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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Police get strict with red-plate cars
CHALONG: Traffic Police set up a checkpoint on Chao Fa East Rd on Monday night to check that all vehicles bearing red “temporary” license plates for newly-purchased cars were registered with the Transport Department and that the vehicles were not stolen or being used to commit crimes. The checkpoint, near the intersection with Soi Palai, was also manned by officials…
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Land Office moves to allay property bust fears
PHUKET: The Chief of the Phuket Provincial Land Office (PPLO), Supot Suwannachote, has moved to reassure businesspeople that the closer inspection of companies wanting to register land titles, as ordered by the Ministry of Interior, does not mean that transfers of ownership will be refused.He stressed that he did not want to see a slowdown in Phuket’s booming property industry.…
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Phuket readies security for Swedish royal visit
PHUKET: Security will be tight during the one-week visit to Phuket of King Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Silvia of Sweden, with more than 100 police officers directly involved in the security effort and units from many other government agencies taking part. The Swedish royal couple will arrive in Phuket on the afternoon of June 14, following their attendance in…
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Airport limos give ground to keep concession
PHUKET CITY: The Phuket Limousine and Business Services Cooperative Ltd (PBC) is to have its concession to operate limousines at the airport renewed, but members will have to agree to a number of conditions. The news came after both the PBC and the Airports Authority of Thailand (AAT) asked the provincial authorities to intercede in negotiations. The current concession agreement…
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Market launched to honor HM The King
PHUKET CITY: An open-air market is being held from 9 am until midnight at Queen Sirikit Park on Thalang Rd as part of the activities being held around the island to celebrate the Diamond Jubilee of HM The King’s ascension of the throne. The market, organized by the Phuket Provincial Commercial Office (PPCO) and the Phuket Market Vendors’ Association, opened…
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Official denies extortion and bodily harm charges
CHALONG: Sassiri Klinhom, a district official from Surat Thani, presented himself to Chalong Police Station on June 1 to deny charges of extortion and causing bodily harm.Pol Lt Col Jessada Sangsuree told the Gazette that at about 10 am on May 29, he and other officers responded to a call saying that a woman had been found handcuffed and drugged…
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Police Chief warns of increasing petty crime
PHUKET CITY: Phuket Provincial Police Commander Pol Maj Gen Decha Budnampeth has ordered police in the province to step up their vigilance against petty crimes.He has also urged the public to help officers by informing them of any crimes they witness, especially in the run-up to the month-long soccer World Cup.Gen Decha said, “All police officers should be more attentive…
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Property boom makes tax office glow
PHUKET CITY: If taxes paid are any indication of economic health, then Phuket’s economy, in particular the property sector, is very healthy indeed. Between October 1 last year and April 30 this year, the Phuket Area Revenue Office (PARO) collected 455.75 million baht in taxes from property businesses alone – an increase of 64.58% on the same six-month period a…
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Swiss man found dead in pickup
CHALONG: A Swiss man was found dead in the driver’s seat of his pickup truck on Chao Fa East Rd on Monday. The 63-year-old man, identified by police as Johann Kupreest, was discovered slumped at the wheel with the engine off and the windows and doors locked. Local residents noticed the unconscious Mr Kupreest and tried to assist him, but…
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Land crackdown targets Thai shareholders
BANGKOK: The Ministry of Interior has ordered a crackdown on property companies attempting to circumvent Section 74 of the Land Act in order to allow foreigners to control land ownership.Section 74 states (unofficial translation): “In the process of registering [land] possession rights and contracts between parties … officers have the power to investigate both parties and call them for questioning…
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Hotel buying spree continues
PHUKET: Central Hotels & Resorts (CHR), which last month announced that it had bought the Islandia Park Resort in Karon for more than a billion baht, has also bought the Jiva Resort & Spa in Kata.This most recent purchase brings the number of properties CHR owns in Phuket to four; the company’s other properties in Phuket are the Central Karon Village…
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Patong waitress in acid attack horror
PATONG (Kom Chad Luek): A 23-year-old waitress has been badly disfigured after acid was thrown on her, allegedly by her jealous ex-boyfriend. The woman then traveled to Bangkok with her mother to seek help from the Paweena Hongsakul Foundation for abused women and children.Tassaya Wanich, 24, met K. Paweena on May 26 and explained that she had been frequently abused…
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Reserve water pipeline to be complete by end of June
KATHU: The 17-kilometer pipeline to tap water supplies from the Hitlor and Manik lagoons in Tambon Srisoonthorn is now about 80% complete and should be finished by the end of June. The 60-million-baht pipeline is part of the Phuket Provincial Water Supply’s (PPWS) short-term plan to fight water shortages on the island. PPWS Manager Sayan Wareearoonroj told the Gazette today,…
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Gov moves to unite dog welfare bodies
PHUKET: Governor Udomsak Usawarangkura has appointed a committee to try to solve the problem of stray dogs in Phuket. One main responsibility of the new Stray Dog Committee will be to promote coordination between the various government bodies and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) who, Gov Udomsak believes, are not cooperating efficiently.Dr Prasit Koeysiripong, the newly appointed Chairman of one of the…
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New terminal opened at Krabi International Airport
KRABI: Phumtham Vejyachai, Deputy Transport Minister, officially opened a new four-floor domestic-passenger terminal at Krabi International Airport on May 18. Pisarn Jinacharn, Director of Krabi International Airport, said “The terminal has been built for domestic passengers and has many facilities such as restaurants, banks, taxi services and car rental offices. It has an area of 10,593 square meters and a…
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Gibbon problem returns to Patong
PATONG: The problem of gibbons being hawked around Patong for photo opportunities has returned after a two-year absence. Over the past two weeks gibbons and their handlers have started to reappear, particularly around Soi Bangla. The problem had previously been cleared up by the Wildlife Conservation Office (WCO) which carried out a campaign to confiscate illegally-held gibbons and house them…
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New rules reduce sailboat confusion
PHUKET: The Marine Department has announced that Thai-registered sailing vessels with a length of 16 meters (52.4 feet) or less no longer need to have a Thai skipper or crew on board when in Thai waters.Phuket Marine Office Chief Surin Theerakulpisut told the Gazette today that the new rule came into effect on March 1.Vincent Tabuteau, Managing Director of Asia…
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Sea gypsies halt Rawai road-widening project
RAWAI: A protest by a group of Sea Gypsies has led to the Rawai road-widening project being halted. The group from Village 2, Rawai, complained about the proposed destruction of four houses to make way for the widening of Wiset Rd. The project has now been put on hold until a solution is found. On May 19, Seksan Bangjak, a…
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Phuket-based TV correspondent dies
SURAT THANI: Phuket-based TV correspondent Colin Hillis died on Saturday after a seizure and fall while walking to the Koh Samui ferry in Don Sak. He was 41.The Scottish-born reporter worked with Lanarkshire Television as anchor on its nightly magazine program Live@6 and was also a newscaster for the station between 1999 and 2001. Earlier in his career, he was…
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Weekend storms damage 35 houses
PHUKET: Around 35 houses were damaged during storms over the weekend, which caused damage around the island estimated at more than 3 million baht.The Phuket Office for Disaster Prevention and Mitigation (ODPM) reported that heavy rain and strong winds during Saturday night and in the early hours of Sunday toppled trees and electricity pylons, damaging buildings and cars and causing…
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3 arrested on smuggling charges
RASSADA: Two Thais and a Taiwanese citizen have been arrested for their involvement in smuggling cigarettes and batteries into Phuket.The contraband, seized along with the trio in a raid by officials from the Phuket Area Excise Office (PAEO), is estimated to be worth 5 million baht, the richest smuggling seizure in five years in the province.Led by Surat Sangnej of…
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Metal workers and mechanics to be moved
PHUKET: The Phuket Provincial Industry Office (PPIO) has announced that mechanics’ garages and metal workers’ shops in Phuket City are to be relocated to an area outside of the city center as part of a zoning scheme aimed at combating pollution. Businesses that refuse to comply will risk losing their licenses to trade.At a press conference at The Metropole hotel,…
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Missing fishermen safely home
AO MAKHAM: Two Thai fishermen missing after their boat sank on Tuesday night have returned home safely after being in the water for more than 20 hours. The men managed to climb ashore at Ao Makham yesterday evening after having drifted around the length of the island.The fishing boat Sin Piphat sank in rough seas about 13 miles west of…
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Phuket-Spanish team wins tsunami memorial contest
BANGKOK: A design by Naga Concepts of Phuket in collaboration with Disc-O of Spain, and entitled “Mountains of Remembrance”, will be used in building the tsunami memorial at Haad Lek in Lamru National Park in Phang Nga, caretaker Deputy Prime Minister Suwat Liptapanlop announced today.The Spanish team of architects – Ana Somoza, Juana Canet, Disc-o Architecture, Eva Sebastian Pena, Angel…
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Lovers slain during beach tryst
NAI YANG: A couple have died after being brutally attacked yesterday while they were enjoying a secret rendezvous on Nai Yang Beach in the early hours.Pol Lt Col Sakchai Limchareon, Deputy Superintendent at Tah Chat Chai Police Station, told the Gazette today, “The man was Chian Petcharat, 59, and the woman was Sriprai Chai-intha, 40. Both of them were married…
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World’s oldest liner books a call
PHUKET: The MV Doulos, the world’s oldest ocean-going passenger ship – it was built just two years after the Titanic sunk – is returning to Phuket for the first time in 10 years. The Malta-registered liner is now operated by Gute Bücher für Alle (GBA), a private non-profit organization based in Germany that has worked since 1977 to promote good…
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Crocodile Disco to reopen as go-go bar
PATONG: Crocodile Disco, which was gutted by fire in March, will reopen next year as an a-go-go venue, Amnuay Kuabkum, former Manager of Crocodile Disco, has told the Gazette.The fire, which broke out early on March 13, caused damage estimated at 40 million baht to the three-story complex, located at the end of Soi Moulin Rouge. The soi, more commonly…
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Mövenpick signs up to run Crowne Plaza
KARON: Swiss-based Mövenpick Hotels and Resorts (MH&R) has signed a management agreement with Kingdom Hotel Investments (KHI) to run the Crowne Plaza Karon Beach resort, which KHI bought recently for 3.7 billion baht.On June 28, the resort, which has 186 villas and 166 guest rooms, as well as 30 apartments for lease, will become the Mövenpick Resort & Spa Karon…
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Phuket-Port Blair “sister city’ status under threat
PHUKET CITY: Phuket Governor Udomsak Uswarangkura will move to revoke the “sister city” status of the Andaman & Nicobar Islands if trade proposals to be discussed next month fail to bear fruit.Governor Udomsak told the Gazette that the “sister-city” relationship, ratified by the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the two parties on June 29 last year, should…
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Fiberglass “Phuket Dog’ home for good
PATONG: A sculpture of an over-sized dog by a famous Japanese artist has returned, this time permanently, to Patong Beach. The sculpture, known as Phuket Dog, is 3½ meters tall and was originally created for an art exhibition held on the beach last year in commemoration of the tsunami. The artist who made the fiberglass dog, Yoshitomo Nara, explained the…
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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