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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Drive against alcohol and tobacco
PHUKET CITY: In a scene reminiscent of the US in the 1920s, some 100 people turned out this morning to burn cartons of cigarettes and smash bottles of alcohol. The “No tobacco, no alcohol for a better life” project was organized by the Kalyanamitra Organization, Phuket, along with Rajabhat University Phuket, where the bottle-smashing was staged. The message of the…
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Probe into Patong municipal poll
PATONG: Thirteen days after Songserm Kepsap and his Patong Progress Party (PPP) swept aside former mayor Pian Keesin and other Raksa Patong Party candidates in the Patong municipal election, the poll results have yet to be certified by the Government – and an investigation is now underway to determine if the poll was tainted by vote-buying. Kittipong Thiengkunagrit, Director of…
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First small step toward Cyber-Paradise
PHUKET CITY: A branch of the Software Industry Promotion Agency (SIPA) will open on March 1 at Saphan Hin – the first small step toward the island’s much-imagined golden future as an IT hub. Manoo Ordeedolchest, President of SIPA, told the Gazette, “The Board of Investment and the provincial government will be responsible for setting up and running a one-stop…
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Yacht customs duty dropped to zero
PHUKET TOWN: Phuket’s marine leisure industry broke out the Champagne today as the government finally dropped the customs duty on imported boats to zero, following publication of the change to the tax law in the Royal Gazette yesterday. Theera Paesathitthavorn, Deputy Chief of the Phuket Customs Office Region 5, told the Phuket Gazette today that he anticipates an increase in…
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Phuket Town is now Phuket City
PHUKET TOWN: Unlucky for some, but lucky for sign-makers and big-thinkers: on Friday, February 13, the Interior Ministry officially upgraded Phuket Town Municipality to Phuket City Municipality. The Chief Administrative Officer of the new Phuket City (and formerly Chief Admin Officer of Phuket Town), Veerun Hangsawat, told the Gazette today, “The structure and responsibilities of Phuket Town qualified it for…
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SilkAir to boost Phuket service
PHUKET: The blue skies of Phuket tend to empty of airliners during the “green” season but Singapore Airlines (SIA) plans to buck this trend by scheduling more Phuket-Singapore flights every week between April and October. Chan Chee Chong, manager of SilkAir, Thailand, said yesterday that SilkAir – SIA’s regional wing – will add three Phuket-Singapore flights to its schedule each…
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B300m to be spent on Phuket’s roads
PHUKET: Almost 300 million baht is to be spent improving the island’s roads as part of a campaign by the Phuket Provincial Highway Office (PPHO) to reduce road deaths and injuries. One of the biggest projects will be the enlargement of the eight-kilometer bypass road to four lanes, or possibly even six. This will cost 112 million baht and take…
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Protesters seek to stop early closing
PHUKET TOWN: About 1,000 workers and business owners from the entertainment industry gathered outside the Phuket Provincial Meeting Hall this afternoon to stage a peaceful protest against tighter restrictions on opening hours. The protesters caried banners and placards criticizing the 1 am closing time that is scheduled to be imposed on the island from March 1 as part of the…
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Computer causes cupid consternation
PHUKET:A total of 138 couples chose to marry on the island on Valentine’s Day – though a computer glitch meant that some of them had a lot of time to think about whether they really wanted to go through with it. The introduction of new computers at the Kathu District Office led to problems that meant couples had to prove…
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Phuket wins road safety award
PHUKET: Phuket has received an award for being the third most successful province in Thailand in terms of reducing road accident figures over the New Year holiday period, the Governor’s office disclosed today. Deputy Prime Minister Chaturon Chaisaeng, who is also Director of the National Road Safety Center, made a presentation to Phuket Governor Udomsak Usawarangkura, Provincial Police Commander Maj…
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New TAT boss outlines strategy
PHUKET TOWN: The uniqueness of Phuket’s culture and events such as the Vegetarian Festival will prove to be new attractions for tourists, according to the new Director of the local office of the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT), Suwalai Pinpradab. “We will campaign for residents and tourists alike to wear white clothes during the festival to make it unique and…
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Singapore property show wins go-ahead
SINGAPORE: The first Singapore Phuket and Samui Property exhibition will be held at the Raffles City Convention Centre in the Swissotel The Stamford, Singapore, from March 5 to 7. Exhibition Director Graham Doven said, “We have been under constant pressure from many major developers in Phuket and Samui to get to Singapore, which has shown strong growth [in sales] over…
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Prizes for Valentine’s Day newlyweds
PHUKET: Couples who marry in Phuket tomorrow will have the chance to win romantic meals for two at the Thainaan restaurant or even romantic nights at hotels on the island. The prizewinners will be determined by lucky draws at each of Phuket’s three District Offices – at Phuket Town, Kathu and Thalang – where officers are preparing for the annual…
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Chalong resumes “waters’ fee
CHALONG: After a hiatus of a year, the Chalong Tambon Administration Organization (OrBorTor) recently resumed collecting fees from yacht skippers at the One-Stop Service office, sparking concern among yachties that the notorious Phuket Waters Fee had been reintroduced. But the Chief Administrator of Orbortor Chalong, Paritta Thitkonglad, explained today that the fee, collection of which resumed at the beginning of…
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Students try electronic voting
PHUKET TOWN: Electronic voting made its debut in Phuket yesterday with a machine being used to register votes in student elections at the Rajabhat University Phuket. After manually registering their attendance, students entered polling booths and pressed buttons on keypads to cast their votes: 1 for Theerayuth Yodkaew, 2 for Chaiwat Tongkerd, or 3 for “neither candidate”. Prapa Kayee, President…
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Anger greets 1 am closing time
PATONG: From March 1, bars and entertainment venues on Phuket will have to close at 1 am, an hour earlier than they do at present. The early closing edict was decided at a meeting of the Cabinet in Bangkok yesterday. The decision effectively designates the entire island as one large entertainment zone, leaving people in the after-dark industry exasperated and…
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Roads claimed 195 lives in 2003
PHUKET: A total of 195 people died on Phuket’s roads in 2003, official figures have revealed – the vast majority of them in crashes involving motorcycles. The figure was up 7.7% compared with the 181 deaths in 2002. The Phuket Provincial Health Office reported that another 12,435 people were injured or maimed in 2003 on the island’s roads, with the…
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Anchalee draws No. 1 ballot spot
PHUKET TOWN: Two of the three declared candidates for the key post of President in next month’s Phuket Provincial Administration Organization (OrBorJor) elections registered today, along with many candidates for OrBorJor seats. Anchalee Vanich-Thepabutr, who resigned recently as a party-list (non-elected) Democrat MP, won a lucky draw for the No. 1 spot on the ballot, provided her paperwork proves to…
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Newcomers in upset victory in Patong poll
PATONG: The Patong Progress Party (PPP) led by Songserm Kepsap won the Patong Municipal election yesterday, beating the Rak Patong Party (RPT) of Pian Keesin by 322 votes. A total of 9,213 people were eligible to vote but in the event only 6,239, or 68% , turned out. K. Songserm polled 2,949 votes against K. Pian’s 2,627, with 519 spoiled…
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Thaksin flying in for ministerial talks
PATONG: Top-level ministerial meetings today and tomorrow in Phuket will determine new areas of cooperation on regional transport, infectious diseases, terrorism and tourism among the BIMST-EC group of nations. Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra will fly in to head the Thai team tomorrow in talks with senior ministers from the other countries in the grouping – Bangladesh, India, Myanmar and Sri…
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Big turnout for Anchalee’s launch
PHUKET TOWN: Over 1,000 people last night flocked to a rally organized by the Democrat party to launch Phuket MP Anchalee Vanich-Thepabutr as its candidate for the March 14 election to choose a new President of the Phuket Provincial Administration Organization (OrBorJor). Also on the podium at the outdoor Chatuchak market on Phang-nga Rd were the glamorous and popular Abisit…
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OrBorJor election set for March 14
PHUKET TOWN: March 14 has been set as the date of Phuket’s much-anticipated Provincial Administration Organization (OrBorJor) elections. The announcement came this morning from the Phuket Election Commission (PEC) just one day after the expiry of the previous OrBorJor administration, which was led by president Dr Prasit Koeysiripong. The poll has drawn national attention since Democrat Party party-list MP Anchalee…
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Chicken feed
PATONG: An estimated seven tons of chicken and 40,000 eggs will be used in a free food festival in Patong on Saturday, February 7, to reassure consumers that chicken remains safe to eat despite the ongoing outbreak of avian ‘flu. The government-inspired initiative – all provinces have been ordered to hold similar events – aims to attract more than 10,000…
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German tourist dies at Bang Tao
THALANG: A 53-year-old tourist from Germany appears to have drowned yesterday off Bang Tao after going into the water to swim alone. Police named the dead man as Hans Peter Otto Krieter, who arrived a few days ago for a vacation with a friend, Alfred Herbert Prusseit, 55. Pol Capt Banchop Songnarong, of Cherng Talay Police Station, told the Gazette…
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Bridge to connect Koh Yao islands
PHANG NGA: Koh Yao Yai and Koh Yao Noi islands are to be connected by a suspension bridge and a luxury hotel will be developed on one of the islands, District Chief Songpol Konkaew told the Gazette yesterday. An 8-million baht budget has already been issued by the central government to study the bridge project’s technical and financial requirements, he…
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AirAsia lands in Phuket
PHUKET: The first no-frills AirAsia flight from Bangkok to Phuket landed at around midday today with all 148 seats filled. Thirty passengers aboard the Boeing 737-300 paid just 99 baht apiece for the one-way flight.The remainder forked out 1,900 each. AirAsia put 20,000 of the 99-baht tickets up for sale in mid-January for routes between the capital and Phuket, Chiang…
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Officials to organize big chicken feed
PHUKET TOWN: Phuket Provincial Livestock Office (PPLO) Chief Sunart Wongchawalit has declared poultry products grown in Phuket as safe for consumption. So confident is he that his office is organizing a special event to encourage islanders back into their chicken-eating ways. “We have collected 230 samples of fecal matter from all parts of the island and sent them to a…
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Tourism booms as passengers top 500,000
PHUKET TOWN: The latest figures on air passenger arrivals and departures show that Phuket is in the middle of a tourism boom with a record 509,841 visitors coming and going in January. This is the first time the half-million figure has been exceeded in a single calendar month. The number represents a whopping 23% increase on the figure of 390,109…
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TRT shock as Prasit says, “I won’t run’
PHUKET TOWN: The outgoing President of the Provincial Administration Organization, (OrBorJor), Dr Prasit Koeysiripong, dropped a bombshell at his farewell media appearance last night when he said he would not be standing as a Thai Rak Thai (TRT) candidate in next year’s parliamentary elections. It had been widely anticipated that Dr Prasit would lead the TRT campaign in 2005 when…
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Dead birds “victims of vigilante action’
PHUKET: Fears surrounding the spread of avian ‘flu have led members of the public to take matters into their own hands and poison wild birds, it was claimed today. An autopsy conducted on a dead bird found in Phuket Town showed that it died from ingesting insecticide mixed with rice. Officers from the Phuket Provincial Livestock Office (PPLO) have examined…
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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