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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Gay cook suicides over missing fiancé
PHUKET TOWN: In the third suicide reported in Phuket within a week, heartbroken Jitpanu Pattana-anusorn, a 26-year-old cook at the Boonlert Beer Garden on Chana Charoen Rd, committed suicide on Tuesday because, police surmised, he had been abandoned by his gay lover. Pol Capt Anukul Nookate of the Phuket Town Police Station told the Gazette that he received a call…
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Medium found hanged in monk’s hut
PHUKET TOWN: The body of a medium, who used to give people numbers for upcoming illegal lotteries, was discovered hanging in an abandoned monk’s hut behind Wat Lang San on Damrong Rd on Sunday. Pol Capt Pin Inmark, of Phuket Town Police Station, told the Gazette that the man, who had been identified as 41-year-old Boonroat Suwandee, had been dead…
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Muslims “back Thai support for US’
BANGKOK (AFP): Transportation and Communications Minister Wan Muhamad Nor Matha said yesterday that after talks with Muslim leaders in southern provinces, the government had won their support in joining the US-led alliance against terrorism. Wan said he had explained the government’s position and its reasons for aligning with the United States. “There are no problems,” he told reporters. “We have…
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New Vice-Governors named
PHUKET: The Ministry of Interior (MoI) has announced the names of Phuket’s three new Vice-Governors, who will take up their positions on October 1. They are Vinai Buapradith, currently a vice-governor of Ranong; Manit Watanasen, now a vice-governor of Phang Nga; and Niran Kalayanamit, a Director of the Foreign Affairs Division of the Office of the Permanent Secretary for the…
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Ten monks held in drug bust
BANGKOK (AFP): Five Thai monks have been defrocked after confessing to using methamphetamines (‘ya bah’), while another five caught in a drug raid also face being ousted from religious life, police said this morning. Acting on a complaint from local worshippers, police yesterday carried out urine tests on 26 monks living at a temple in the central province of Ratchaburi.…
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Thai Muslim patriarch slams terrorists
BANGKOK (AFP): The spiritual leader of Thailand’s Muslims, Sawas Sumalyasak, today expressed his support for an international alliance against terrorism, saying the perpetrators of the outrages of September 11 were “destroyers of religion”. Sawas, the head of the Central Islamic Committee of Thailand, said plans by the United States to launch military action to avenge the attacks on New York…
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Bridge completion delayed
PHUKET TOWN: Completion of the new bridge over the Klong Bangyai on Kra Rd will take 70 days more than originally scheduled. Fawn Boonkatunyu, Chief of the Technical Office of the Phuket Town Municipality, explained, “We found that a sewer runs right under the place where one of the legs of the bridge is supposed to be anchored, so the…
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Loch Palm set for championship finals
KATHU: Surin Bumrungpon scored 67 off a handicap of 4 to win the third and final round of the Loch Palm Golf Club Championship preliminaries, which was held at the club on Saturday. Manoon Ouanpokhlang won Flight A with his score of 69 points off a 12 handicap, beating Blair Speers’ score of 70 points (10) and Dr Kitthipat Pongpet’s…
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Urgent debate over national park fees
BANGKOK: With the concessionary scheme on national park entry charges for tour and dive operators about to come to an end, operators around the country have urged the Royal Forestry Department (RFD) to reconsider the full fees, which they regard as being too high. On October 1 last year the RFD introduced new park entry fees for foreigners: 200 baht…
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Maldivian wins Kata surfing contest
KATA: Hussain Areef of the Maldives won the shortboard division of the third annual Quiksilver Phuket Surfing Contest, held at Kata Yai Beach at the weekend. Areef outscored 47 other competitors from all over the world. Briton Lee Dowse came second while another Maldivian, Mohamed Fayaz, came third. Local surfing prodigy, 12-year-old Simon de Maria, who has competed in the…
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Korean tour guide beaten and robbed
PHUKET TOWN: Police are looking for a man who beat and robbed a 30-year-old Korean tour guide off Sakdidet Rd early on Saturday morning. Pol Maj Pitsanu Punwong, of Phuket Town Police Station, told the Gazette that the guide had asked that her name be kept confidential, but that she was working for a Korean travel company in Panthep Condotown.…
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Crackdown on students in Internet shops
PHUKET TOWN: The owners of 25 Internet shops have agreed to impose greater controls on youngsters using their facilities, Pol Col Paween Pongsirin, superintendent of Phuket Town Police Station, said today. Speaking at a meeting with the press, he explained that police had received complaints from parents that their children were spending too much time playing computer games in the…
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Kathu police got mail
PATONG: The Kathu Police Station now has an email address for people who wish to ask questions or make suggestions to the police. Pol Col Chalit Thintanee, superintendent of Kathu Police Station, told the Gazette, “I think this will be good for people who want to contact us to complain or make suggestions about the problems in Patong. We will…
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Memorial service for US terror victims
CHERNG TALAY: An short memorial service will be conducted by Father Richard at the Laguna Beach Resort tomorrow (Thursday) evening for those lost in yesterday’s terrorist attacks in New York, Washington and Pennsylvania. Everyone is welcome to join in the service, which begins at 5 pm at the Layan Ballroom. For more information, call O. B. Wetzell at 01-8929207. Meanwhile,…
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CEO to have power to move district chiefs
PHUKET: The Ministry of Interior has announced that the Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) of five provinces, who will take over from provincial governors on October 1 in an experimental program aimed at giving provincial leaders more autonomy, will be able to authorize the transfer of district office chiefs who are deemed not to be doing their job properly. Under the…
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US Embassy closes after NY carnage
PHUKET (Gazette, AFP): American citizens have been asked to refrain from calling their embassy in Bangkok following the carnage in New York City and Washington. Will Hebler, American Consular Warden in Phuket, told the Gazette, “I have received a call to say that the US embassy in Bangkok is closed until further notice. “A desk is manned, but US citizens…
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Ya bah dealer dies in shoot-out
THALANG: Bunyat Tangman, 34, wanted by police for his involvement in ya bah trafficking, was found dead this morning in a rubber plantation near the Shell Gas Station on Thepkrasattri Rd, after a shoot-out the previous evening with undercover police. Pol Lt Col Wuttichai Khamphut, Deputy Superintendent of Thalang Police Station, in charge of investigations, said that police officers had…
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Government tells doomsayers to hush up
BANGKOK (AFP): Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra today admonished bankers and economists for a rash of gloomy pronouncements on the economy, saying their comments were inaccurate and damaging. “You don’t know more than the government, and your comments are based only on feelings,” he said. “It will affect the country and it will make the public feel discouraged.” The Bangkok…
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Tuk-tuks oppose plan for metered taxis
PHUKET: More than 200 tuk-tuk drivers assembled early this morning at the Provincial Hall to protest against plans by a private company to set up a metered taxi service in Phuket. The protest was sparked by the distribution of handbills by Phuket Metered Taxi Service Co, announcing its plans for a metered taxi service that would be cheaper to use…
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Phuket locals win regional Isuzu rally
KOH KEAW: Watcharin Areerob and his team, all from Phuket, won the southern qualifier for the Isuzu Di 4×4 National Championship Rally on Saturday in a 2.8-liter Isuzu Rodeo with a total time over the six stages of 10 minutes 28 seconds. Rodeo 4WDs dominated the rally, finishing in four of the top five places. The exception was Amnuoy Somjai’s…
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Another Thai minister rebukes foreign press
BANGKOK (AFP): Interior Minister Purachai Piemsombun has lashed out at the foreign media for its criticism of his “social evils” campaign which, he claims, is aimed at ridding Thailand of drugs and underage drinking. Purachai attacked a report in Time magazine that he thinks suggests that his crusade to shut down nightclubs, bars and karaoke joints by 2:00am is merely…
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Couple lose everything in blaze
CHALONG: A couple lost everything they owned on Thursday when the tin shack in which they lived burned to the ground. Thewa Hirunkerd, 31, a construction worker who lived in the shack with her husband, told Pol Capt Sanae Panmee of Chalong Police Station that she had started a charcoal fire to cook some rice, but forgot to douse it…
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Motorbike injuries soar in 2001
PHUKET: The number of people injured in traffic accidents involving motorcycles has jumped this year, with 6,589 hurt between January 1 and July 20, compared with 6,068 in the same period of last year and 5,691 in 1999. Eighteen people died in traffic accidents between June 20 and July 20, according to statistics from the Wachira, Thalang and Patong government…
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Sex show gets Flash bar closed again
PATONG: Phuket Governor Pongpayome Vasaputi has ordered the closure of the Flash A-Go-Go bar in Soi Bangla for a month after it was caught staging lewd shows a second time. At the beginning of last month Gov Pongpayome ordered Flash to close for 15 days for staging such entertainment. He told the Gazette today, “After they had been open again…
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What’s gone wrong at the Gazette Online?
PHUKET: Our most profound apologies to our more than 7,000 Gazetteers, as well as all others who have attempted to use the Gazette website over the past eight days. The problems are not in any way related to the re-engineering of our site, or the launch of the makeover which, unfortunately, occurred just a few days before the site entered…
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Sharp rise in drug arrests
PHUKET: The latest crime figures released by police here show that they made 128 drug raids and 150 drug-related arrests between August 1 and August 25. This is nearly double the number of arrests for drug offences during the same period in July. Slightly more than half of the drug arrests involved ya bah (methamphetamines), including the bust of a…
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Police appeal for donations
PATONG: Pol Col Chalit Thintanee, superintendent of Kathu Police, today appealed for donations from the public to modernize Kamala Police Station. “The building is 50 years old and has never been renovated. There is only one computer, which is old and slow,” Col Chalit said. He explained that 400,000 baht is needed for the modernization, which includes the construction of…
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Airport passenger throughput still rising
PHUKET: While islanders enjoy the relative peace of the low season, figures just released by airport officials show that the number of passengers arriving or departing through Phuket International Airport is still rising. The statistics show that passenger throughput last month rose by 5.15% to 281,205, compared with 267,436 during July last year. The number of international passengers rose by…
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Aussie Navy trounces Vagabonds 36-10
KOH KEAW: After a tight game in the first half, the team from the visiting Australian Navy ship HMAS Newcastle took charge to score a convincing 36-10 victory over the Phuket Vagabonds at Dulwich International College field on Monday. The Vagabonds were the first on the scoreboard with an unconverted try in the 10th minute of the game. Their lead…
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Unidentified foreigner drowns at Patong
PATONG: Police have appealed for help in identifying a Caucasian man who drowned yesterday off Patong beach near the Phuket Cabana Resort. Pol Lt Col Sanguan Muangtham of Kathu Police station told the Gazette that he received the initial report about the drowning at 3:10 pm yesterday. Beach guard Jaroon Tohtat had attempted to help the man, Col Sanguan said,…
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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