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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Phuket PO Box 101 is a hit, says governor
PHUKET CITY: The number 101 is a cinch to remember for those who have read George Orwell’s grim parable of totalitarianism Nineteen Eighty-Four or taken a freshman college class. Whether this fact figured in Phuket Governor Wichai Phraisa-ngop’s thinking when he launched PO Box 101 – an address any Phuket resident can use to inform the governor, anonymously, of crimes…
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Bt20m for tourism improvements in Rassada
RASSADA, PHUKET: In a recent meeting, Rassada Municipality agreed to allocate almost Bt20 million to improve landscaping and build new facilities near the causeway leading to Koh Sireh, in a bid to promote tourism and improve the quality of life for local people. The work will take place near the Malikaew embankment in the Koh Sireh community in Rassada Village…
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Power cut on Sakdidet Road tomorrow
WICHIT, PHUKET: There will be a power cut along part of Sakdidet Road in tambon Wichit tomorrow, as the Phuket Provincial Electricity Authority (PEA) conducts maintenance and repair work on power lines in the area. The affected area will start near Soi Thanit and run south along Sakdidet Road all the way to the Muang Thong three-way intersection, including Soi…
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Revenue from Phuket real estate deals plummets
PHUKET CITY: In an indication that the Phuket real estate market is not quite as robust as some like to suggest, statistics released by the Phuket Provincial Land Office reveal that income on land and property sales transactions was down over 70% year-on-year over the first four months of 2009. There were a total of 1,945 transactions involving land title…
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German still in Phuket Juvenile after three months
PHUKET CITY: Despite efforts by the German Embassy, a young man arrested on charges of sexually abusing minors remains in detention at the Phuket Juvenile Observation and Protection Center almost three months after his arrest. The youth, who was just 17 when he was arrested on March 9, recently spent his 18th birthday behind bars. His arrest, together with that…
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German manslaughter suspect gets bail, whereabouts unknown
PHUKET CITY: German tourist Florian Zehentmair, charged with the manslaughter of his friend Sebastian Wolff in Khao Lak, has been released on bail. Police do not know where he is staying. In another development in the case, preliminary investigation into the cause of death by the police forensics institute in Surat Thani has determined the cause of Mr Wolff’s death…
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Man loses leg in Phuket shophouse explosion
PHUKET: An explosion this morning at an air-conditioning service shop in Phuket has seriously injured two men and caused extensive damage to the single-story shophouse.According to police at the scene, a large gas tank used for servicing air-conditioning units exploded in the shop at about 10am. The shop’s owner is reported to have had his leg blown off in the…
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Phuket weather: high humidity expected to continue
PHUKET: Phuketians have been feeling the heat more than usual over the past few days with humidity high as temperatures reach 33 degrees Celsius or 91.4 Fahrenheit in Phuket.According to the Southern Meteorological Center (Phuket), the high on the heat index (HI) – the combination of air temperature and relative humidity, which makes it feel hotter than the true temperature…
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Phi Phi tourist deaths possibly food poisoning
PHUKET CITY: The mysterious deaths of two female tourists on Phi Phi Island earlier this month were possibly caused by food poisoning, preliminary lab findings suggest. Krabi Provincial Police Commander Maj Gen Pasin Noksakul told the Gazette today that researchers at the Police Institute of Forensic Medicine in Bangkok have found signs of microbial infection in blood samples taken from…
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85 confirmed chikungunya cases in Phuket
PHUKET CITY: The Phuket Public Health Office (PPHO) has set up a “war room” to halt the spread of the viral disease chikungunya, which now has 85 confirmed cases in Phuket alone. The war room, which will host regular meetings on Tuesdays and Thursdays, is also tasked with monitoring flu patients to see if there are any cases of infection…
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Swede dead in Phuket of apparent cocaine overdose
CHALONG, PHUKET: Police have confirmed that a 48-year-old Swedish man found dead in the room of a guesthouse late yesterday afternoon appears to have died of a cocaine overdose. The 48-year-old Swede, whose name is being withheld pending notification of kin, was found in a room at the Happy Days guesthouse, located at Chalong Bay. Chalong Police Duty Officer Thienchai…
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Phuket’s Vanich Foundation awards annual scholarships
RASSADA, PHUKET: The Boonrod Ekapojna Vanich Foundation on Thursday presented its annual scholarships totaling 105,400 baht to 30 needy students. This event took place at the Vanich Estate on Thepkasattri Rd in Rassada. The scholarships were presented to the lucky recipients by foundation vice-presidents Anchalee Vanich Thepabutr and her brother Apirak Vanich. Foundation chairman Boonrod Ekapojna Vanich, now 73 years…
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Fuelish mistake at PTT Phuket station in Chalong
CHALONG: A mix-up at a gas station in Chalong caused large headaches for a number of motorists on Monday morning. Staff refuelling the PTT station on Chao Fa West Road near Wat Chalong accidentally pumped 500-600 liters of diesel fuel into the station’s benzene 91 tank. A number of customers who thought they were getting benzene 91 ended up with…
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Body of Caucasian found washed up on Phuket beach
RAWAI, PHUKET: The heavily tattooed body of an unknown Caucasian man washed up on Nai Harn Beach yesterday. The body was in an advanced state of decomposition, with its skull exposed. Police believe the man died several days before the body was discovered. One local newspaper carried a graphic photograph of the body, clothed only in a pair of red underpants,…
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Phuket Pinoy sports fest underway
PHUKET: The second stage of the four-part “Pinoy Sports Fest 2009” will take place at the QSI International School on Sunday, May 24. The event which is helping to bring together Phuket’s 850-strong Filipino community is being held over four consecutive Sundays and has attracted some 200 competitors. The term Pinoy is now commonly used among Filipinos to describe themselves.…
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Young Brit dies in Phuket motorbike smash
PHUKET CITY: A young British teacher died from injuries sustained in a motorcycle accident on Chao Fa East Road in the early hours of yesterday morning.Phillip Ian Mussell, 24, was returning to his home in the Chalong area following a night out drinking with friends at the Roxy Bar in Phuket City when the accident happened at around 3.45am.Duty Officer Kitthiphum…
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Thai senator stunned by ‘new media’
PHUKET: Thai people have little “need” for multiple media outlets such as cable TV and websites since most spread misinformation, Bangkok Senator Rosana Tositakul opined yesterday. “Do we really need so many media channels? And how could we “control” a large number of media channels, anyway?” Rosana asked at a seminar entitled “How to Reform the New Media”, held by…
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Melbourne mum reunited with kids after Phuket ordeal
PHUKET CITY: Australian holidaymaker Annice Smoel is safely home after leaving Phuket on a Thai Airways flight to Bangkok at 9pm yesterday, then catching a connecting flight to Melbourne. During a visit to the Phuket Immigration Office yesterday, accompanied by her husband Darren, Ms Smoel was smiling broadly in the knowledge that her departure from the ‘Land of Smiles’ was…
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Tossaporn pushes for Phuket conference center and sports complex
PHUKET: Funds for Phuket’s long-awaited convention center are to be included in next year’s budget, according to Phuket MP Tossaporn Thepabutr. If the budget is approved, the center could be finished within three years.The convention center has been on the drawing boards for well over a decade. The center was initially proposed to be built on reclaimed land off Saphan…
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Gloomy outlook for Phuket tourism
PHUKET CITY: The Phuket Tourism Association (PTA) has forecast that Phuket hotels will see average occupancy rates dip to as low as 25-30%, compared to 60% in the summer season last year. Citing a number of negative factors, PTA Vice President Bhurit Maswongsa said the spread of the type-A (H1N1) flu virus was one of the main problems hitting the…
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Bangkok Hospital Phuket to hold “Be Healthy Fair”
PHUKET CITY: Bangkok Hospital Phuket will hold a “Be Healthy Fair 2009” from May 30 to June 6 as part of its 14th anniversary celebrations.The fair, from 9.30am to 5pm each day, will take place on the first floor of the hospital, located on Yaowarat Rd in Phuket City. The event is part of the hospital’s “Care and Share” program…
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Compulsory insurance plan for Phuket jet-ski rentals
PHUKET CITY: In the latest bid to rein in the island’s controversial jet-ski rental industry, the province is considering imposing a mandatory insurance scheme.A major aim of the policy is to cut down on the number of complaints about operators charging inflated fees for alleged damages to their machines.A meeting was held at Phuket Provincial Hall on Monday to discuss…
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Phuket Police: Aussie arrest no laughing matter
PATONG, PHUKET: Kathu Police Superintendent Grissak Songmoonnark has defended the actions of his men in detaining Aussie holidaymaker Annice Smoel for stealing a branded bar towel from the Aussie Bar in Patong earlier this month. Col Grissak told the Gazette today that the matter was a clear case of theft and that his officers had sufficient evidence to prove her…
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Phuket property under fire: Lersuang revisited
PHUKET: Earlier this month, Web blog thephuketinsider.com and the Phuket Gazette reported on an article in the UK’s Daily Mirror about the Phuket-based Lersuang Group. The Mirror story put Lersuang in the international limelight, saying that customers were demanding their money back but offering no comments from company management. The Phuket Gazette promised to get comments from the companies involved…
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Power cut in Chalong tomorrow
PHUKET CITY: It will be lights out and fans off in parts of Chalong tomorrow, as the Phuket office of the Provincial Electricity Authority (PEA) has announced power cuts to carry out maintenance to electric wires along Chao Fah East Rd from 9am to 2pm.The affected area will be on the west side of Chao Fah East Road all the…
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Update: Phuket tourist jailing
PHUKET / MELBOURNE (AAP): The Australian woman arrested in Phuket, Thailand for allegedly stealing a bar mat says she’s “scared, helpless and alone” and is pleading for the Australian government to intervene. Annice Smoel, who spent four days in a cramped Thai jail with three other women, described her holiday gone wrong as “totally unbelievable”. Ms Smoel, 36, from Montrose…
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Phuket FC lose to Pattani, 2-1
PHUKET CITY: Phuket FC’s dismal home form continued Sunday night, when the Sea Dragons slumped to a fourth consecutive defeat at the Surakul Stadium, losing 2-1 to Pattani. Despite taking an early lead, the reverse means that Phuket FC are still without a point in front of their home fans. The Sea Dragons started brightly and were rewarded with an early…
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Another foreign tourist arrested, jailed in Phuket
PHUKET: According to a story released this morning by AAP, Australia’s national news agency, a Melbourne mother of four is facing five years in a Thai jail after allegedly “stealing” a bar mat [‘coaster’] from a Phuket pub. The report says 36-year-old Annice Smoel was arrested by undercover police as she left the Aussie Bar in Patong on May 3.…
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Tragic trajectory: man’s head blown off by festival rocket
SAKON NAKHON: A man had his head blown off while watching an annual homemade rocket festival in this northeastern town on May 11. The victim and his friends chose to have a drinking session in a cordoned off area where rockets were landing at the time of the incident. Police were called to the scene in Village 3, Tambon Dong…
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Paiboon suspended pending appeals court ruling
PHUKET CITY: The Region 8 Court of Appeals has ordered Phuket Provincial Administration Organization (PPAO) President Paiboon Upatising and a fellow PPAO member to cease their duties following a report of electoral fraud from the Election Commission (EC) in Bangkok. PPAO Chief Administrative Officer (Palad) Manop Leelasuthanon confirmed the letter and said Mr Paiboon and fellow PPAO member Sawat Muchawej…
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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