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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Sponsored Infinito helps hotels in Thailand with revenue management
Maximising revenue and profit–isn’t that the ultimate goal for every business in the hospitality industry? If you run a hotel, you might have heard that revenue management is an effective way to boost your top-line revenue. It involves using data...
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Football star Therdsak to coach at Phuket’s Thanyapura
PHUKET: Thailand Premier League midfielder, Therdsak Chaiman, will be in Phuket on Saturday, July 30 to conduct the “Bend It Like Therdsak Football Clinic” at Thanyapura Sports and Leisure Club (TSLC). Therdsak, who plays for Chonburi FC and has captained the Thailand national team, will coach players on improving techniques and how to play together on teams more effectively. The…
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‘Surf House’ to promote Phuket surfing
PHUKET: Phuket surfing culture got a boost today with a major retailer opening a “surfing center” at Jungceylon shopping mall in Patong. Quiksilver Surf House opened today to promote the upcoming Quiksilver Thailand Surf Competition 2011 and to grow Phuket’s surfing culture, Quiksilver Retail (Thailand) Ltd General Manager Surached Mungthong said. “I would like to help expand the surfing community…
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Phuket landslide kills Burmese migrant worker
PHUKET: A Burmese migrant worker was buried alive at a Phuket construction site this morning when a large pile of dirt slid into the trench he was working in. Min Hla Thein, 45, was working on a large drainage system at the Phuket Villa 5 project in Wichit when the landslide filled the 2.5-meter ditch, police said. Phuket City Police…
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Dane’s death accidental: Phuket police
PHUKET: The Danish man found dead at a Phuket hotel last Tuesday likely died as a result of diabetes and heavy drinking and smoking, police said. The body of 62-year-old Preben Thamsen Schmidt was found in the gardens of the Print Kamala Resort early in the morning. He had wounds to his face and arms and was last seen drinking…
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Driver “not drinking’ in fatal Phuket crash
PHUKET: Police have confirmed that alcohol was not a factor in a fatal car accident in central Phuket on Friday. The driver of the car, Lithuanian Tamara Latvijas Rabo, 31, died instantly in the crash and Kuwaiti Waleed MHH Alostad, 37, the front-seat passenger, later died at Phuket International Hospital (PIH), Police Duty Officer Kittiphum Tinthalang told the Phuket Gazette.…
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Exciting finale at Phuket Six Senses Raceweek
PHUKET: Neil Pryde and his Team Premiere crew have claimed overall IRC Racing class honors at the Six Senses 2011 Phuket International Raceweek. Final day conditions brought early rains which gave way to good winds and allowed for decent racing. The battle for Racing class boiled down to who would take second. Ricky Pointon’s Jing Jing won both races to…
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Murder the ultimate risk in Phuket land. Did it trigger the temple murders?
PHUKET: Murder the ultimate risk in Phuket land deals. Did it trigger the temple murders? The significance of the armed attack by six gunmen at Suwanpadit temple in Surat Thani last Sunday is not lost on Phuket people. The men, armed with pistols, entered the temple and opened fire on Songwut Noppakhun, an official serving with the Surat Thani Provincial…
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Storming last day ahead for Phuket Six Senses Raceweek
PHUKET: An eight point gap keeps Neil Pryde’s Team Premiere in pole position of the 2011 Raceweek regatta’s Racing class heading in to the final day of competition. A resurgent Katsu skippered by Ben Copley on 13 points has laid down a late challenge by taking over at second place from KukuKERChu with David Ross, while Ricky Pointon’s Jing Jing…
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Oil rigs off Phuket may become ‘national issue’
PHUKET: A top official at PTT Exploration and Production Public Co Ltd (PTTEP) on Tuesday expressed his worry that tapping any oil reserves in the Andaman Sea off Phuket will become a “national issue”. PTTEP Vice President Visit Coothongkul voiced his concern at a meeting to update Vice Governor Somkiet Sangkaosutthirak and other local authorities on the status of oil…
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Phuket futsal clinic to promote FIFA Futsal World Cup 2012
PHUKET: The coach of the Thai national futsal team and 10 of his players will hold a futsal clinic for Phuket youth this weekend at Saphan Hin sports gym. Coach Jose Maria Paza Mendez and his team will be teaching futsal techniques to a group of 50 local students on Saturday and Sunday from 4pm to 5:30pm. Although the clinics…
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Pryde extends lead at Phuket Raceweek
PHUKET: Neil Pryde and his Team Premier crew today extended their lead in the Racing class of this year’s Phuket Raceweek regatta with two wins from two races. Team Premier now lead the class with just four points, leaving their nearest rivals in their wake. David Ross of KukuKERChu is in second place with 12 points and Rick Pointon’s Jing…
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Foul weather stalls search for missing Phuket tourist
PHUKET: Bad weather today hampered the search for a Chinese tourist who disappeared under large waves at Karon Beach yesterday evening. Rescue parties, including lifeguards from Karon Beach and the Royal Thai Navy, could only safely search for the 27-year-old tourist, named as ‘Mr Ruging Lin’, from 3pm to 5pm today, said Karon Municipality Sea Rescue Center Chief Supachai Junphet.…
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Foreigners die in Phuket car crash
PHUKET: Two foreigners died this morning and two more suffered serious injuries after the Toyota Vios they were travelling in slammed into a roadside power pole in central Phuket. A rescue worker at the scene told the Phuket Gazette that the accident happened at about 5am at the U-turn on Wichit Songkhram Road near Thai Naan Restaurant. “One of the…
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Tiger cuts caddie
PHUKET: “I, along with a lot of people, lost a lot of respect for Tiger over his extra-marital affairs and I pointed out before his return at the Masters at Augusta in 2010 that he had to earn back my respect.” Steve Williams takes the moral high ground after his 12-year professional relationship with Tiger Woods as caddie came to…
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Phuket hotelier dies in sidewalk crash
PHUKET: A 54-year-old Swedish hotelier died after sustaining injuries in a motorcycle accident early Tuesday morning in Patong. Vachira Phuket Hospital identified the victim as Lars-Goran Salomonsson, who owned the Lars-Lita guest-house and restaurant in Patong with his wife, Lita. After hearing the sound of a loud crash around dawn, witnesses found Mr Salmonsson lying in a pool of blood…
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Double victories for Team Premier and Voodoo at Phuket’s Raceweek
PHUKET: Six Senses Phuket Raceweek faced unusually calm conditions on day one and kept crews in eager anticipation for the start of Asia best regatta. The Answering Pennant (AP) had been raised by Principal Race Officer (PRO) Simon James to signal that racing was postponed, but winds soon picked up to a worthy 13 knots and jockeying for the start…
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Phuket authorities to tackle illegal Russian, Korean tour agents
PHUKET: Vice Governor Nivit Aroonrat yesterday ordered that a multi-agency provincial task force be set up to tackle the rising number of Russian and Korean tour agents operating illegally in Phuket. V/Gov Nivit revealed the news at a joint meeting at the Tourist Police headquarters in Phuket Town. “There are more than 100 Korean and about 20 to 30 Russian…
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FA Cup run ends for FC Phuket
PHUKET: Sponsor Thai Premier League (TPL) side TOT SC hosted FC Phuket at their new stadium in Nonthaburi yesterday to see who would advance to the FA Cup fourth round. This match was the very first match to be played at the home side’s new stadium. TOT automatically qualified for this stage of the competition while Phuket earned their position…
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Phuket police have doubts over mum’s suicide
PHUKET: Cherng Talay Police are investigating the death of a mother who was found hanged from a beam in the family’s Phuket home yesterday. When officers arrived at the house in Bang Tao, her 13-year-old son was crying nearby and her husband was sitting in front of the house drunk and incoherent. Duty Officer Lt Col Yodpat Suwannasit told the…
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ASEAN steps up to support Korean tourism to Phuket
PHUKET: A three-day intensive training course attended by about 50 staff from Phuket tourism businesses concludes today, with the aim of providing better services to inbound Korean tourists. The course, being held at the Hilton Phuket Arcadia Resort & Spa, is part of the “ASEAN Tourism Human Resources Development Program” organized by ASEAN-Korea Center (AKC) in cooperation with Tourism Authority…
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Mystery death likely a suicide: Phuket Police
PHUKET: Phuket Police say suicide was the likely cause of death of a woman whose body was discovered in her rented home in Chalong earlier this month. Although initial investigation suggested the possibility of murder, subsequent questioning of family members indicates that 41-year-old Chamaiporn Chuaykham probably took her own life, police said. Chalong Police duty officer Chianchai Duangsuwan said the…
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Phuket Police on lookout for panty bandit
PHUKET: Phuket police are on the lookout for a panty snatcher caught on CCTV stealing underwear from outside a woman’s apartment near Wat Kittisangkaram (Kata Temple). The CCTV footage, taken on June 21, shows a man wearing trousers and a light-colored jacket lingering near a laundry rack outside the apartment at about 5am. The man glanced in several directions as…
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Phuket’s Six Senses Raceweek under starters orders
PHUKET: SIX Senses Phuket Raceweek began last night with their themed Carribean launch party. The eagerly awaited race schedule begins today at 10am on the waters off the Evason Phuket. The regatta, recently bestowed the honor of Best Asian Regatta 2011, is the first event on the Asian Yachting Grand Prix (AYGP) circuit and the first opportunity for serious contenders…
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FC Phuket take on TOT SC in FA Cup third round today
PHUKET: FC Phuket clash with TOT SC in the third round of the FA Cup today in Nonthaburi. Phuket dispatched Sponsor Thai Premiere League (TPL) side Sri Racha in the Toyota Cup last week, and now face another Sponsor TPL team in the form of 15th position TOT SC. TOT SC manager, Somchai Subpherm, who is considered to be “Thailand’s…
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US Embassy calls for Americans to STEP up
PHUKET: The US embassy in Bangkok is calling for all Americans in Thailand to register with its Consular Section so it can better provide assistance to US citizens. Tim Swanson, Chief of US Embassy Bangkok’s American Citizen Services (ACS) Unit, told the Phuket Gazette, “If you are an American citizen in Thailand – either as a long-term resident or a…
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47 injured as “Phuket express’ train slams into truck
PHUKET: An express train from Bangkok to Surat Thani, commonly used by travellers heading for Phuket, plowed into a truck at a crossing in Ratchaburi this afternoon, injuring 47 passengers on board. “At about 10:30am, there was a big accident between an express train from Bangkok to Surat Thani and a truck at Moo 3 Pak Tho, Ratchaburi,” Lt Col…
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Phuket holiday: Dane found dead in Kamala
PHUKET: A 62-year-old Danish man was found dead in a resort garden near his Phuket hotel room this morning. Lt Col Anek Mongkol, duty officer at Kamala Police Station, told the Phuket Gazette that staff at the Print Kamala Resort discovered the man’s body at about 6:30am and called the police immediately. “His body was found in gardens beside a…
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Voodoo and Miss Saigon win Phuket’s 2011 Multihull championships
PHUKET: The fourth SEA Property International Phuket Multihull Championship reached an exiting conclusion on Sunday with David Liddell’s Miss Saigon winning the inaugural Corsair Cup and Voodoo skippered by Ian Coulson taking the Firefly 850 One Design Class. Performance Multihull Class (PMC) was an extremely tight contest over the three days. On the first day Paul Larsen skippering the Andaman…
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Phuket Live Wire: 3G wars start heating up
PHUKET: BANGKOK’S two big English-language newspapers have different takes on the topic, but it’s clear at this point that the 1-2-Call mobile phone company Advanced Information Systems (AIS) and Thai telecommunications services and hardware giant Samart are both going to try to match up with TOT to deliver High Speed Packet Access (HSPA) “3G” service to Thailand, and possibly Phuket.…
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Temple shootout prompts Phuket security concerns
PHUKET: The gunfight at a temple in Surat Thani early this morning that claimed the lives of a local official and a five-year-old girl has sparked security concerns at temples in Phuket. Six men armed with pistols entered the Suwanpadit temple just after midnight last night and opened fire on local administrator Songwut Noppakhun, killing him. Mr Songwut was handing…
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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