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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Carnival marks start of high season
PATONG: The Patong Carnival 2001 yesterday marked the opening of this year’s tourism high season. The day’s activities, which began in the morning with a merit-making ceremony, included a beach clean-up, a coral exhibition and a mini-marathon fun run. The highlight of the carnival was the colorful evening parade along Thaweewong Rd and into Soi Bangla. The parade, which was…
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One-stop shop for yachts to reopen
CHALONG: Phuket Governor CEO Pongpayome Vasaputi will reopen the “one-stop shop” in Chalong for visiting yachts and their crews next Monday. The Phuket Port Control Center (PPCC), was originally opened in 1999 by the then-Governor Chadej Insawang. It was closed down more than a year ago, officially because there were not enough officers to man it and there was no…
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Duongchalerm disappears; manhunt launched
BANGKOK (AFP): A nationwide manhunt was launched today for Duongchalerm Yoobamrung, wanted for the killing of a police officer at a city nightclub on Sunday, after he apparently slipped away from both the Thai military and the police. The search for Duongchalerm, son of Thai parliamentarian Chalerm Yoobamrung, was launched after he failed to surrender to authorities today, as promised…
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Cooking gas price rises on the way
PHUKET: The island can expect substantial rises in the price of cooking gas over the coming few weeks, after the government announced today that it had stopped subsidizing the fuel and was allowing vendors to set their own prices. So far, cooking gas prices in Phuket remain at much the same levels as before, at about 190 baht for a…
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Seized speedboat to be auctioned
PHUKET: A nine-meter British-built speedboat with twin 200hp Mercury engines, seized from a dive company in Ao Chalong earlier this year, will be put up for auction on November 8 at the Phuket Customs Region 5 offices on Phuket Rd. As with previous vessels put up for auction, the speedboat, “Seafarer”, was seized for alleged non-payment of Thailand’s crushing boat…
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Road injuries toll nearing 10,000
PHUKET: Road deaths in Phuket between January 1 and September 20 are down on the past two years, according to the latest government statistics, but the number of people injured this year is heading rapidly for five figures. According to statistics from the Wachira, Thalang and Patong government hospitals, 11 people died as a result of traffic accidents between August…
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Rise in babies named Osama
BANGKOK (AFP): The name Osama has become popular for newborn babies in Thailand’s predominantly Muslim south since the September 11 terrorist attacks on the United States, officials said today. “The name Osama can be applied to both boys and girls, and to my knowledge there are many newborn babies [receiving this name],” said Irfan Sulong, a member of the Yala…
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New Provincial Palad takes office
PHUKET: Vithit Jiannai took office yesterday as Phuket’s new Provincial Palad, Governer CEO Pongpayome Vasaputi announced this morning at the monthly meeting of provincial department heads. K. Vithit, who was transferred from Prachuap Khiri Khan Province, replaces Dr Sumeth Chailertvanitkul, who yesterday moved to a new post as Palad of Nakhon Sawan Province.
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Murder warrant issued for Chalerm’s son
BANGKOK (AFP): Thai police today issued a warrant for the arrest of Duongchalerm Yoobamrung, 29-year-old son of top MP Chalerm Yoobamrung, for shooting dead a police officer in a Bangkok nightclub. Inspector General Suraphon Kanchanajittra said he ordered the arrest of Sub-Lt Doungchalerm for premeditated murder after witnesses reported seeing him fire the fatal shot last night. “There were two…
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Top businessman dies of heart attack
PHUKET: Banlue Tantiwit, former President of the Phuket Provincial Administration Organization (OrBorJor) died this morning of a heart attack. Phuket-born K. Banlue, who was 70, was also the Founding Chairman of the Phuket Rotary Club, a former Chairman of the Kathu Shrine and Chairman of the Phuket Sports Association. A well-known businessman, he was Chairman of the Board of the…
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US tourist drowns in Krabi
KRABI: American tourist Michael George Smith, 48, died while snorkeling at Koh Pai on Friday. Tour guide Suchart Aonrutee of Phi Phi-based Chao Koh Tour reported to Krabi police that he took Mr Smith and 10 other tourists from Koh Phi Phi to Koh Pai on a snorkeling trip. After they had spent an hour at Koh Pai, K. Suchart…
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Illegal labor raids to resume in earnest
PHUKET: The drive by the Phuket Provincial Employment Service Office (ESO) to register all Burmese, Laotian and Cambodian laborers working in Phuket came to an end on Thursday. The ESO has warned that raids to find unregistered workers will now resume in earnest. In a campaign that began on August 28 as part of a national effort, the ESO registered…
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Experts enter burned-out ammo dump
KORAT (AFP): Thai army experts today entered the smoking ruins of a badly damaged ammunition dump to search for victims of yesterday’s massive explosions that are thought to have killed at least 13 people and injured 80. The warehouse complex in Pak Chong District was torn apart yesterday when a truck overturned, setting off a deadly chain reaction that engulfed…
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Strange day as Patong gets new Mayor
PATONG: The Patong Municipal Council has elected a new mayor for the town after former Mayor Pian Keesin was forced to step down last week when his budget plan was rejected by a vote of 9-2. Oddly, the new Mayor is Surasak Maneesri, one of the two councilors to vote for Pian’s budget – the other being Pian himself. Sakorn…
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Drowning victim identified
KARON: The foreigner who drowned off Karon Beach on October 13 has been identified as 53-year-old Per-arne Sivertsen of Norway. Pol Capt Chana Sutimard, of Chalong Police Station told the Gazette, “Today I received a call from a member of the reception staff at the South Sea Resort to tell me that a guest who was supposed to check out…
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Slow economy boosts Festival crowds
PHUKET: Slow times in the Thai economy and higher unemployment have had an effect on the Vegetarian Festival, with the number of people going to Chinese shrines for free vegetarian meals sharply up on last year’s figures. Partly, shrine spokespeople said, this was because they could save money. But it was also because believers felt that by taking part in…
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Krabi killer gets life
KRABI: Kasem ‘Maew’ Dumdee was sentenced to life imprisonment on Friday for the October 1 murder of German tourist Cao Ghu. Pol Lt Col Somdej Sukkarn, the case investigator, told the Gazette today, “Kasem was charged with murder for the purpose of robbery and with concealing his crime. He was also charged with robbery resulting in death. He pleaded guilty…
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Thailand may triple visa fees
BANGKOK (AFP): Despite an alarming slump in the country’s critical tourism sector, Thailand is considering a plan to triple visa fees for tourists. Non-immigrant visas, including those for business people, whether resident or visiting, would also rise sharply, a report said today. Thailand’s finance ministry is expected to seek cabinet approval this week for the move, claiming that it would…
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New park fees spark fury among dive firms
PHUKET: The good news is that the discriminatory fee system for entry into the Similan and Surin National Parks has been abolished. Thais and foreigners will pay the same fee. The bad news is that, from November 15, the entry fee for all divers will be 200 baht. And on top of that they must also pay a user fee…
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More trouble in Paradise
PATONG: A bus driver employed by Seatran Travel was arrested Thursday for attacking a Paradise Complex business owner with an iron bar over a parking dispute. Rick Hooper, the new director of Simple Computers, told the Gazette that he and his pregnant wife, Chatchada, went to their car parked outside the office, and found that it was blocked by two…
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Injured writer’s family appeals for funds
PHUKET: Friends and family of writer Karla Doberstein yesterday appealed for people to help Karla with her rising medical bills by making donations into an account specially set up to pay the hospital. Ms Doberstein, 38, fell down the stairs in her home late at night on October 3, striking the back of her head as she fell. She was…
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Tangled trouble in Paradise
PHUKET TOWN: Thirty owners of businesses in the market area of Patong’s Paradise Complex descended on the Consumer Protection Office at the Provincial Hall on Monday morning to protest construction by the Royal Paradise Hotel, which they say has blocked access to their shops with thigh-high walls made of concrete blocks. The protest is the latest turn in a tale…
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Drowned foreigner identified
PATONG: The foreigner who drowned off Patong on August 29 has finally been identified after relatives saw his photograph in the news section of the Gazette Online. For six weeks local police had hoped that someone would come forward to claim the unidentified man’s body. They issued descriptions of the man and finally passed a photograph to the Gazette. After…
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Tax cut in bid to salvage boating industry
PHUKET: In a move likely to prove ‘too little too late’, Thailand’s cabinet has approved reduction in the country’s levies on imported pleasure boats from 209% to 47%. Sources contacted by the Gazette in Phuket and Bangkok were not prepared to speculate on a firm date for final approval or implementation of the measure, but there was a consensus that…
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Blackout slated for Kathu-Patong areas tomorrow
PHUKET: The Phuket Provincial Electricity Authority (PPEA) has announced that a scheduled blackout will take place tomorrow (October 17), from 10 am to 4 pm, to allow staff to work safely on high-voltage power lines. The area affected will run from the Caltex gasoline station at the intersection of Wichit Songkhram Rd and Phra Phuket Kaew Rd in Kathu, to…
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Last chance to register foreign labor
PHUKET: In its drive to register all Burmese, Laotians and Cambodians working in Phuket, the Provincial Employment Service Office (ESO) yesterday extended its deadline to register foreign laborers working in fishing-related industries to October 25. The ESO issued the new deadline after four employers told the office that they had, in total, 183 foreign laborers who could not be registered…
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Police appeal to identify drowned foreigner
KARON: Police have released a photograph of a foreigner who drowned off Karon Beach on Saturday afternoon, in the hope that someone may identify him. The victim is the second to have drowned at Karon Beach on Saturday, the first having been reported in yesterday’s Gazette Online. Pol Capt Chana Sutimard, of Chalong Police Station, told the Gazette that his…
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Suspect nabbed for thefts of 1.55 million baht
PHUKET TOWN: Police have caught a man suspected of stealing 200,000 baht from the Phuket Town Post Office in a break-in last month. Thavorn “Ord” Klomthong, 38, was arrested at his apartment yesterday. In the apartment, police found screwdrivers, pliers, a saw, a flashlight and other tools, as well as jewelry and cash. During questioning, Ord confessed to breaking into…
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Appeal for blood donations
PHUKET: Wachira Phuket Hospital is appealing for donations of every type blood in advance of the Vegetarian Festival, which starts tomorrow. Pinwin Pinrarainont, a medical scientist at Wachira, told the Gazette that the hospital boosts its stock of blood every year for the festival to prepare for any accidents that might happen during the nine-day period. He added that, while…
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Festival ceremony to be televised live
PHUKET TOWN: This year will be the first time that a highlight of the island’s annual Vegetarian Festival will be televised live across Thailand. Channel 7 will broadcast the “go teng” pole raising ceremony, led by Somsak Thepsutin, Minister to the Prime Minister’s Office, at the Jui Tui Shrine on Soi Phuton, from 4:30 pm to 5:30 pm, on October…
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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