: CHALONG Police are boosting public safety on the southern streets of Phuket by enlisting the help of local government officers, volunteers, and other island residents, business people. Chalong Police Deputy Superintendent Narong Laksanawimon told the Gazette that more than 20 officers from Rawai Municipality and local residents are joining police efforts in patrolling the streets, reporting any suspicious activities…
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Senate seeks action on foreign tour guides in Phuket
PHUKET: An adviser to the Senate Standing Committee on Tourism has spoken out against the long-standing problem of foreign tour guides operating in Phuket. Phanomphon Thammachartniyom, an honorary adviser to the upper house committee, told a meeting at Phuket Provincial Hall that he had been working for 10 years to solve the problem of Russians, Chinese and Koreans working as…
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Nepal tourism opportunities promoted in Phuket
PHUKET: Members of the media, local officials and other invited guests enjoyed a fine cultural show and dinner on Tuesday, courtesy of the Nepal Embassy from Bangkok, which is promoting that country’s many tourism opportunities as part of its ‘Visit Lumbini Year’ campaign for 2012. The event, which took place in the grand ballroom of the Royal Phuket City Hotel,…
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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