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 A healthy tomorrow starts today: Celebrate the great American Smokeout day
The Great American Smokeout, held this year on November 17, is a nationwide event that encourages smokers to take their first steps towards a smoke-free life. If you’re an expat in Thailand, this day could be a timely reminder to...
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Thailand confirms first two cases of swine flu
PHUKET CITY: Thailand yesterday confirmed its first two cases of Influenza 2009 in patients who had returned from Mexico.Public Health Minister Witthaya Kaewparadai said tests carried out by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in the United States and the Thai Medical Science Department had confirmed the A(H1N1) virus in samples from the two Thai nationals.“There are two confirmed cases…
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Phuket red shirts vow no disruption to Asean summits
PHUKET CITY: Members of the Phuket branch of the National United Front for Democracy Against Dictatorship (UDD) this morning visited the Governor’s Office to protest government plans to invoke the Internal Security Act in Phuket during the upcoming Asean summit. Dressed in their trademark red shirts, a group of about 20 UDD members led by Wisut “Ae Inside” Tangwittayaporn presented…
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Phang Nga murder linked to land dispute
PHUKET CITY: The recent murder of a village headman on the island of Phra Thong in Phang Nga’s Kuraburi District, about a four-hour drive north of Phuket, may have been related to a land dispute, local police said. The Thai-language Siangtai Daily newspaper recently carried a report of the killing on the Phang Nga mainland, close to the island. On…
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Four Chikungunya cases reported in Phuket
PHUKET CITY: Chikungunya, the viral disease that is sweeping the Deep South, has now surfaced in Phuket, according to the Phuket Provincial Health Office. A press release issued by Kusuma Sawangpan of the Disease Control and Prevention Division confirmed four cases of the disease on the island, with all the patients being treated at Vachira Phuket Hospital. The vector for…
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Abhisit, in Phuket, confirms Security Act for Asean summits
MAI KHAO, PHUKET: Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva has confirmed the government intends to invoke the Internal Security Act during the Asean summits scheduled to be held at the Hilton Phuket Arcadia Resort in mid-June. The announcement came at a press conference at Phuket International Airport last night. PM Abhisit was on his way back to the capital following a secret…
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Yala beat Phuket FC, 1-0
PHUKET CITY: Surakul Stadium remains less than a fortress for Phuket FC as the “Sea Dragons” were once again beaten on home soil, this time suffering a 1-0 defeat to last-place Yala. With the win, Yala picked up their first-ever points in the league after four consecutive losses. After five matches in the fledgling Division 2 of the Footbool Association…
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THAI to launch direct Oslo-Bangkok flights
PHUKET CITY: In a move that could provide some help to Phuket’s summer season tourism prospects, Thai Airways International (THAI) has announced the introduction of direct flights between Bangkok and Oslo, Norway. The service, to be inaugurated on June 15, will make THAI the first southeast Asian carrier to serve passenger demand between Norway and Thailand. THAI’s Bangkok-Oslo route will…
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PM confident Phuket Summit to be peaceful
PHUKET CITY: Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva said yesterday the Asean-led summits in Phuket next month will not see a repeat of the Pattaya fiasco as his government had a good new security plan in place. The government was ready for the summit and would enforce the internal security law to have more power to handle the situation, he said in…
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Phuket Police train for Asean summit
PHUKET CITY: There was more action than usual at Phuket City Police Station yesterday when some 300 local police took part in crowd control and anti-riot training under the watchful eye of Royal Thai Police Region 8 Commissioner Santarn Chayanon. The special training is in the run-up to the Asean+3+6 summit, tentatively scheduled to take place at the Hilton Phuket…
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Naked Norwegians stun Phuket
PATONG, PHUKET: Kathu Police arrested two young Norwegian men last Tuesday night for running naked up Soi Bangla, the center of Phuket’s adult nightlife entertainment scene. The pair were identified in a local Thai-language news report as Kulien Petter and Frederil Rarlses, both 19 years of age. The lads were apprehended by police officers at about 9:30pm as they were…
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Swine Flu case reported in Bangkok
PHUKET: The Public Health Ministry said yesterday it had detected a suspected first case of the deadly type A (H1N1) influenza in Thailand and is awaiting confirmation of the infection from the Center for Disease Control (CDC) in the United States. The result of the CDC’s tests are expected within seven days. No suspected cases of the type A (H1N1)…
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Phuket tsunami warning tower tested
SAPHAN HIN, PHUKET CITY: People enjoying their morning workouts at the Saphan Hin municipal park at 8am on Wednesday were a bit surprised when the Thai National Anthem was played through the tsunami warning tower there for the first time. Apart from rousing nationalist passion, the music also marked the latest testing of the National Disaster Warning Center’s (NDWC’s) tsunami…
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Phuket City Police nab bike theft gang
PHUKET CITY: Phuket City Police arrested a gang of nine alleged teenage bike thieves this week. The suspects, eight boys and one girl, confessed to theft charges. They are also believed to have been responsible for a number of crimes across Phuket, the police say. The roundup of the gang members followed a series of arrests, some of which took…
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Phuket property developer under fire in one-sided news report
PHUKET: A leading UK news tabloid, the Daily Mirror, reported earlier this week that Chelsea football star Joe Cole invested in the Hua Hin Country Club and is now demanding his money back as the project has remained an empty field for the past two years. Phuket has figured into the headline grabbing news as Cole has alleged that local…
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Thalassemia Day
PHUKET: Today, May 8, marks Thalassemia Day.Thalassemia is a genetic blood condition that affects hemoglobin and causes anemia and other debilitating symptoms in sufferers of the disease, which is particularly prevalent among Thais, who have the highest rate of the disease in South East Asia.One out of every 100 Thais suffers from the effects of Thalassemia and 40 out of…
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Phuket Governor: ‘No bail for drug crimes’
PHUKET CITY: Phuket Governor Wichai Phraisa-ngop has issued written orders to all police districts on the island instructing them not to allow people arrested on drug charges to be granted bail. The issue was a major topic of discussion during the monthly meeting of the Phuket Provincial Security Council, held at Phuket Provincial Hall on April 29. The governor, who…
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No evidence of poisoning in Phi Phi tourist deaths
KRABI: Following the mysterious deaths on Phi Phi Island of three foreign tourists in just over a month, Krabi police and doctors are still unable to explain how the American and two Norwegians became fatally ill. Contrary to an initial local blog entry speculating that cyanide poisoning may have been the cause of the deaths, Krabi police told a Gazette…
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Phuket FC to face Yala on Sunday
PHUKET CITY: Looking for some excitement next Sunday? The Phuket FC soccer team will take on Yala at Surakul Stadium on May 10, starting at 5pm. Phuket FC, also known as The Sea Dragons, lost their opening two home matches in Division 2 Southern region play of Thai League Football, Thailand’s first professional football league. However, they showed marked signs…
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Body of Swiss tourist found on Krabi beach
PHUKET: The body of a female tourist from Switzerland was found on a beach in Krabi province today. Police said the tourist had apparently been strangled on Noppharat Beach in Tambon Aonang of Muang district. The beach lies roughly 20 kilometers east of Phuket by boat across Phang-nga Bay. She was found lying down with the strap of her handbag tied around her neck. She was…
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Mystery illness kills foreign tourists on Phi Phi
KRABI: Two foreign tourists have mysteriously died and two others are seriously ill from unknown causes after holidaying on Phi Phi Island. Much speculation surrounds the circumstances of the deaths as authorities have yet to make any official statements regarding the matter. Press Attache at the US Embassy in Bangkok Michael Turner told the Gazette that US citizen Jill St.…
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Phuket Governor leads pro-peace rally
PHUKET CITY: With Phuket gearing up to host the Asean+3+6 summits in mid-June, Phuket Governor Wichai Phraisa-ngop on Monday led a group of about 200 flag-waving people in a “Stop harming the Country” campaign at Phuket Provincial Hall. Participants at the event swore an oath and called on all parties involved in the current conflict to refrain from resorting to…
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Swine Flu diagnosis now possible in just four hours
PHUKET: Bangkok’s Chulalongkorn Hospital says it can now diagnosis a case of swine flu in just four hours. Until yesterday, it took up to 18 hours to determine if a patient has caught the Type A(H1N1) flu virus. “The procedure has become much quicker because we received ribonucleic acid, or the genetic material of the influenza virus prototype, for analysis…
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Flu scare cruise ship given the all clear
PHUKET: Phuket doctors declared all 1,900 passengers on board the holiday cruise ship Super Star Virgo free of the A(H1N1) influenza virus after the vessel docked at Ao Makham Deep Sea Port on May 4 for a seven-hour stopover. The passengers, comprising Chinese, Singaporean, Australian, Indian and European nationals, were all checked for flu symptoms before disembarking in the afternoon…
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Phuket to the world: Web forum zeros in
PHUKET: The Phuket Gazette has entered the booming online forum sweepstakes by signing a partnership agreement with ThaiVisa.Com, Thailand’s largest English-language Web board. The agreement results in the birth of the Phuket Gazette/ThaiVisa Forum, a collection of thousands of pages of reader knowledge and observations on just about every aspect of life in Phuket. The Gazette endows the venture with…
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Oledong to defend WBC title in Phuket
PATONG, PHUKET: Undefeated WBC minimum-weight champion Oledong Sithsamerchai (29-0-0) will defend his title against former IBF champ Muhammad Rachman from Indonesia (62-7-5) on May 29 in Patong. The fast-fisted Oledong, 23, is the pride of Trang’s Rassada District. He won the WBC title by beating fellow Thai Eagle Den Junlaphan on points in Bangkok in November, 2007. The contest will…
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Swine Flu: Phuket Immigration officials told to wear their masks
PHUKET: While Public Health Minister Witthaya Kaewparadai was waiting to welcome teachers and students who flew in from Mexico on Sunday night at Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi Airport, he noticed that immigration officers were not wearing surgical masks to protect themselves, and were even asking arriving passengers to take off their masks for identification. “From this incident, I realized that immigration officers…
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Phuket friends out in force for Steve Swan
PHUKET CITY: Thanks to a strong response from Phuket’s expat community, accident victim Steve Swan has more than enough blood for his scheduled surgery today, his friends say. Mr Swan, an American who runs the Crow’s Nest bar and tattoo parlor on Soi Seadragon in Patong, suffered fractures of his left leg, hip and pelvis after being hit by a…
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Phuket man’s suicide now seen likely to have been result of strained finances
MAI KHAO, PHUKET: Last week’s suicide of well-known businessman Mann “Benz Phuket” Suksawee now seems increasingly likely to have been the result of strained finances. Police were informed of the apparent suicide by local residents at about 10am on Thursday. Mr Mann, whose official residence is listed as downtown Haad Yai, was the manager of the Sanguan Panich group of…
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Asean leaders seek 5km protest ban for meetings in Phuket
PHUKET: Asean leaders concerned about their safety have demanded a ban on protests within five kilometres of the conference venue as a condition to attend an Asean summit in Phuket or anywhere else in Thailand. “We will declare the meeting venue off-limits to gatherings and for that we have to see which legal avenue we can resort to in order…
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Swine flu begins to spread in Asia
PHUKET (ANN/The Nation): South Korea on Saturday reported East Asia’s second human case of swine flu as other countries in the region sought to minimize the risks of infection by canceling flights and imposing visa requirements on Mexico, the worst-hit country in the outbreak. No cases have been reported in Phuket or elsewhere in Thailand. The 51-year-old nun in South…
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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