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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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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Phuket Live Wire: How Twitter is changing the way news breaks
PHUKET: News of Osama bin Laden’s death came to international attention when, around 11:40pm Washington time on May 1, US President Barack Obama announced that American forces had entered bin Laden’s compound and killed him. But if you’d been following Twitter starting more than two hours earlier – from about 10:30am in Phuket – you would’ve already known the whole…
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Phuket roads undergoing B140mn overhaul
PHUKET: New road projects planned for Phuket and Phang Nga are budgeted at more than 140 million baht, the Highways Department has revealed. Scheduled for major upgrades are the road to the airport, the road on the north side of the Sarasin Bridge and the bypass road. Sathaporn Sornchana, deputy general manager of the regional Highways Department office, said work…
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Phuket Housing Bank overwhelmed by first home buyers
PHUKET CITY: Island residents hoping to get their first home loan queued up at the Phuket branch of the Government Housing Bank as early as 6am yesterday – the first day of receiving applications under the government mortgage scheme for first time homeowners. Welcomed by lower and middle-income earners, the scheme promises zero interest during the first two years of…
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Phuket football: Kamala, Wichit host tournaments
PHUKET: Phuket football enthusiasts are welcome to enter teams in the third annual Kamala Cup, a seven-a-side football tournament with 120,000 baht in prize money up for grabs. All are welcome to take part in the event, including foreigners. Competition will be divided into three groups: Open (entry 3,000 baht per team), Over -35s (2,000 baht) and Under-13s (1,000 baht).…
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Thunderstorms, wind and rain prompt Phuket weather alert
PHUKET: The Thai Meteorological Department (MET) today issued a thundershower and flash flood alert for Phuket effective through Wednesday. Other provinces named in the warning as potential disaster areas were Ranong, Phang Nga, Chanthaburi and Trat. Prevailing southwest monsoon winds, expected to reach up to 40kph, will cause wave heights of up to three meters along Southern Thailand’s west coast…
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ASEAN 2015 prompts Kajonkiet to open “International School’
PHUKET: The Kajonkiet group of schools is preparing for a major shift in island demographics and greater demand for English-language education by opening its first international school this month. Permkiat Ketkul, manager of Kajonkietsuksa School and Chairman of the Phuket Private School Association, said the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) plan to lift cross-border travel restrictions and become a…
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Phuket population “only’ 525,000: Census
PHUKET: Preliminary figures from the nationwide census conducted last year report 525,018 people living in Phuket: 409,137 Thai (77.9%) and 115,881 foreigners (21.1%). Of those, 261,957 are male (49.9%) and 263,061 are female (50.1%), said Prapai Pukngarm, of the Statistical Techniques and Planning Branch at Phuket Provincial Statistical Office. The tally gives Phuket a population density of 967 persons per…
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Phuket woman found hanged in Pa Khlok
PHUKET: Police are treating as suicide the death of a Phuket woman found hanged by the neck in her Thalang home on Sunday morning. Thalang Duty Officer Pratueng Polmana identified the deceased as 58-year-old Thitima Boonrueng, a resident of the Baan Suan Neramit 1 housing estate off Route 4027 in Pa Khlok. Relatives discovered Ms Thitima’s body hanged by the…
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FC Phuket 2 – 2 Samut Prakan
PHUKET: FC Phuket pulled back from down two-nil to salvage a point on the road at Samut Prakan in the Thai League’s Division 1 yesterday. The Southern Sea Kirin appeared to be on yet another hard-luck road trip when Samut Prakan’s Lee Tuck scored early in the second half and then set up teammate Weerasak Kiatsoong-nern put his side up…
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War of the Wires: Phuket cable TV providers suspect sabotage
PHUKET: Following a spate of cable-cutting incidents over the past few months, local cable providers around the island are fed up. Suspecting sabotage, Atsadakorn Sidokbuap of KPP Cable TV and Kampanat Thantiwat, managing director of PA Business Phuket, filed a formal request for action to Phuket Electricity Authority (PEA) chief Somchai Krueapat on Tuesday. Mr Kampanat said he was acting…
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Phuket coral gets its groove back
PHUKET: Recent shallow-water surveys conducted off Phuket have documented significant regrowth of coral, marine biologists say. Researchers headed by divers from the Marine and Coastal Biology and Ecology Unit of Phuket Marine Biology Center (PMBC) reveal the island’s coral reefs are starting to show signs of recovery from last year’s devastating coral bleaching episode. Initial post-bleaching damage assessments showed that…
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Phuket tourists, expats happier than locals: Poll
PHUKET: A clear majority of Phuket Gazette readers feel they are happy living in or visiting Phuket, results of a recent readers’ poll reveal. The Gazette asked online readers: “On a scale of 1-5 (1 = completely miserable; 5 = bliss), how would you rate your average emotional state living in, or when visiting, Phuket?” Overall, 56.2% answered that they…
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Phuket Crime: A special report on teen gang violence in paradise
PHUKET: Amid the scenic farms and hills of northern Phuket, beneath the ebb and flow of idyllic rural life, boils a rage – the rotten by-product of changing times. In Thalang, the body count continues to rise as neglected youth while away their days with a lethal cocktail of drugs and petty territorial disputes, while their parents work full-time just…
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Patong-Chalong shortcut bypassed in Phuket road upgrade
PHUKET: The shortcut between Chalong and Patong, directly across the Nakkerd Hills, was omitted from a 93.5-million-baht Department of Rural Roads project to upgrade unsealed roads throughout Phuket. The Thanon Rai Feun (“Dust-free Roads”) project recently concluded with 12 previously unpaved roads on the island now signed, sealed and delivered, said Department of Rural Roads Phuket Office Director Teeraporn Jirarattanakorn.…
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Phuket’s new incinerator hits halfway mark
PHUKET: Work on Phuket’s second solid waste incinerator is nearly half complete. When finished, the facility will house the highest capacity trash-to-electricity plant in the country, Phuket City officials say. The news follows a progress-update meeting on Tuesday of Tawarat Sutabutr, deputy director of the Department of Alternative Energy Development and Efficiency (DEDE); Phuket Mayor Somjai Suwansupapana; and Prachoom Suriya,…
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Burglar caught with keys to Phuket police HQ
PHUKET: Police this afternoon presented a man who has allegedly confessed to committing no less than seven break-ins in Phuket Town late last month. One of the houses robbed was the police accommodation home of the Capt Thapakorn Hanumard, who is the assistant to Phuket Police Commander Pekad Tantipong. Maj Gen Pekad is the chief of police for the entire…
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Phuket man plunges into water well, drowns
PHUKET: Phuket Police are treating as an apparent suicide the death of an elderly man whose body was found at the bottom of a water well in Thalang early this morning. Thalang Police were notified of the tragedy at 7am by residents of Ban Nai Khlam in Cherng Talay, many of whom were gathered around the well by the time…
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Japanese dive tourist “struck in face by propeller’: Police
PHUKET: Hitomi Shibata, the Japanese tourist who died while on a dive tour off Koh Racha yesterday, was struck in the face by the propeller of the dive boat she was with, police told the Phuket Gazette today. “From our initial investigation, Miss Hitomi was diving with her dive instructor and a friend when they saw her suddenly start to…
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Election Thailand: Raewat, Jirayus to run in Phuket polls
PHUKET: Phuket MP Raewat Areerob of the Democrat Party yesterday announced he will contest the “Phuket 2” constituency in the national elections. Speculation is rife that Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva will dissolve parliament tomorrow or Monday, paving the way for the Election Commission to announce the date of the elections. The Phuket 2 constituency covers more than half of the…
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Japanese tourist dies in Phuket boating accident
PHUKET: A Japanese woman on holiday in Phuket died this afternoon after she was struck by the propeller of the dive boat she was on tour with. Chalong Police Duty Officer Attawat Suwannarat told the Gazette the police were notified of the accident at about 4pm. The name of the woman, aged 22, is being withheld pending notification of next…
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MOU seen as solution to Phuket Deep Sea Port blockades
PHUKET: A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Cape Panwa taxi drivers and tour operators who use the Phuket Deep Sea Port will be drawn up in an attempt to resolve the ongoing dispute over access to tourists disembarking there. Phuket Vice Governor Weerawat Janpen this morning chaired a discussion on the issue at Provincial Hall. The MoU, to be drafted…
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Phuket poll: Is police drug testing effective?
PHUKET: Every member of the Phuket Provincial Police force was due to be tested for ya bah (methamphetamine) use in April, the provincial police commander recently announced. Thus far, there have been no reports of any officers testing positive for the powerful stimulant. The latest Phuket Gazette readers’ poll asks whether the testing is an effective measure to ensure that…
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King cobra eggs raise Phuket snake alarm
PHUKET: A man worried that a clutch of king cobra snake eggs beside his house were about to hatch today called in the egg-citing find to rescue workers to have them removed immediately. Ruamjai Rescue Foundation workers received a call from the owner of the house, in Soi Ban Klang off Chao Fa West Road, at about 2pm. Eleven eggs,…
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Disaster office issues thunderstorm, landslide warning for Phuket
PHUKET: The Director-General of the Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation (DDPM), Viboon Sanguanpong, today issued a warning for 18 provinces ahead of expected heavy thunderstorms. The warning urged people to exercise extra caution tomorrow as heavy rains could cause flash flooding, strong winds, and landslides. The warning was likely issued ahead of a low-pressure system from the South China…
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FC Phuket vying for first road win on Sunday
PHUKET: Fresh from a 6-1 drubbing of Thai Honda, FC Phuket will try and claim their first road victory at Samut Prakan on Sunday. Samut Prakan, sponsored by the Customs Department, go into the match in 14th place, with three wins, seven losses and one draw. They go into the match coming off a 1-0 road loss at Suphanburi. Meanwhile,…
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Phuket Live Wire; Behind the 3G wrangle
PHUKET: As explained in last week’s Live Wire, the 3G situation in Thailand is incredibly convoluted, from what exactly is 3G compared to what is being called 3G, to who has rights to provide “real” 3G and why is it taking so long for Thailand to roll out what the rest of the world seemingly already has. Last week I…
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Phuket lifeguards warn over dangerous rip tides
PHUKET: Although no drownings were recorded at Phuket beaches over the past month, the president of the Phuket lifeguard organization today warned tourists to beware of strong rip tides. “Over the past few days, there have been big waves with strong underwater currents,” said Prathaiyuth Chuayuan, president of the Phuket Lifeguard Service (PLS), which is contracted to provide lifeguard patrols…
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Call for better pay, conditions for Phuket Burmese
PHUKET: Labor Day in Phuket has been an active one for a group of local laborers demanding special attention from the government. Vice Governor Weerawat Janphen yesterday presided over a job fair themed “Phuket Laborers Unite for the Environment, against Drugs” at the Phuket HomeWorks Supercenter on the bypass road. Many employers took part in the event, accepting applications for…
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Osama bin Laden is dead
PHUKET: The people of Phuket woke this morning to an announcement by US President Barack Obama that the world’s most-wanted terrorist, Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, is dead. He was killed by US forces on Sunday at a compound deep inside Pakistan, President Obama announced during a live nationwide television address at the White House last night (early this…
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FC Phuket trounce Thai Honda, Thawin breaks leg
PHUKET: FC Phuket played their best performance of the year last night, delighting the faithful at Surakul Stadium with a 6-1 rout of Thai Honda. The Southern Sea Kirin opened the flood-gates early with Nene Bi Tra Sylvestre netting a header from close range at just three minutes. Thawin Butsombat scored just before halftime to put FC Phuket up 2-0,…
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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