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.
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Anchalee’s husband loses Supreme Court land case
BANGKOK: (The Nation, Gazette) The Supreme Court yesterday upheld an Appeal Court ruling that ordered Tossaporn Thepabutr and his associates to vacate 98 rai of land near the Kata Viewpoint.The Supreme Court yesterday morning read its verdict on the lawsuit between the Provincial Land Reform Office (PPLRO) and Tossaporn, husband of Phuket Provincial Administration Organization (OrBorJor) President and former Democrat Party…
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Japanese tourist raped
PATONG (Kom Chad Luek): Police yesterday charged a parasail boat employee at Patong Beach for the rape of a Japanese tourist.The rape was reported to Pol Capt Padungpong Dooksookkaew at Kathu Police Station at 1 am yesterday.The victim, a 24-year-old woman from Japan, told police that she was staying at a hotel on Rat-U-Thit 200 Pi Rd. While sunbathing at…
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Karaoke hostess murdered
PHUKET CITY: A karaoke bar hostess was found murdered in her apartment off Montri Rd early yesterday morning. Police are searching for the victim’s live-in boyfriend, who is the prime suspect in the case.Phuket City Police Duty Inspector Pol Lt Col Sien Kaewthong identified the victim as 28-year-old Kanchana Aonpleng, from Pathum Thani province.About 12:45 am yesterday, police received a…
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Mala Seafood murder suspect surrenders
CHALONG: After two months on the run and wanted for the shooting murder of Karon restaurateur Mala Peng-iam, Suban Pon-iamsaen handed himself in to Chalong Police Station on Tuesday. A reward of 100,000 baht had been offered for information leading to his capture.About 7 pm March 27, Mala, owner of Mala Seafood restaurant, was shot three times in the face…
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New airport terminal ready for business
PHUKET: The expansion of the international passenger terminal at Phuket International Airport has been completed and is expected to be open for the upcoming high season, Phuket International Airport Director Sq/Ldr Pornchai Eua-aree told the Gazette today.The 120-million-baht expansion started in April 2004 and the building was completed earlier this year, he said.The ground floor of the new wing features check-in…
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Plans for Chalong Marina expansion unveiled
CHALONG: Three different plans for Phase II of the Chalong Marina Project, which aims to provide berths for more than 200 vessels to Chalong Bay, were announced at a public hearing about the project at Muang Phuket School today. Phuket Vice-Governor Worapoj Ratthasima, who led the meeting, was joined by Marine Department Director Werawan Sirigarmpen and a team of consultants…
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Dead red frog crabs “probably poisoned’
MAI KHAO: Hundreds of red frog crabs, or phu jakkajan, and other species of crabs and sea urchins were found washed ashore on Sai Kaew Beach on Sunday evening. Many of the sea animals were dead, possibly poisoned by fishermen, said Somkiet Khokiettiwong of the Phuket Marine Biological Center (PMBC). “We’re not sure how many red frog crabs and other…
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Ian Rush-es through Phuket
WICHIT: Former English Premier League star striker Ian Rush was among a group of famous footballers who conducted a short football clinic in the parking lot of the Tesco-Lotus supercenter this morning.Rush, a Welshman, is best remembered as Liverpool’s leading scorer with 346 goals for the club between 1980 and 1996.Some 60 lucky youths from three local schools attended the…
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Shop owner grazed in drive-by shooting
WICHIT: The owner of a noodle restaurant was injured in a drive-by shooting while she worked in her shop last night.A teenager eating at the restaurant at the time, believed to have been the intended target, said he recognized the shooter as the same man who had once stabbed his brother.Lt Col Yongyut Krongmalai, an Investigating Inspector at the Phuket…
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Public hearing for B300m Chalong Marina project
CHALONG: A public hearing about plans for Phase II of the Chalong Marina Project, which aims to add moorings for more than 200 vessels to Chalong Bay, will be held tomorrow at Muang Phuket School, just south of Chalong Circle, at 1:30 pm.The meeting will gather public feedback about the design and environmental impact of the expanded project.Phuket Vice-Governor Worapoj…
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Police push for 180 more CCTV cameras
PHUKET: After hailing as a success the installation of 48 closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras around the island, Phuket Provincial Police Superintendent of General Staff Pol Col Peerayut Karajedee on Friday announced that police are now looking to install 180 more public surveillance cameras.At the monthly Governor Meets the Press meeting, Col Peerayut said that the 48 cameras installed in Phuket…
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Private funding offered for convention center
NAI YANG: Phuket’s decades-old of dream of having an International Convention and Exhibition Center (ICEC) took a step forward on May 28, when Tourism and Sports Minister Suwit Yodmanee ordered the formation of a provincial committee and gave it 60 days to decide where the center should be sited.The move follows a May 25 meeting of ING Funds (Thailand) Co…
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Thai Rak Thai executives face five-year ban from politics
BANGKOK (Nation): The Constitution Tribunal yesterday ruled that the Thai Rak Thai executives must be banned from politics for five years in line with a coup order.The tribunal ruled that the Announcement No 27 of the Council for Democratic Reform had retroactive effect against the Thai Rak Thai executives.The court ruled that executives had committed political crimes, not criminal offenses,…
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Constitution Tribunal orders Thai Rak Thai to be dissolved
BANGKOK (Nation): The Constitution Tribunal yesterday ruled that the Thai Rak Thai Party did not have enough political ideology to remain as a political party and had committed wrongdoings warranting dissolution.The tribunal found that the Thai Rak Thai-led government dissolved Parliament in order to help its party leader Thaksin Shinawatra with his personal problems.The judges found that Thaksin had exerted…
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Tribunal rules suit against Democrats legitimate
BANGKOK (Nation): The Constitution Tribunal ruled yesterday that the Democrat Party had not breached the MPs and Senatorial Election Act because the act had lapsed after the coup.Reading the legal interpretations before the verdict, Judge Somchai said the organic election had not been exempted by any coup order and so it was annulled by the coup.However, the tribunal ruled that…
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Democrats escape dissolution
BANGKOK (Nation): The Constitution Tribunal yesterday acquitted the Democrat Party of framing the Thai Rak Thai Party during the election campaign in the run up to the April 2 general election last year.The tribunal ruled that it was not wrong for the Democrats to attack the Thaksin regime during the election campaign.The tribunal also found the Democrats not guilty of…
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Decha calls for volunteers
PHUKET: Phuket Provincial Police Commander Maj Gen Decha Budnampetch once again called for more police officers and civil defense volunteers in a meeting this morning at ST Hotel. Comparing Phuket to Las Vegas, he said that more officers are needed to keep Phuket safe, especially after the recent bombings in Haad Yai. At the Phuket Provincial Security Committee meeting, chairman…
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Liverpool legends to conduct soccer clinics
PHUKET: Former Liverpool stars Ian Rush and John Barnes will conduct an hour-long soccer clinic for underprivileged schoolchildren June 5 at Tesco Lotus.A clinic hosted last year by Tesco Lotus in Bangkok with Rush proved so successful they decided to follow up this year with clinics in Chiang Mai and Phuket – and the addition of fellow former Liverpool star…
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OrBorTor Wichit aspires to municipality status
PHUKET: The President of Wichit Tambon Administration Organization (OrBorTor) has requested for the Governor of Phuket to upgrade the OrBorTor to the status of a town municipality, skipping the usual tambon municipality step. The upgrade is needed to reflect the rapid growth of the area’s economy and population, OrBorTor President Kreetha Saetan claims.Phuket Muang District Chief Wirawat Janpen, however, advised…
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Rise in registrations continues
PHUKET: As of May 20, Phuket’s official population stood at 318,538. The figure was up 7,868 people from January 31 when the province launched a campaign to increase the number of Thai citizens whose names appear on household registration forms in the province. Phuket Provincial Chief Administrative Officer (Palad) Piya Bharatasilpin reported the increase to Vice-Governor Worapoj Ratthasima during the…
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2.9 billion baht requested for waste management
PHUKET (Gazette, The Nation): Phuket has requested a 2.9 billion baht budget from the central government to fund a four-year plan to manage waste disposal and water treatment on the island. The request includes an allocation of 1.3 billion baht to build a second incinerator.The plan was discussed at a workshop at the Phuket Merlin Hotel chaired by Vice-Governor Worapoj…
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Gulu’s goal: to bring mega-yachts to Phuket
KOH KAEW: Royal Phuket Marina (RPM) developer Gulu Lalvani yesterday held a press conference to outline his vision to develop Phuket as the world’s top yachting destination – including his plan to build Zoran Island, a new island off the coast to site a deluxe marina complex capable of berthing mega-yachts.“I am very pleased that at the beginning of this…
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Nation seminar sold out
PHUKET CITY: Phuket’s economic strengths and weaknesses were under the microscopes of prominent local and national leaders during “The Drivers of the Economy in Phuket” seminar at The Metropole hotel yesterday.The sold-out event, part of a number of activities to mark the Nation Group’s 36th anniversary, drew many notable speakers from government, industry and tourism sectors and focused on ways Phuket could…
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Thai Navy stages VIP rescue
CAPE PANWA: A “VIP” was rescued by officers from the Royal Thai Navy Third Naval Command yesterday as part of an anti-terrorism drill held off Cape Panwa.About 50 officers from the Navy, Marine Police and Marine Transport Officers took part in the drill, which simulated the rescue of a Thai Government VIP from a terrorist boat in the sea off…
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Phuket’s klong to be cleaned Saturday
PHUKET CITY: Phuket City Municipality is organizing a “Clean Up Klong Bang Yai” day on Saturday, May 26, as part of its activities to mark World Environment Day on June 5.The cleanup will take place along a two-mile stretch of Klong Bang Yai, Phuket’s longest watercourse, from the Thipkiri Bridge to the Phra-Aram Bridge in Phuket City. Volunteers are invited…
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Warrant served on thumb-chopping insurance fraud suspect
KATHU: Crime Suppression Division (CSD) police yesterday served a search warrant at the home of alleged insurance fraudster Pichet Porntatipong, who insurers claim chopped off his own left thumb with a butcher’s knife in order to collect 16 million baht in claims on some 30 different insurance polices. Lt Col Akkarat Limsangkard, Deputy Commander of CSD Sub-Division 5, called K.…
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Local moneylender found murdered in his home
TUNG TONG: Police are investigating the brutal stabbing murder of an elderly businessman discovered in his Bangtong Village home in the early evening of May 22.Tung Tong Police Investigating Inspector Pol Lt Col Passakorn Sontikul told the Gazette the bloody corpse of 62-year-old Kajorn “Ko Jorn” Somnam was discovered by his longtime live-in partner Wassana Chookaew, 51, at about 7…
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Press conference to clarify “Zoran Island” plan
PHUKET: Following reports that a man-made island was ready to be built off the east coast of Phuket to accommodate a marina for mega-yachts, the marketing manager at Royal Phuket Marina [RPM] clarified that the project is still in the early planning stages and faces many obstacles before it can become a reality. RPM Marketing Director Wilaiporn Titimanaaree told the Gazette that developer…
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Phuket and Japan’s Hyoko to be “sistered” soon
PHUKET: Plans are afoot to add the Japanese prefecture of Hyogo to Phuket’s growing list of sister cities.On May 21, Phuket Japanese Association President Kazushi Miyashita met with Phuket Governor Niran Kalayanamit and Suwalai Pinpradab, Director of Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT), Southern Region 4 office to discuss the idea.Mr Miyashita told reporters he has already met the Vice Governor…
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One teen dead after night of violence
PHUKET CITY: One teenager was left dead on May 20 after a night of gang threats and retaliations ended in a fatal shooting. The 17-year-old victim, Kanchit “Phai” Trupsin, was found at 3 am outside Muslim Puenrak restaurant on Anuphas Phuket Kan Rd. According to testimony given to police, the incident began when a passenger riding pillion on a motorbike…
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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