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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Dead whale washed ashore
NAI YANG: A dead sperm whale washed up on Nai Yang Beach last night. The whale, 10 meters long and weighing around 3 tonnes, is thought to have been about 40 years old when it died,. Kongkiat Kittiwattawong, a biologist at the Phuket Marine Biological Center (PMBC) in Cape Panwa, told the Gazette, “It was impossible to determine very much…
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Breakout duo recaptured
PHUKET CITY: Two detainees ā a Filipino and a Liberian man ā who broke out of the Phuket Immigration Office on June 10 while awaiting deportation, were both recaptured within days of their bid for freedom, much to the relief of the officer who was supposedly guarding them. The men ā who had just completed sentences in Phuket Provincial Prison…
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New election ordered for Patong
PATONG: Thailand’s Central Election Committee (CEC) has declared the Patong Municipal elections of February 8 void and handed “yellow card” warnings to both parties in the poll. On June 11, the decision was passed to the apparent winners, the Patong Progress Party (PPP) of Songserm Kepsap, and to the rival Rak Patong Party (RPP) of Pian Keesin. A new election…
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Leading researchers to attend Aids talks
NAI YANG: Professors John and Deborah Greenspan, acknowledged as being among the world’s leaders in the field of oral manifestations of HIV infection, will attend the 5th World Workshop on Oral Health and Disease in Aids conference at the Pearl Village Hotel from July 6-10. The couple have been involved in HIV research since the early 1980s when the first…
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Jilted tourist hangs himself
PATONG: A young Norwegian tourist was found hanged in his room at the Baan Pornpateep rooming house on Taweewong Rd, Patong, at about 12.30 pm on Friday. Thomas Andreassen, aged about 21, apparently attached a rope to the shower head in the bathroom and hanged himself after his heart was broken by his Thai girlfriend. Pol Lt Col Chawalit Niemwadee…
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Abandoned baby “doing well”Ā
PHUKET CITY: A baby boy, thought to be about two days old, was found abandoned on top of a dog kennel at a house close to Rajabhat Institute Phuket on Wednesday evening. Pranee Sonsuk was in her home when she heard her dog barking and the more unexpected sound of a baby crying. She rushed the rain-soaked infant to Bangkok…
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Skeleton believed to be missing Dutchman
CHALONG: A skeleton found yesterday evening near Yanui Beach is believed to be that of missing Dutch dive instructor David Wiewel. Local people found the remains at about 5pm while looking for shellfish, said Pol Col Chalit Kaewyarat, Superintendent of Chalong Police Station. The colonel said that it was impossible to tell from the remains whether foul play was involved,…
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Michael Learns To Postpone
CHERNG TALAY: Danish pop group Michael Learns To Rock have postponed their charity concert, slated to take place at Laguna Phuket on July 2, due to unforeseen scheduling problems. Announcing the postponement, Laguna Hotels & Resorts said today that ticket holders could obtain refunds at the Canal Village Shopping Centre, which is open from 9 am to 5 pm daily.…
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Six land plots seized for encroachment
PHUKET CITY: Six plots of land in Muang District “belonging” to two people were seized today in a massive operation led by the Minister of Justice, Pongthep Thepkanjana. K. Pongthep was accompanied by the Secretary of the Anti-Money Laundering Office, Pol Maj Gen Pirapan Premputi; the Chief of the Crime Suppression Police, Pol Maj Gen Kosin Sintao; and even the…
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Heavy rain and wind bring blackouts
PHUKET: Blustery winds and torrential rain led to blackouts in parts of Phuket yesterday when landslides and trees felled by strong gusts brought down power lines. TV and radio stations on Rang Hill in Phuket City were off the air for around 12 hours when two power poles came down. Engineers from the Phuket Provincial Electricity Authority (PPEA) restored power…
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Beauties in the beastly weather
PHUKET: The 40 contestants in the Miss Siam 2004 competition are in Phuket as part of their preparation for the contest, which takes place on June 12 in Bangkok, with prizes worth more than 3 million baht for the winner, plus a place in the Miss Tourism International competition. Apart from posing for the usual plethora of photos in various…
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TOT Phuket gets B128m budget bonanza
PHUKET: The Phuket office of the Telephone Organization of Thailand (TOT) has been granted a budget of 128.68 million baht to upgrade its services on the island. The announcement follows the return of TOT Phuket chief Pairoj Somsri from budget meetings in Bangkok late last month, at which he expected to be granted a budget of only 38.8 million baht,…
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Malaysian tourist “killed himself’
PATONG: Chong Chee Kian, 37, was found dead in his room at the Phuket Palace Hotel on Sirirat Rd yesterday. He appeared to have committed suicide by eating rat poison. Pol Col Chalit Thintanee, Superintendent of Kathu Police Station, told the Gazette today that police had received a call from the hotel’s manager, who explained that staff had found Mr…
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Gov accepts “Phuket getting ugly’ judgment
PHUKET: Governor Udomsak Usawarangkura says he accepts the judgment of a survey in the respected National Geographic Traveler magazine that Phuket as a destination is “getting ugly”, and says that he is “ready to improve Phuket”. The “getting ugly” assessment was published by National Geographic Traveler magazine after it conducted a survey of 200 specialists in sustainable tourism, destination stewardship…
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Spas must pay ‘entertainment’ tax
PHUKET: In an effort to clear up confusion over taxes payable by the island’s spa industry, the Excise Department has confirmed that it classes most of the island’s spa businesses as entertainment venues ā and therefore subject to 10% excise tax. “Spas that operate as entertainment venues [as opposed to beauty or health treatment facilities] must pay 10% excise tax,…
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“Smell of corruption’ in new land probe
PHUKET CITY: Senior police officers today inspected a 76-rai plot of land in the Panturat Hills behind Chan’s Antiques on the bypass road amid suspicions that corruption was involved in the issue of the land title. Crime Suppression Division Deputy Superintendent Pol Lt Col Korawath Panprapa and Pol Col Paween Pongsirin, Superintendent of Phuket City Police Station, were joined by…
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Gambling still the top vice
PHUKET: Even without the Liverpool FC lottery, gambling is still Phuket’s favorite vice, according to police crime statistics for May 1 to 25. Police arrested 169 unlucky punters during the preiod for betting illegally. Being an illegal immigrant came second, with 56 foreigners being rounded up during the period, followed closely by involvement with drugs, with 54 arrests made and…
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One-stop online bill payments coming soon
PHUKET CITY: The Phuket office of the Software Industry Promotion Agency (Sipa) has announced that in July it will launch a “one-stop” Internet website that will allow people to conduct business with a number of local government agencies without leaving home. Initially, the system will allow payment of electricity and some phone bills, and dealings with the Immigration and Transportation…
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Former Kathu Police Chief returns
PHUKET CITY: Pol Col Kokiat Wongvorachart, a former Superintendent of Kathu Police Station, will return to Phuket on Thursday as one of the four Deputy Commanders of the Provincial Police. Col Kokiat has been appointed to replace Pol Col Apirak Hongtong, who took leave of absence from the police to pursue a seat in the Phuket Provincial Administration Organization (OrBorJor),…
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Province “ready to tackle floods’
PHUKET: As the rainy season begins, the Phuket Provincial Government has listed 69 areas across the island as being vulnerable to flooding, and is establishing a center to deal with flood emergencies. Metha Mekarat, Chief of Phuket’s Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Office, told the Gazette that the list was the result of survey work conducted last year. Three areas were…
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Dugong dies
CAPE PANWA: The young female dugong that staff at the Phuket Marine Biological Center (PMBC) have been trying for 10 weeks to nurse back to health has died. The death has come as a shock. On May 17, PMBC staff had high hopes for the dugong’s recovery, and rated her chances of survival as high as 80%. The dugong died…
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Police learn Dutch investigation techniques
PHUKET CITY: Thirty senior police officers from Phuket, Krabi and Phang Nga yesterday completed a two-week course in applying analytical techniques to crime investigations, presented by Dutch crime experts. Pol Col Preecha Samuthpoaraya, Deputy Commander for Administration of Police Region 8, based in Surat Thani, told the Gazette that the main objective of the project was to reduce the number…
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Police urge closure of park at night
PHUKET CITY: Pol Col Paween Pongsirin, Superintendent of Phuket City Police Station, has made a formal request to Phuket City Municipality to close Rama IX Park (Suan Luang) between 10 pm and 4 am, because of the rising number of crimes committed in the park. Col Paween told the Gazette, “Suan Luang is a public place and is open 24…
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Bangkok backtracks on SorPorKor cancelations
BANGKOK (The Nation): The Agricultural Land Reform Office (ALRO) in Bangkok, which canceled 153 SorPorKor 4-01 papers held by 139 people in Phuket for misuse of the land, has announced that, after further investigation, it is recommending some people have their papers reinstated. Adisak Srisappakij, Permanent Secretary of the ALRO, told The Nation that he plans to ask the SorPorKor…
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Thai moviemakers seek foreign actors
PHUKET: Film production company Hub Ho Hin Bangkok is looking for Thai-speaking foreigners to act in a full-length Thai motion picture called Mining, to be shot in Phuket over four months, starting in August. Movie director Jira Marikul told the Gazette that the film will be set in Phuket’s tin-mining community 50 years ago. Foreigners are being sought for three…
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It’s official – it’s the wet season
PHUKET: The Southern Meteorological Center (West Coast), located opposite Phuket International Airport, today issued a release suggesting hotels and the Tourism Authority of Thailand’s Phuket office inform tourists that it is now the rainy season. The release follows widespread heavy showers resulting in 35mm of rainfall being recorded on the island today. Vichit Phuangsombat, director of the center, told the…
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Phuket tax office way ahead of target
PHUKET: The Phuket Area Revenue Office (PARO) expects to collect 2.9 billion baht in taxes by the end of the tax-collection year on September 30, Supanee Sripanyawichya, Chief of the PARO, has told the Gazette. “We collected 1.8 billion baht in taxes between October 1 and April 30,” she said. “That’s more than 40% higher than our target.” K. Supanee…
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Municipality to seek public feedback
PHUKET CITY: The Phuket City Municipality has issued an invitation to all residents of the area to attend a public meeting to offer opinions on how the city can be improved. The meeting, on June 2 at the Thavorn Grand Plaza Hotel, will run from 1 pm to 5 pm. Proceedings will be in Thai only. Phuket Governor Udomsak Usawarangkura…
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Michael Learns to Rock at Laguna
CHERNG TALAY: Danish pop band Michael Learns to Rock will perform a charity concert at Laguna Phuket on July 2, starting at 8:30 pm. The trio, coming to Thailand to give a private performance for the Thai Royal Family, are known to their many fans as MLTR and will use the opportunity to a one-off charity performance in Phuket. With…
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Pawnshops cut interest rates for poor parents
PHUKET: Phuket’s three government pawnshops have reduced interest rates on loans until August 15 to help poor parents raise money for school fees. Phuket City Municipality Pawnshop Manager Phuwadon Chinnupathum told the Gazette that the Department of Local Administration in Bangkok ordered the reductions, which came into effect on April 1 and will continue until August 15. During that time,…
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 ā 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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