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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5 hidden healthcare costs in Thailand and how to avoid them
Thailand's healthcare system is affordable and supported by the Universal Health Coverage (UHC) scheme, offering essential services to most citizens. However, hidden healthcare costs can surprise patients and lead to unexpected expenses. These include specialist fees, insurance gaps, emergency services,...
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Well surrenders murder secret
THALANG: Mystery surrounds the death of a tattooed man whose body was found in a well on Friday. He was probably murdered in an argument and dumped there, police say. Rubber-cutters discovered the body in a disused well about 200 meters from workers’ cottages in Baan Maa Nik after noting a bad smell. A rescue team lassoed the body, which…
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Skipper hacked to death by Burmese crew
PHUKET TOWN: Police believe the Thai skipper of a fishing vessel found dead on Sunday was murdered by members of his Burmese crew and dumped in the water after an argument that ended in violence. Jirachai Krairat, 35, who had gone missing the previous night, was found floating face down with his head almost severed from his body, in water…
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New IT course for Phuket
KATHU: Prince of Songkla University (PSU) is to introduce a bilingual bachelor degree course in Information Technology (IT) in the Faculty of Applied Sciences from June this year, says Asst Prof Puwadon Bootrat, Director of PSU’s Phuket Community College.Prof Puwadon said, “There’s a lack of IT staff in Phuket now and this has been contributing to the high costs of…
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Student news readers head for finals
PHUKET TOWN: Students who picked up awards in a news reading contest today will have the chance to compete in a national competition on Children’s Day next weekend. Awards were given to young Phuket news readers at primary and secondary levels. The winner for news reading in Thai at the primary level was Pabhasara Boonsukul, from Tessabaaan Plookpanya school, followed…
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PM to visit Phuket twice
PHUKET: Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra is scheduled to make two weekend-long visits to Phuket this month, first for a bilateral summit then for a Thai Rak Thai (TRT) party congress. The PM will make his first visit next weekend, from January 10-12, to meet Singapore’s Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong and his entourage of 30 to talk about mutual economic…
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Hotels report bumper New Year
PHUKET TOWN: Resorts and hotels have been full over New Year and the three-star sector has solid bookings for January, but Governor CEO Pongpayome Vasaputi anticipates a possible drop in top-end occupancy rates. “I hear that hotel bookings during the New Year holiday were good,” he told a press conference yesterday. “Three-star hotels, especially, will be full until the end…
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Holiday road toll sparks traffic crackdown
PHUKET: The three deaths and 468 injuries on Phuket roads from last Friday through to yesterday has prompted the Governor to order a crackdown on driving offenses. Speaking at a press conference today, Phuket Governor CEO Pongpayome Vasaputi said, “We tried to reduce the number of accidents with police checkpoints, testing drivers for alcohol and an anti-drunk driving campaign but…
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Warning on secondhand mobile phones
PHUKET: Police have warned people buying secondhand mobile phones, especially pawn shop owners, to be on the lookout for stolen items. The warning came after the recent discovery of 500-600 mobiles, some stolen, in a raid on a phone shop. Pawnbrokers could face jail if they bought stolen items, said Pol Col Paween Pongsirin, Superintendent of Phuket Town Police. “Nowadays,…
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Prison still packed
PHUKET TOWN: Phuket Provincial Prison remains massively overcrowded, according to the monthly statistics released by prison officials yesterday. The figures reveal that there are 955 men and 204 women incarcerated at the jail, where the official capacity is 666 male and 83 female prisoners. Of the 1,159 inmates, 458 are being held for narcotics offenses, 256 for theft, 157 for…
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Send the backpackers packing: Deputy PM
PHUKET TOWN: Backpackers should be discouraged from visiting Phuket because they bring problems such as drugs, Deputy Prime Minister Korn Dabbaransi has told local officials. In a wide-ranging meeting with local leaders at Provincial Hall on Wednesday, he also mentioned that employers in Phuket should take responsiblity for controlling levels of Burmese laborers and that the runway at Phuket Airport…
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Man held for shooting, armed robbery
PHUKET: Police have arrested a man they believe was responsible for an armed robbery and an attempted murder, and have uncovered what may be a stolen mobile phone haul. Banjob “Nong” Pramphet, 32, freed from jail three months ago after serving a sentence for robbery and possession of stolen goods, was nabbed in a stolen pick-up truck in Ranong on…
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Robbers net B3m in jewelry raid
PHUKET TOWN: Robbers made off with jewelry and other items valued at about 3 million baht in an overnight raid on a Thalang Rd gold shop, police said today. Assara Nattavuttisit, 30, the owner of Teg Heng shop, discovered the raid when he opened for business this morning. The thieves had cut the cable of a closed-circuit camera that may…
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Tourism meeting stresses environment
PHUKET: Sports and Tourism Minister Sontaya Kunplome yesterday met Phuket CEO Governor Pongpayome Vasaputi and officials from Phang-nga and Krabi to discuss tourism development in the region. At the meeting, held in the Royal Phuket City Hotel, K. Sontaya said, “We are working to promote a positive image of Thailand abroad and to ensure its safety as a tourist destination.…
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Safari tours protest tuk-tuk “bullying’
PHUKET TOWN: About 100 staff from four safari tour companies turned out today to demonstrate against tuk-tuk and taxi drivers, their rivals in a dispute over who may ferry customers between hotels and the safari companies. The protesters sat in about 30 vehicles outside the offices of Phuket Member of Parliament Suwit Sa-Ngiamkul on Phang Nga Rd, saying they had…
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One tambon, one product, one Christmas
PHUKET TOWN: Phuket Governor CEO Pongpayome Vasaputi has urged people to support the local economy this festive season by buying One Tambon One Product gift baskets. From Monday, baskets containing combinations of the 32 products made by Phuket villages taking part in the project will be available from Provincial Hall and major shoppping centers, including Big C, Tesco-Lotus and Ocean…
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Driving tests just got harder
PHUKET TOWN: Learner drivers looking forward to passing the traditional minimalist driving test to get their driver’s license now have to think again. The new driving test area at the Phuket Land Transportation Office (PLTO) was officially opened this afternoon and is in use. Phiyapan Jumpasut, Chief of the Department of Land Transportation, said that the Department was improving driving…
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Mayor under fire for park bridge project
PHUKET TOWN: About 20 members of the Rak Suan Luang Club (RSLC) today descended on Phuket Town Mayor Phummisak Hongsyok’s monthly press conference to protest the construction of a bridge in King Rama IX Park, better known as Suan Luang Park. Protest leaders handed Mayor Phummisak an official complaint to stop construction of a bridge over concerns that it will…
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Another murder in port area
PHUKET TOWN: The “Burmese Cemetery” has claimed yet another victim with a vicious weekend stabbing of a Burmese fisherman. Pol Lt Parichat Jaturonpan, of Phuket Town Police Station, said a motorbike taxi driver called police just after midnight on Sunday after seeing a man’s body by the side of Si Suthat Rd, near Rassada Port. Although police did not release…
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Pub hours extended for holidays
PHUKET: Deputy Interior Minister Pracha Maleenond has confirmed that entertainment venues with a pub license will be allowed to remain open all night on both Christmas Eve (December 24) and New Year’s Eve (December 31). The official closing times on both dates have been set at 6 am the following morning. K. Pracha asked club operators for cooperation in refusing…
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Austrian hangs himself over illness
PATONG: Austrian tourist Gerhard Buchhart yesterday hanged himself from a crossbeam in his hotel bathroom, just two weeks after his 50th birthday. Pol Capt Serm Kwannimit, of Kathu Police Station, told the Gazette that a hotel maid discovered his body about 3:40 pm when she checked his room at Paradise Mansion, on Rat-U-Thit Rd, after he failed to check out.…
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Burmese blamed for healthcare drain
PHUKET TOWN: The chiefs of the five government hospitals in Ranong, Phang Nga, Krabi and Phuket yesterday singled out Burmese laborers as a burden on hospital funds in the Andaman region. The comments were made at a top-level meeting of Public Health officials, including Public Health Deputy Minister Pol Gen Pracha Promnog and Public Health Inspector Dr Narong Chayakul, at…
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Antiques seized in raid on shop
PHUKET TOWN: Police this morning raided antiques store Tommy Vintage and Collectibles, on Thalang Rd, and seized two antique carved wooden doors and an ornate Buddhist prayer table, all believed to be about 100 years old. Thamrongsak Sukhajiradej, the store’s Manager, was charged with selling antiques without a proper license. He told the Gazette that the antiques belonged his father.…
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Speedboat seized, owner sought
MAI KHAO: Phuket Marine Police last night seized the speedboat “Cedar Swan Tender” from a house near the Yacht Haven Marina. Pol Col Phira Boonliang, Superintendent of Phuket Marine Police, said, “The boat had been brought into the country illegally without any import duty paid on the hull or the engine.” He added that officers had tried to contact the…
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Booster for fight against polio
PHUKET: The Phuket Provincial Health Office (PPHO) is offering free poliomyelitis vaccinations to Thai and foreign children under the age of five. PPHO Chief Dr Wanchai Sattayawutthipong explained that parents may take their children to any health center, hospital or medical clinic on December 18 to receive the primary polio vaccination, and on January 21 for a booster shot. “We…
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Policeman shot with own gun
THALANG: A policeman’s wife used her husband’s own pistol to shoot him dead yesterday morning after they had a heated argument near the Sarasin Bridge. Pratheuang “Tim” Saesue, 45, shot Pol Sgt Maj Siripong Aimjad, 35, of Tah Chat Chai Police Station, at 10 am in front of many witnesses. She did not try to flee the scene. Pol Lt…
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Immigration Chief promoted
PHUKET TOWN: Pol Col Apirak Hongtong, Superintendent of Phuket Provincial Immigration Office (PPIO), has been promoted to Deputy Commander of Phuket Provincial Police. He will take up his new post on Monday (December 16). Speaking with the Gazette, Col Apirak said that in his new post he would continue the fight against all aspects of the illegal drugs trade. “We’ve…
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Taxi, tuk-tuk drivers block road in protest
KATA: A mob of 200 tuk-tuk and taxi drivers this morning blocked Koktanode Rd to protest safari tour companies depriving them of customers. The mob gathered at about 7 am near the junction with Patak Rd and demanded that four safari companies – Siam Safari, Island Safari, Southern Eco and Amazing Bhukit – continue to honor a verbal agreement reached…
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New rules to govern local elections
KATHU: New regulations coming into force on July 9 next year stipulate that committees set up by the Office of the Election Commission of Thailand (OECT) will oversee the running of local elections instead of officers from the Ministry of Interior. Phuket Senator Paiboon Upatising made the announcement at a seminar on Friday entitled Distribution of Authority and Elections Under…
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Property auction sparks protest
PHUKET TOWN: About 50 people gathered outside the Merlin Hotel this morning to protest the sale of repossessed houses and land by Bangkok Bank. Noppon Siemhan, a lawyer and member of Phuket Property Protection, said that many properties at today’s auction would be sold at 50%-80% of the original value. “I think they should give a discount of 50%-80% to…
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Police find Kamnan killer’s shotgun
THALANG: Police have found the gun used in Sunday night’s hitman-style slaying of Moo Baan Saku’s village leader Somboon Panyawai, the area’s police chief said today. Pol Lt Col Jakrit Srisuwan, Chief of Tah Chat Chai Police Station, told the Gazette that the gun was found 300 meters from the scene of the shooting during an extensive search of 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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