Phuket News
Phuket news, politics, business, tourism, and nightlife—stay updated with breaking stories, events, and expat updates from Thailand’s top island destination. Get the latest from The Thaiger, your trusted Phuket news source.
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Sponsored 5 ways retirees in Thailand lose money (and how to stop it)
Retiring in Thailand can be affordable and enjoyable, but many retirees lose money due to common mistakes. High living costs, scams, and unexpected expenses can quickly drain savings. There are five ways that retirees in Thailand can lose money and...
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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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Phuket Raceweek is ready to set sail
PHUKET: Cape Panwa Hotel Phuket Raceweek 2012 opens its doors tomorrow with a glittering first night party, sponsored by Mount Gay Rum, followed by the start of racing Thursday morning in what is forecast to be perfect ‘champagne sailing’ conditions. Coming into its ninth year Phuket Raceweek comprises of four days of world-class yacht racing and four nights of beachside…
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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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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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Nong Som cremated
PHUKET: Sunisa “Nong Som” Saiyoy, 17, who was strangled to death in her home on July 10, was cremated yesterday at Wat Tai. Family members, classmates from Wichit Songkram School, Chalong Mayor Samran Jindapol and Chalong Municipality council members attended the afternoon ceremony. At the ceremony Khaneung Saiyoy, Nong Som’s father, thanked the police for quickly finding the killer Kittikhun…
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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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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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Phuket Sports: Thailand’s Olympic hopefuls
PHUKET: Since the arrival of the Olympic Torch in the United Kingdom during May, anticipation for the games has continued to grow. The torch is being carried across the UK by around 8,000 people ranging from athletes such as Sir Steve Redgrave, local people and celebrities. The torch will finish its 70 day relay by lighting the flame that will…
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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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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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Phuket mob bays for blood at ‘Nong Som’ murder reenactment
PHUKET: There was a wild scene in a normally quiet Phuket suburb this morning, where more than 60 security officers were needed to prevent an irate crowd from lynching the man who murdered 17-year-old Sunisa “Nong Som” Saiyoy on Tuesday. Confessed killer Kittikhun Wonghajak arrived at the home of the late Nong Som at 10am today under the protection of…
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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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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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BREAKING NEWS: Phuket boy, 6, drowns in wastewater pool
PHUKET: A six-year-old boy who went missing this morning was found drowned in a water treatment pool at the Patong Municipality Water Treatment Plant this afternoon. The child, Yutthakarn “Marvin” Limtek, was staying with his aunt Siriwan Noothong, who lives near the water treatment plant on an unnamed soi that connects Rat-U-Thit 200 Pi and Phang Muang roads. Ms Siriwan…
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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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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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Navy rescue drills off Phuket declared a success
PHUKET: The Royal Thai Navy conducted training drills on Tuesday with the aim of improving coordination among the different emergency response units in Phuket. The exercise, which ran from 9am to midday, was staged on the beach in front of the Third Naval Area Command base at Cape Panwa. Phuket Governor Tri Augkaradacha and Vice Admiral Taratorn Kajitsuwan, Commander of…
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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,…
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Phuket Customs director: Illegal diesel probably used to support terrorism
PHUKET: Customs officials who seized over 200,000 liters of smuggled diesel fuel off Phuket on Monday suspect the profits from such sales are likely being channeled to support terrorist activities. “Customs have been cracking down on illegally imported goods, especially fuel, which is probably being used to support terrorism,” said Rakob Srisupa, director of the Customs Department Marine Investigation and…
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Phuket Sports: Lance gets a shot in the arm with extended deadline
PHUKET: Seven time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong was given an extended deadline of 30 days to answer charges last month that he used performance enhancing drugs during his illustrious cycling career.The US Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) originally gave Armstrong until Saturday to answer the charges. If found guilty he could be stripped of his tour titles and face a…
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Police arrest suspect for murder of Phuket teen
PHUKET: A suspect arrested last night has confessed to strangling Phuket teenager Sunisa “Som” Saiyoy, 17, in her Chalong home on Tuesday, but denies charges that he raped her. The suspect, 28-year-old Kittikhun Wonghajak, was arrested by the Phuket Provincial Police investigation team early this morning and was presented to the press briefly at 10am at provincial police headquarters. A…
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Phuket Sports: An endless summer
PHUKET: The Phuket Gazette recently caught up with hometown hero Miss Annissa Tita Flynn, to talk about her recent accomplishments. If you haven’t heard much about this 14 year old surfing starlet, “Anni”, as her friends call her, has been travelling and competing in recent months on the 2012 Asian Surfing Championship tour (ASC).Phuket Gazette: What is it like to…
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Gimme shelter: Phi Phi run delayed by big waves
PHUKET: More than 100 tourists on their way to Phi Phi Don Island were forced to shelter from heavy seas at Maya Bay on Phi Phi Leh Island, east of Phuket, yesterday morning. At about 10 am, several speedboats and longtail boats were forced to seek protection in the bay, where the movie ‘The Beach’, starring Leonardo Di Caprio, was…
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Phuket Town water cuts start today
PHUKET: Phuket City Waterworks (PCW) begins a series of scheduled daytime pressure cuts today in order to conduct system maintenance and install new water mains. The pressure cuts will run from 9am to 6pm daily in affected areas. The PCW advises customers to store sufficient amounts of water, so as not to be affected during the cuts, which will run…
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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