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 ‘Killer Brit’ suspect named
PHUKET: Chalong police have confirmed the identity of the prime suspect in the brutal stabbing death of American Muay Thai trainee Dashawn Longfellow in the early hours this morning. Case Officer Anukul Nookate confirmed to the Gazette that British Muay Thai fighter Lee Aldhouse, 28, is being sought for arrest in the murder of Mr Longfellow at his room at…
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Now you see him: Famed magician to open venue in Phuket
PHUKET: Joe Conrad, one of Asia’s best-known magicians, will be staging a regular magic show at his own venue in Patong come December. Billed as Asia’s Premier Magic Spectacular, the 90-minute show is being choreographed as family entertainment with initial prices set at 900 baht for adults and 600 baht for children. The show’s grand finale will feature a “disappearing”…
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American murdered in Phuket; Police hunt “killer Brit’
RAWAI: An American man was found stabbed to death in his hotel room near Ya Nui Beach and a search has been launched for the prime suspect, a British Muay Thai boxing student named, so far, only as “Mr Lee”. Chalong police received a report at 6am today that an American “tourist” had been murdered in his room at an…
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Phuket tuned out; ‘High-end’ again; Dengue critical
Phuket NEWS Hound – A daily digest of news about Thailand from around the world, compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community. Phuket tuned out for $3 a night Although Phuket was to have been the first Tune hotel to open among the 24 such $3-a-night lodgings planned for Thailand, the honor, it seems, will now go to Pattaya…
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Phuket motorists warned over ‘red plate’ driving
PHUKET: Phuket Land Transport Office (PLTO) Chief Kanok Siripanichkorn has told the Gazette that people driving cars with red license plates have just one month to get regular “white plates” on their cars – or face the consequences. The warning for Phuket drivers follows Land Transport Department Director-General Chairat Sanguansue’s announcement of a “crackdown” on people illegally driving cars with…
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Dusit Group formally announces Phuket resort acquisition
PHUKET: Dusit International CEO Chanin Donavanik has issued the following statement regarding the group’s recent acquisition of the Dusit Thani Laguna Phuket resort: “Dusit International announces the acquisition of one of its most successful properties which it has managed for the past 23 years, and one of the best performing hotels in Phuket, Dusit Thani Laguna Phuket, previously owned by…
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Arrested Colombians got car in Phuket
PHUKET: A set of Phuket-issued car license plates was among seized evidence presented by police today during a Bangkok press conference to announce the arrest of a Colombian couple on burglary charges. Bangkok Metropolitan Police Commander Santhan Chayanont announced the arrest of Colombians Camilo Andres Albois Gonzalez, 27 Luzda Lee Taborda Ospena, 44. Presented as evidence was a red Honda…
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Central Festival Phuket food hall now open
PHUKET: Central Festival Phuket celebrated the opening of its Central Food Hall with a ceremony on Wednesday. Chairing the ceremony was Phuket Vice Governor Nivit Aroonrat. He was joined by Central Food Retail Company President Alistair Taylor, who said the 60-million-baht investment in the project would assure the facility was be the best of its kind in Southern Thailand. The…
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New Phuket bridge mars local village life
PHUKET: Residents living in Tah Chat Chai, at the northernmost tip of Phuket, have been hard hit by the roadworks and the construction of the new bridge off the island. Storm drains have been filled in by earthworks, causing their village to flood every time another rainy season deluge comes. The recent redirection of northbound traffic over Thepkrasattri Bridge has…
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Phuket woman held over theft of rental cars
PHUKET: A woman arrested Tuesday for allegedly stealing cars from car rental agencies in Phuket is likely part of a car theft ring, police say. Police requested that Ms Jintawan Jarassuwimon, a 43-year-old Patong resident, report to police on Tuesday following a complaint filed the day before by Ms Monsuang Srisopa. Ms Monsuang wrote that Ms Jintawan failed to return…
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Thai Navy reveals arrest record at Phuket base
PHUKET: Statistics announced by the Royal Thai Navy Third Area Command for its fleet operations in the Andaman Sea during the first eight months of 2010 show a remarkably low number of arrests for smuggling and illegal fishing over the period. The figures were revealed during a meeting at the Marine Operations Coordination Center, chaired by Royal Navy Third Fleet…
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Phuket mother caught in drug run
PHUKET: Three children are spending Mother’s Day without their mom today after she was caught at Tah Chat Chai checkpoint trying to smuggle 2,000 ya bah (methamphetamine) pills onto the island by wrapping them in sanitary napkins. Phuket native Chamaiporn Khiewkaew, 30, with friend Chanjira Boonmark, also 30, riding pillion were stopped and searched by checkpoint police yesterday after the…
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Dusit Deal for Phuket; Thaksin trimmed; Phuket Fantasy flourishes; Shares soar
Phuket NEWS Hound – A daily digest of news about Thailand from around the world, compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community. Dusit Deal a plus for Phuket As reported in Phuket NEWS Hound yesterday, Dusit International has acquired the Dusit Thani Laguna Phuket for 2.6 billion baht. The seller was Laguna Resorts & Hotels, a local Phuket unit…
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Phuket keen to host 2015 World Weightlifting Championships
PHUKET: The Thai Amateur Weightlifting Association (TAWL) is considering proposing Phuket to host the World Weightlifting Championships in 2015. A TAWL delegation visited Phuket Provincial Hall yesterday morning to discuss the idea in a meeting chaired by Phuket Vice Governor Teerayut Eimtrakul. TAWL director Montol Chartsuwaan said Phuket was among three locations under consideration. The others are Pattaya and Hua…
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383 dengue cases in Phuket
PHUKET: There have been 383 cases of dengue fever year-to-date in Phuket, but no deaths, the Ministry of Public Health says. Dr Wiwat Seetamanotch, deputy director of the Phuket Public Health Office and an expert on the disease, said the 383 cases so far this year has already surpassed the total number of cases in 2009, when 309 were recorded…
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Phuket celebrates HM The Queen’s Birthday
PHUKET: Phuket Governor Wichai Phraisa-ngop on Monday presided over the opening of a project to plant 999 Yang Na trees at Rama IX Park as part of activities in honor of HM The Queen’s Birthday tomorrow. The event, which began at 9am, also included the release of 9,999 “effective micro-organism” (EM) balls into ponds at the park, also known as…
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Drowned Bahraini tourist was a former lifeguard
PHUKET: The drowned Bahraini tourist whose body was recovered at Karon yesterday was a former lifeguard, according to a report in the Bahrain-based Gulf Daily News website. Relatives and friends of 25-year-old Ali Abdulaziz Alsaeed, whose body was recovered early yesterday, was on holiday in Phuket with three Bahraini friends: Mohammed Mattar, Hameed Abdul Ghani and Ali Al Abdul, 24.…
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Laguna Phuket sells Dusit Thani for Bt2.62b
PHUKET: Laguna Phuket has sold the Dusit Thani Laguna Phuket resort to Dusit Thani Public Company Limited for 2.62 billion baht, according to a Stock Exchange of Thailand (SET) transaction report. The 226-room upscale property, opened in 1987, was the first built by visionary Singaporean hotel developer KP Ho at Laguna Phuket, an integrated resort complex built on degraded tin…
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Blackouts in Phuket tomorrow: PEA
PHUKET: The Provincial Electricity Authority (PEA) has announced a scheduled blackout to carry out maintenance on high voltage power lines in Rawai and Chalong from 9am to 4pm tomorrow. Affected areas include: Rawai: Much of Nai Harn, including Saiyuan Road, Soi Kok Yang, Soi Hua Phru, Soi Kok Makham, Soi Naya and the beach road Chalong: West side of Chao…
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Body of drowned Bahraini tourist recovered off Phuket
PHUKET: The body of a Bahraini tourist was recovered early this morning, three days after disappearing in heavy surf off Karon Beach on Sunday afternoon. Uten Singsom, head of the Phuket Lifeguard Club contingent assigned to patrol Kata-Karon, identified the deceased as Ali Abdulaziz Salman Alsaeed, age 25. Mr Ali arrived in Phuket on August 5 with three friends, all…
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Over Bt1m seized in Phuket meth arrest
PHUKET: A former driver at a local school was arrested at Tah Chat Chai checkpoint with 200 ya bah (methamphetamine) pills yesterday evening. Acting on a tip-off, Tah Chat Chai Police led by Lt Nopparat Kongsuk pulled over a red-plated Vigo pickup at 7pm. A search of the vehicle uncovered 200 ya bah pills stashed inside a plastic bag stuffed…
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Phuket SEZ a dream?; Mega-show for Phuket; Election fraud; court begins
Phuket NEWS Hound – A daily digest of news about Thailand from around the world, compiled by Gazette editors for Phuket’s international community. Special Economic Zones: Phuket hopes remain a dream In a development sure to raise eyebrows in Phuket, Sa Kaew province has been chosen to become a Special Economic Zone (SEZ) to promote trade and investment in eastern…
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Environmentalists urge amendment of Phuket development plan
PHUKET: A written appeal to amend Phuket’s General Development Plan was submitted by local environmental and community groups last week. Addressed to Gov Wichai Phraisa-ngob, the letter was received by Vice Governor Teerayut Eimtrakul who commented that a committee would be arranged to consider issues raised in the document before passing on any suggested amendments to the Department of Public…
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Phuket expats can enter census data on line
PHUKET: Foreigners in Phuket wanting to take part in the national census can do so on line from September 1, the Phuket Provincial Statistical Office has told the Gazette. Prapai Pukngarm, a technical and planning officer at the office, said the National Statistical Office (NSO) website (www.nso.go.th) should be ready to accept census data from September 1, when data collection…
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Phuket drowning victim identified
PHUKET: Police have identified the body of a man found washed up at Ao Yon over the weekend as that of Rawai resident Abdulloh Thaodaeng, aged 46. Phuket City Police were notified that a body was discovered lying face up on Ao Yon beach in tambon Wichit at about 2:30am yesterday. Police were initially unable to identify the corpse, clad…
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Phuket Poll: Foreign tourists lax on Thai culture
PHUKET: Foreign visitors to Phuket make some, but not considerable, effort to understand and respect Thai culture, the results of the latest Phuket Gazette Readers’ Poll reveal. A total of 325 readers took part in the two-week survey, posted on July 22, 2010. The poll followed a report by the local Culture Ministry office that a foreigner running a restaurant…
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FC Phuket breeze past Hatyai FC, 2-0
PHUKET: The Division Two South title in the AIS Regional League is within easy reach for FC Phuket following a comfortable 2-0 win against Hatyai FC at Surakul Stadium yesterday evening. FC Phuket went into the match brimming with confidence, having put together back-to-back league wins after the surprise loss to Yala FC. FC Phuket started the match brightly, but…
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Phuket wet market to open this month
PHUKET: Although vendors and city officials continue to haggle over costs, the new wet market on Ranong Road will open by the end of the month, Phuket City Municipality says. Phuket City Mayor Somjai Suwansupapana and city council members met with vendor representatives at Phuket City Hall on Monday. Provincial Deputy Governor Teerayut Eimtrakul served as chairman of the meeting…
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Andaman Motor Expo underway in Phuket
PHUKET: The Andaman Motor Expo 2010 is underway on the first floor of Central Festival Phuket’s HomeWorks complex. Among the makes on display are Toyota, Isuzu, Mazda, Proton, Mitsubishi, Chevrolet, BMW and Volvo. Companies selling car accessories and finance firms also have booths and displays. There are also classic cars on display, including a replica of the #53 Herbie “The…
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Work begins on new Phuket Town road
PHUKET: Construction began yesterday on a new road that will link Saphan Hin to Chao Fa East Road in Phuket Town. With an axe-chop to a cement bag, Phuket Governor Wichai Phraisa-ngop kicked off the opening ceremony at 9:30am with Phuket City Mayor Somjai Suwansupapana, Phuket MP Raywat Areerob and Phuket Rural Roads Office Director Teeraporn Jirarattanakorn. The ceremony took…
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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