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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Lehman to up Thai holdings by $250m
BANGKOK (The Nation): US investment bank Lehman Brothers said it was committed to boosting its investment in Thailand by an additional US$250 million (Bt10.6 billion). The announcement followed a meeting on Tuesday between Lehman Brothers Inc chairman and CEO Richard S. Fuld, Jr, and Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra. It was the third meeting between the two in the last 18…
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Tin mine probe launched
PHUKET: With a looming water shortage on the island, government officials today began sorting out tin mine land claims. The government has been eyeing the island’s 115 old tin mines as a source of much-needed water, but some prominent Phuket families claim outright ownership of the mines, with some families holding Chanote titles dating back as long as 50 years.…
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Island’s elephants get wired
PHUKET TOWN: Want to know the name of the elephant that left a steaming pile in your driveway? Chances are it can now be traced because 176 elephants on Phuket have had microchips implanted. Wiraparp Termkietpaisan, a vet from the Phuket Provincial Livestock Office (PPLO), said today that keeping tabs on the elephants from 23 camps will also enable authorities…
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Commercial Office issues pyramid schemes warning
PHUKET TOWN: The Phuket Provincial Commercial Office (PPCO) has issued a warning to the public about the spreading business practice of direct selling, also known as multi-level marketing (MLM). Direct sales operations are expanding further into all regions of Thailand. The products range from electrical appliances to herbal remedies. Most of these direct sale companies operate legally, are registered in…
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Thalang Rd “walking street’ to continue
PHUKET TOWN: At the closing ceremony of the Seven Wonders of Phuket festival on Sunday evening, Deputy Prime Minister Pitak Intrawitayanun announced that Thalang Rd will continue to be a “walking street” every Sunday. He explained that Phuket Town Municipality will continue to stage events there for a further 17 weeks, under the slogan “Amazing Phuket”, and sponsored by the…
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Governor defends support for marina
PHUKET: Governor CEO Pongpoyome Vasaputi defended himself today against criticism over the fast-tracking of the project to build Phuket’s third yacht marina. Gulu Lalvani, head of international telephone manufacturer Binatone, has undertaken to spend around a billion baht on the project, the Royal Phuket Marina, provided that the governor can help slice through bureaucratic red tape. Speaking at his regular…
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Deputy PM denies land fiddle
PHUKET: Deputy Prime Minister Pitak Intrawitayanunt took reporters to the northwest end of the island on Saturday for a tour of a piece of land he bought in 1990, which was at the center of accusations made in the recent parliamentary no-confidence debate. K. Pitak repeated his assertions, made during the debate, that he had obtained the land near Baan…
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Two girls drown in pool
THALANG: Two girls, one 10 years old, the other 12, died while swimming in a pool near their home in the Thalang area yesterday. Police named the two girls as Kittima Butlada, 10, and Praemai Poltawee, 12. Cousins, they both lived in a house in Moo 8, Baan Prusompan in Tambon Thepkrasattri, where they went to school. Pol Maj Adul…
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Sea walking probe starts in Phuket
PHUKET: In the latest development in one of Phuket’s longest-running sagas, researchers from the Thailand Institute of Scientific and Technological Research (TISTR) arrived yesterday to begin checks on local sea walking operators. The checks are part of a six-month study to develop regulations for the controversial industry which, according to critics, is damaging to the environment – particularly coral –…
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Prison still swamped with drug offenders
PHUKET: More than half of the inmates at Phuket Provincial Prison have been convicted or are awaiting trial on drug-related charges, according to statistics released by prison officials yesterday. Of the 1,199 prisoners, 495 men and 109 women have been incarcerated in relation to narcotics offenses. Of the remaining prisoners, 229 are being held for theft, 143 for murder or…
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Gazette Guide to the World Cup
PHUKET: The latest issue of the weekly Phuket Gazette, on sale today, includes the guide that’s a must for all soccer fans. The clip-and-keep – or clip-and-stick-on-the-wall – chart contains a full guide to all World Cup matches, from the early group contests through to the finals, with dates, times (in Thailand), venues and TV channels carrying the games. Get…
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Governor heads anti-gambling parade
PHUKET TOWN: Governor CEO Pongpayome Vasaputi led a parade today urging people not to gamble during football’s World Cup, which begins tonight. A microphone and speakers were used to address bystanders as the governor and police moved in a cavalcade of vehicles around Phuket Town this afternoon. Later, anti-football gambling brochures and information about penalties for gambling will be distributed,…
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It’s official: Phuket goes crackers
PHUKET TOWN: The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) is to stage a Fireworks Festival at Saphan Hin on July 26. More than 4,000 skyrockets and other fireworks, costing about 2 million baht, will be fired off in a 45-minute spectacular, which the TAT hopes will attract tourists from overseas and from neighboring provinces. If it is successful it will become…
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Restaurants warned: no alcohol after 2 am
PHUKET: Restaurants, as well as pubs and nightclubs, must stop selling alcohol after 2 am or face losing their licenses for good, Governor CEO Pongpayome Vasaputi warned today. “If any restaurants disobey, I will stop them selling alcohol permanently,” he told a monthly meeting of about 100 senior provincial officers at Phuket Provincial Meeting Hall. In a wide-ranging address, he…
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Thirsty threesome in bungled burglary
PHUKET TOWN: A trio of thirsty drinkers, finding that the nightclubs, bars and restaurants of Phuket Town all seemed to have stopped selling beer after 2 am, decided that self-service was the only solution. So they broke into the Tungka Café at the top of Rang Hill and helped themselves to several crates of amber fluid. What they hadn’t bargained…
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Probe finds road is substandard
CHERNG TALAY: The committee investigating the 4-million-baht road fiasco in Moo 2 Cherng Talay, today dug up the road in question and announced that accusations that the road is shoddy are well-founded. Committee chairman and Thalang District Chief Kanthee Silapa announced the findings after a three-hour meeting at the Cherng Talay Administration Organization (OrBorTor) offices. Although invited, neither the road…
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Damaged cable slows Internet access
PHUKET: Access to large parts of the Internet has been slow, if not impossible, since Sunday when an undersea telecoms cable was damaged between Taiwan and Japan. It is unclear what caused the damage. One source at a local Internet service provider (ISP) said the damage was caused by sharks mistaking the cable for a large fish. But Thitiporn Panichphol,…
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Another murder in “Burmese Cemetery’
PHUKET TOWN: Another victim of a vicious stabbing frenzy was found floating yesterday morning in a small mangrove klong by Si Sena Rd – an area that is becoming known locally as the “Burmese cemetery”. He had been stabbed about 50 times. Pol Maj Pitsanu Poonwong of Phuket Town Police Station told the Gazette that local residents called the police…
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Road death toll falls
PHUKET: Eighteen people died in traffic accidents on Phuket’s roads between March 20 and April 20, a drop of 25% when compared with the 24 deaths during the previous 30-day period, according to statistics from Wachira, Thalang and Patong government hospitals. The figures, issued yesterday, show that one person died in a car accident while 17 deaths involved motorbikes. In…
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Crackdown on Burmese labor imminent
PHUKET: In what it describes as an effort to protect Phuket’s image, the island’s work permit committee has announced that officials will soon begin arresting illegal Burmese laborers living “in a campsite on a mountain”. Vice-Governor Manit Wattanasen, chairman of the committee, said that a request has also been sent to the Ministry of Labor and Social Welfare to reduce…
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Navy arrests Burmese timber smugglers
RANONG: The Royal Thai Navy stopped a suspicious boat in Thai waters around Koh Chang, Ranong, last Saturday, and found it full of timber, which the boat’s 10-man Burmese crew were apparently trying to smuggle into Thailand. Vice-Admiral Pairoj Theerachai, Commander of the Third Fleet, said that a warship spotted the 20-meter gray boat lurking around the island. The cargo…
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Health Office issues dengue advisory
PHUKET: The Phuket Provincial Health Office (PPHO) has issued its traditional annual advisory about dengue fever. Dr Wanchai Sattayawutthipong, chief of the PPHO said today, “This is the time when the fever spreads. Because of the rain of the past few weeks, the number of cases has increased. The average is 10 a week, but last week 20 were reported.”…
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Gov denies bowing to pressure on land title
PHUKET: In response to recent intense national media coverage, Phuket Governor CEO Pongpayome Vasaputi has emphatically denied employing his powers in unusual ways to effect the upgrading of titles on land owned by Deputy Prime Minister Pitak Intrawitayanunt. Nipat Intarasombat, Democrat MP for Phattalung, raised the controversial issue on Thursday, during last week’s televised censure debate. Since then Governor Pongpayome…
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Trailer-truck flips on curve
PHUKET: A 10-wheel truck towing an 8-wheel trailer and carrying 900 bags of cement overturned on Chao Fa West Rd last night. While the overturned truck and trailer made for a dramatic scene for motorists on their way to work this morning, no one was hurt in the accident. Pol Maj Peeraphan Meemak, inspector of Phuket Town Police Station, told…
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June Bahtra tour boat seized
PHUKET: Phuket Marine Police and officers from the Bangkok-based Economic Crime Investigation Division this morning seized one of Phuket’s best-known tourism icons, the junk June Bahtra 2. The officers seized the 16-meter wooden boat from the Yacht Haven marina on allegations that the owner, East West Siam Ltd, had presented forged documents when registering the boat eight years ago, in…
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Bars urged to close on holy day
PHUKET TOWN: Pol Col Paween Pongsirin, Superintendent of Phuket Town Police Station, yesterday urged bars and nightclubs to close tomorrow (Sunday) and requested shops to refrain from selling alcohol between noon and midnight as a way of showing respect on Visakha Bucha Day. Col Paween told the Gazette, “I have sent a notice to bar owners asking them not to…
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Tuk-tuks defeat governor’s fair fare plan
PHUKET: Governor CEO Pongpayome Vasaputi announced today that his plan to curb tuk-tuk ripoffs by introducing fixed, published fares has been put on hold indefinitely. The announcement came after a tense two-hour meeting between the Governor and some 20 representatives of Phuket’s tuk-tuk drivers, who told him that they would not accept the new distance-based scale of fares that he…
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Drugs summit in Phuket
PHUKET TOWN: The National Security Council held a meeting today behind closed doors at the Royal Phuket City Hotel to discuss ways of combating drug proliferation in Thailand. Sixty officials from the central government and Phuket reviewed results so far in the current “war on drugs” at the meeting, which was chaired by Kachadpai Burusapatana, Secretary General of the National…
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Committee to probe shoddy road
CHERNG TALAY: Following a protest by villagers on Wednesday about the poor quality of a new concrete road in Moo 2, Cherng Talay, a special committee has been formed to investigate the handling of the 4-million-baht budget for the project, and the officials involved. Siri Yokthong, chief of the Cherng Talay Tambon Administration Organization (OrBorTor), said yesterday that the OrBorTor…
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Thai-Malaysian Naval exercise concludes
AO MAKHAM: A ceremony was held yesterday to mark the conclusion of a joint naval exercise between the Royal Thai Navy Third Fleet, the Malaysian Navy and the Marine Police. Burma’s sudden closure of its border with Thailand added some interest, but the annual event, which started on Sunday, was otherwise without incident. The exercise featured the Royal Thai Navy…
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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