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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Phuket businesses scoop top awards
PHUKET: Phuket’s hospitality industry received a major boost last week with the announcement that three prestigious awards had been won by local companies.Mom Tri’s Boathouse & Villa Royale in Kata was awarded Wine Spectator magazine’s Best of Award of Excellence for the second consecutive year, maintaining its status as the only establishment in Thailand to receive the coveted award.Wine Spectator‘s…
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Gov calls for mobile CCTV
PHUKET: At the Provincial Security Committee Meeting at the ST Hotel on Thursday, Phuket Governor Niran Kalayanamit called for the local police to look into setting up a “mobile CCTV” unit to roam Phuket’s streets.“I have seen this new technology on TV. It is used in England, where they use a mobile CCTV unit that drives everywhere and uses a…
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Tsunami false alarm in Krabi
KRABI (Nation): Seven disaster-warning towers in Krabi unexpectedly sounded an alarm simultaneously on Saturday evening, prompting frightened residents and tourists to run for higher ground in fear of a tsunami.Krabi disaster-prevention and mitigation officer Thalerngsak Phuwayanapong said he had been informed that the warning towers at Koh Phi Phi pier, Saladan, Koh Lanta, Koh Jam, Haad Yao, Laem Sak Bay…
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Chuan opens Halal Food Hilal Town festival
THALANG: The third annual Halal Food Hilal Town festival began Friday night, with former Prime Minister Chuan Leekpai heading the opening ceremony.Before declaring the event open, K. Chuan, Chairman of the Advisory Council of the Democrat Party, walked through the festival accompanied by Phuket Governor Niran Kalayanamit, Phuket Provincial Administration Organization (OrBorJor) President Anchalee Vanich-Thepabutra and other guests.The event is…
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Phuket ready for referendum
SAPHAN HIN: More than 1,000 people gathered at Saphan Hin this morning to promote Phuket’s participation in the forthcoming national referendum on the newly-drafted constitution, which will take place August 19.Phuket officials were joined by members of the public and representatives from each Tambon Administration Organization (OrBorTor) wearing yellow T-shirts and carrying banners and flags in support of the referendum.…
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New Kathu police chief moves to improve Patong
PHUKET CITY: At his first Phuket Provincial Security Council meeting yesterday, new Kathu Police Superintendent Pol Col Grissak Songmoonnark told Phuket Governor Niran Kalayanamit that he had signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Patong business leaders aimed at lifting the town’s image among tourists.Col Grissak, 46, said that he had invited representatives of various groups in Patong to attend…
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Call for Phuket tourism businesses to go “green’
PHUKET: A Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) seminar held at The Metropole hotel on Tuesday brought together academics and members of the tourism sector to discuss global warming effects in Phuket, where an estimated 344 million tonnes of greenhouse gases are produced every year, said Nisanat Sathirakul, deputy secretary general at the Office of Natural Resources and Environment Policy and…
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Local crew heads for Platu world championships
PHUKET: Local sailor Australian Scott Duncanson, better known in Phuket as owner and skipper of Somtam Express, which won Phuket Raceweek regatta last month, has compiled a crew to defend the title of National Platu champion at the national finals in Pattaya on August 13 and 14.The crew are using the national Platu finals as a springboard for training for…
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Tsunami evacuation drill “hit and miss’
PHUKET: Andaman Wave 007, the first regional testing of the 79 National Disaster Warning Center (NDWC) tsunami warning towers along the Andaman Coast, was conducted at 9:45 this morning, with mixed results in Phuket.While impressive mock evacuation and emergency response drills were being staged for the media on the beach at the foot of Soi Bangla in Patong, residents in…
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Convention center proposals fail to hit pay dirt
PHUKET: Three firms have proposed sites for Phuket’s International Convention and Exhibition Center (ICEC), but none afford the sea views that have long been considered a ‘must’ for the project.Phuket Governor Niran Kalayanamit, who heads a committee formed to make a final decision on where to site the project, yesterday afternoon heard the proposals at a meeting at Phuket Provincial…
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Tsunami evacuation drills tomorrow
PHUKET: All residents of coastal areas should be reminded that the National Disaster Warning Center (NDWC) tomorrow morning will conduct the first full-scale regional testing of its 79 tsunami warning sirens along the Andaman Coast, including 19 towers in Phuket. Evacuation drills in tsunami-risk areas will be conducted by local administrative bodies working together with district offices and members of…
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New bus station planned near Supercheap
RASSADA: The Phuket Provincial Transport Office (PPTO) has agreed to buy 10 rai of land near Supercheap on Thepkrasattri Rd to build a new inter-provincial bus station.The existing bus station, on Phang Nga Rd in Phuket City, will be used for only local buses, vans and songtaew, most of which now leave from Ranong Rd.PPTO chief Chatchawarn Ngarmtup told the Gazette…
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Somtam Express extends lead in Phuket Raceweek
AO CHALONG: Scott Duncanson’s Somtam Express today secured yet another win to stretch their lead to five points in the IRC 1 class of the fourth annual Phuket Raceweek regatta being raced in and around Chalong Bay and the surrounding islands. Peter Ahern’s Yo! 2 finished three minutes behind Somtam Express on corrected time to hold onto second place overall…
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Marco makes it full circle
PHUKET: Luxembourg national and island resident Marco Reinard arrived at Rawai Pier just after 5 pm on Thursday, tired, sunburned and triumphant after completing a solo 200-kilometer paddle around Phuket in an 18-foot kayak. Marco clocked an average speed of 10 kilometers an hour during his 36-hour circuit of the island, which he completed to raise awareness of environmental issues and…
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Somtam Express takes Raceweek lead
AO CHALONG: Scott Duncanson’s Somtam Express moved into first place in the IRC 1 class of the Phuket Raceweek regatta after finishing first and second in the two races for the class today. Peter Ahern’s Yo! 2 was relegated to second place overall in the class after finishing third and fourth in today’s races. Jim Poulsen’s Vino holds steady in…
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Extortion racket taken down in “sting’
PATONG: Kathu Police on Wednesday night arrested four men for allegedly attempting to extort 100,000 baht from the Thai-Nepalese owner of a tailor shop.The four suspects were presented to the media at a press conference at Kathu Police Station at 3 pm yesterday. They were identified as 40-year-old Burmese national Chom “Johnnie Lek” Bunyawej, the ringleader, and his three accomplices:…
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Rawai resident drowns at Nai Harn
NAI HARN: John Chatteris, founder of Atsumi Healing Center in Rawai, drowned while swimming at Nai Harn Beach late yesterday afternoon.Ian Lenton, who works at the center, told the Gazette that Mr Chatteris, 61, went to the beach with his family at about 5 pm.Although red flags were posted at the beach, indicating that the surf was unsafe for swimming,…
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Brit charged over child’s death
KATHU: Englishman David Murray, 37, has been charged over the death of his eight-year-old stepson, Narid “Curry” Budtharai, who allegedly died after his head hit the floor while he was being beaten for being a poor student.Pol Lt Col Passakorn Sonthikul of Tung Tong Police told the Gazette that the incident occurred at Murray’s condo home in Moo Baan Irawadee,…
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Locals “uninformed’ about Ao Phuket project
PHUKET CITY: A public opinion survey conducted by researchers from the Prince of Songkla University (PSU) found that 86% of people who stand to be affected by the proposed Ao Phuket development plan said they knew little or nothing about the project drawn up by the Office of the National Economic and Social Development Board (NESDB).After being brought up to…
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All-English radio launches in Phuket
PHUKET CITY: Phuket now has its first all-English radio station, 90.5 Phuket Gold FM, broadcasting from the Radio Thailand office near Phuket Rajabhat University.The launch was announced at a press conference at the China Inn restaurant in downtown Phuket City this morning.90.5 Phuket Gold FM is managed jointly by Bangkok-based KOOL…EST Co Ltd and monthly lifestyle magazine Phuket Bulletin.A press…
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Royal Lighthouse escapes break-in
LAEM PROMTHEP: Kanchanaphisek Lighthouse, built in 1996 at Laem Phromthep to celebrate the 50th anniversary of HM King Bhumibol Adulyadej’s ascension to the throne, was the scene of an attempted robbery on Thursday.The would-be thieves, who smashed through one of the glass panels at the entrance to the lighthouse about 9 pm in order to get to a donation box,…
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Tsunami evacuation drills planned for July 25
PHUKET CITY: The National Disaster Warning Center (NDWC), together with provincial and local authorities, will conduct the first full-scale test of its 79-tower tsunami warning system in the six Andaman Coast provinces on the morning of July 25. The exercise has been dubbed “Andaman Wave 007” by the agency.To prepare for the test, which will include evacuation drills in all…
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Three die in Rawai smash
RAWAI: An accident on Wiset Rd left a father, his daughter and his niece dead, and his wife seriously injured after the motorbike they were riding and a car collided on Sunday evening.Chalong Police were alerted to the accident in front of Baan Haad Rawai Bungalow about 8 pm. Pol Lt Col Peeraphan Meemak, inspector of Chalong Police Station, told the…
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Frenchman, 30, dies from “heart failure’
CHALONG: French tourist Sylvain Hervieux reportedly died of heart failure on Sunday evening. An ambulance from Phuket International Hospital responded to an emergency call, but arrived to find that Hervieux had been dead for about 20 minutes.Mr Hervieux had been staying with his mother, Claudine Denis, at a Thai friend’s house in Chalong.Lt Col Peeraphan Meemak, Inspector of Chalong Police…
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Russian tourists say “yes’ to Phuket
PHUKET: Russian tourists now account for the fourth largest group of foreign holidaymakers visiting Phuket behind Sweden, the UK and Australia, said Anoma Wongyai, assistant director of the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) South Region 4 Office in Phuket.K. Anoma attributed the boost, which nudges China down to fifth place, to the success of the TAT-organized “Leisure 2006” roadshow to…
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Turtles, dolphins continue to wash ashore
BANG TAO: A green turtle weighing about 5.7 kilograms was found at Le Phang Beach at about 9 am Tuesday.Kongkiat Kittiwattanawong, a biologist at the Phuket Marine Biological Center (PMBC), told the Gazette that the female sea turtle, bearing a hard shell 39.5 centimeters long and 37cm wide, was suffering from exhaustion and had difficulty breathing.The turtle was taken to…
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New incinerator for Phuket “on hold’
PHUKET CITY: Proposed plans for a new incinerator on Phuket were put on hold this week despite Phuket City Mayor Somjai Suwannasuppana insisting that the island’s garbage problem is too big to wait.The proposal came after large quantities of fish were killed in waters polluted by leaked toxins from the island’s sole incinerator in Saphan Hin.The incinerator, which can burn…
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Students charged over roadside beating
RASSADA: Two second-year university students were arrested after allegedly assaulting a man at an accident scene on Soi Phaneang on July 2.When Phuket City police arrived at the scene, they found the two students, named by police as “Wit”, 22, and “Karine”, 23, both from Pattani province, beating 30-year-old Jaroonsak Khongjit, an employee of Phuket Adventure company.Pol Capt Atthapol Wannasaengthong…
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Woman’s remains identified
THALANG: Police believe they have identified the woman whose remains were found in a wooded area in Tambon Thepkrasattri last Wednesday evening.A cousin of Anutch Maneekwan has come forward, saying that K. Anutch, 40, had not been seen since June 27.The cousin reported that K. Anutch was living in a rented room near Super Cheap, where she worked.“On June 27 she…
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Pharmacy worker arrested after shooting debt collector
PATONG: An employee who shot and injured a private debt collector who tried to collect past-due rent was arrested for attempted murder on Friday.Uthai Petchara, 26, was working with Sarawuth Sukanek, 22, and another employee at Tak Pharmacy, near Loma Park on Thaweewong Rd, when four men entered the shop around 5 pm Friday.Narong Duangmusik, 32, and his accomplices approached…
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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