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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Phuket estate manager denies gun charges
PHUKET: Police have confiscated the gun of a Phuket housing estate manager who is accused of using it to intimidate a construction team into stopping their noisy work. The estate manager felt the work was “too noisy”. Phuket Police are now investigating whether the gun license he produced is genuine. Seree Duangsuwan arrived at Phuket City Police Station for questioning…
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Phuket tourist safety among top concerns: US Ambassador
PHUKET: Highlighting the role of wardens as her embassy’s “eyes and ears” in Thailand, United States Ambassador Kristie Kenney today affirmed that tourist safety was among the top priorities of her mission. Amb Kenney’s comments came during a day trip to Phuket, which included a visit to the offices of the Phuket Gazette and a closed-door meeting with the island’s…
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Phuket machete attack puts Burmese workers in ICU
PHUKET: Two Burmese workers on their way home from a Phuket karaoke bar were critically injured after they were attacked by knife-wielding youths yesterday. Thalang Police received an anonymous report at 1:10am from a local resident in Srisoonthorn reporting that two heavily bleeding men were lying in an alley near the Baan Manik boxing camp on Srisoonthron Road. Arriving at…
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Phuket Police yet to question tour driver attackers
PHUKET: Kamala Police have been issued a court summons to bring in two drivers for questioning over the savage beating of a Phuket tour company driver last Sunday. “I will give them a week to come and see me. If it’s more than a week, a second summons will be issued. If they still don’t come, I will apply to…
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Phuket taxi bullying continues
PHUKET: Police today were called in to resolve yet another taxi dispute, this time reports of drivers using their vehicles to block the entrance to the renowned Evason Phuket & Bon Island resort. About 20 “black plate” drivers massed at the entrance to the Evason – one of the very first resorts on the island – at about 10am, reported…
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Phuket expats to remember fallen Dane
PHUKET: Friends of Michael Sand Andersen, a long-term Phuket expat who died in a motorcycle accident on August 26, will hold a remembrance gathering for him on Saturday, September 10. Mr Andersen, 39, died from injuries sustained when he fell off his motorbike on Soi Yodsane while trying to drive down Big Buddha Hill in Chalong during heavy rain. Mr…
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Patong Hospital to fight Phuket floods
PHUKET: Patong Hospital faces a chronic flooding problem so bad that its administrators plan to construct an emergency dike and pedestrian footbridge to keep out flood water and allow patients to access the facility during periods of heavy rainfall. Phuket Public Health Office Director Sak Tanchaikul reported on short-term solutions to the hospital’s growing flood problem, which caused a shutdown…
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Top Cop: Phuket is car-theft capital of the South
PHUKET: Thailand’s top traffic cop was in Phuket yesterday to brief top-ranking officers on the need to crack down on vehicle theft and the smuggling of luxury cars. Assistant national police chief Rapeepat Palawong chaired a high-level meeting on the issue at Phuket Provincial Police Headquarters yesterday morning. Lt Gen Rapeepat, who also serves as director of the National Traffic…
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Brit fraud fugitive nabbed in Phuket
PHUKET: A British expat arrested in Phuket today was on a list of fugitives wanted by an international division of the UK’s Serious Organized Crime Agency (SOCA), the Phuket Gazette has learned. Paul Ridden, 58, was arrested today after being fooled into meeting a friend in front of Chalong Police Station. When he drove into the police station car park,…
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Honda racing returns to Phuket
PHUKET: More than 100 racing cars representing 40 teams will be zooming around Saphan Hin in Phuket Town on September 17-18 as the Phuket Honda Racing Fest 2011 comes to town. “This is the fifth year of Honda Motor Sport racing [in Thailand] and the second time this event will be held in Phuket,” said Phuket Governor Tri Augkaradacha at…
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Phuket fishermen win right to use local beach
PHUKET: Local fishermen at Palai Beach, on Phuket’s east coast, today won the right to use a section of the beach for landing and repairing their longtail boats. Led by Jirapat Phum, about 20 local fisherman arrived at the beach this afternoon to meet Phuket Marine Office Chief Phuripat Theerakulpisut and officers from other relevant organizations in order to inspect…
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Raided, a Phuket drugstore coughs up colorful comments from officialdom
PHUKET: A police raid on an out-of-town pharmacy last Friday coughed up more than the Phuket authorities were looking for. Acting on a tip-off, health officials and Thalang police entered the S.C. Phesat pharmacy on Srisoonthorn Road, right beside Phuket’s famed Heroines’ Monument in Thalang. Inside the drug store, officers found 138 Alprazolam (Xanax) pills for sale – and more…
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Phuket Live Wire: What to expect from your ISP
PHUKET: LAST week, with Khun Roger’s help, I published an updated ‘bang for the baht’ chart that shows you what kinds of international download speeds various Internet Service Providers (ISPs) are actually providing, and at what price. These aren’t the 9 Mbps or 100 Mbps advertised speeds; they’re real international download speeds, measured by real customers, like you and me,…
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Labor chief: Phuket not consulted on minimum wage hike
PHUKET: Authorities in Phuket have yet to be consulted on whether or not the minimum wage hike to 300 baht a day should be implemented here. Of the seven provinces listed to be the first to introduce the raise, if the raised is approved, Phuket will be the only province not near Bangkok to do so, Phuket Provincial Labor Office…
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Patong Hill closed to traffic today
PHUKET: The road over Patong Hill, the only direct route from Phuket Town to Patong, will be closed today (Tuesday) from 9am to midday. The road closure is to allow electrical workers to cut down trees interfering with power lines, Surasak Jantharuek of Patong Municipality’s Engineering Division told the Phuket Gazette. “We need to cut down branches and reset power…
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Phuket convention center impasse triggers political concerns
ANALYSIS PHUKET: The latest political obstacle to the construction of an international convention and exhibition center on the island is a staggering blow to the Phuket tourism industry. Over the past five years, the nation’s domestic political infighting has crippled efforts to develop a sustainable plan for tourism in Thailand. As Asia led the world in a post-2008 economic surge,…
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Aldhouse extradition to Phuket looks inevitable: British press
PHUKET: The extradition of British kick-boxer Lee Aldhouse to Thailand to stand trial for the August 2010 stabbing murder of US Marine Dashawn Longfellow now seems inevitable, British media have reported. Britain’s Sunday Mirror today reported a source in the British Home Office as saying: “The only way he could have realistically avoided extradition is if he would have faced…
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Phuket Corruption: Senate probes alleged police protection racket
PHUKET: A senate subcommittee on police graft and corruption is in Phuket investigating allegations of an alleged police protection racket targeting tailor shops in Phuket’s Kata-Karon area. Subcommittee chairman Pol Gen Jongrak Juthanon said the investigation follows complaints made by people in Kata-Karon that tailor shops and other retail businesses that employ ethnic Nepalis are forced to hand over 2,000…
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Phuket Square plans Bangkok mall
PHUKET: Phuket Square, managers of Jungceylon in Phuket, will launch a 300-million-baht “lifestyle community mall” on Sukhumvit Soi 20 in Bangkok during the first quarter of next year. The venture follows the company’s success with the Patong-based Jungceylon, it’s first and only other mall project. But the tail is not wagging the dog. Phuket Square has been headquartered in Bangkok…
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Phuket’s convention center, slammed by a report, now on hold
PHUKET: Phuket’s decades-old dream of having a world-class convention center took a leap backward on Wednesday when the Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment (MNRE) issued an Initial Environmental Examination (IEE) report that highlighted numerous environmental and financial flaws in the project. A source at the MNRE Office of Policy and Planning (OPP) told a Prachachat reporter that his agency…
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Phuket Campaign for standard tuk-tuk fares sparks colorful comments
PHUKET: Tuk-tuk drivers in Kata and Karon are stepping up their campaign to have members operating in their areas certified as “safe” and in compliance with a schedule of standard fares. Certificates, to be issued annually, are meant to assure tourists that they will be treated politely and not overcharged for their ride, said Vice Governor Nivit Aroonrat at a…
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Police boost patrols past Phuket gold shops
PHUKET: Local police have been ordered to pay special attention to Phuket gold shops as the price of the precious metal continues to rise, the provincial police commander has announced. Maj Gen Pekad Tantipong ordered patrol units in all districts to be on the lookout for strange activity near gold shops, such as repeated passes by the same vehicle. “People…
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Thailand dishes Australia world cup surprise
PHUKET: Cheers could be heard across Phuket as Thailand scored first against Australia in the FIFA World Cup 2014 qualifying match late this afternoon. The affair marked both sides’ opening match for the World Cup 2014 third round Asia regional qualifiers. Thailand and Australia were drawn in Group D along with Saudi Arabia and Oman, who also play tonight. Since…
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Envoy warns of EU advisory against tourists using Phuket tuk-tuks
PHUKET: The continued failure of local authorities to address problems of tuk-tuk drivers with foreign tourists could force European Union (EU) member states to issue a joint travel advisory warning against using tuk-tuks while in Phuket, the Austrian Ambassador to Thailand has warned. Austrian Ambassador to Thailand Johannes Peterlik issued the warning to local officials during the third meeting between…
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Gunfire silences Phuket construction clamor, says Swede
PHUKET: A Phuket estate manager terrified a team of Thai workers when he fired warning shots over their heads in an effort to get them to stop making noise yesterday morning, says the construction team’s foreman. Swede Mike Hjort and Songkhla native Waleeporn Chinpised, both 41, appeared at Phuket City Police Station to file a complaint against Seree Duangsuwan. The…
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FIVB Beach Volleyball returns to Phuket – for now
PHUKET: The 6th Swatch FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour is set to make Karon Beach its stage again this year, starting November 1, despite the possibility of the event moving elsewhere in the future due to a lack of funding from Phuket, organizers say. The Phuket Thailand Open, which is a women’s tournament, has been growing in popularity and scope,…
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Phuket Police nab teenage murder gang
PHUKET: Phuket Police took just a few hours to track down and arrest three teenagers wanted for the strangling murder of a Phuket resort worker yesterday. At least two more suspects remain at large. Police presented two of the suspects to the press at Phuket City Police Station this morning. The suspects were identified as Charin “Mutt” Chokekue and Kittiphum…
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German victim of Phuket mob bashing out of coma
PHUKET: German national Kurt Trotnow, who is in intensive care after being beaten by a mob in Patong, is conscious but still on a respirator. “Kurt is conscious now but still cannot talk because he is on a respirator. When he wakes up, I talk with him and he looks at me. He understands my words,” said his wife, Jiraporn…
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Tuk-tuks, jet-skis top complaints by Aussie tourists in Phuket
PHUKET: Phuket Governor Tri Augkaradacha yesterday received more bad news about the state of Phuket’s tourism industry as the Deputy Head of Mission at the Australian Embassy in Bangkok told him that complaints about tuk-tuk drivers and jet-ski scams topped the embassy’s list of complaints filed by Aussie tourists in Phuket. “I personally haven’t heard any complaints, but I do…
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Two homosexuals found dead in as many days
PHUKET: Phuket City Police this morning announced the results of their investigation into the strangling murder of a Patong resort worker whose body was discovered at his home in Wichit last night. The body of the late Yusop Wattanarot, age 35, was discovered by friends who went to visit him at 7:30pm yesterday. Sathien Chartsuksiridej, a close friend of the…
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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