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.
-
Sponsored This Christmas, give the gift of health: essential options for expats in Thailand
The holiday season is here, bringing warmth, joy, and a chance to reflect on the year gone by. As an expat in Thailand, this Christmas is a great time to invest in something that truly matters: health. Whether for you...
-
Popular Chalong merchant shot dead
RAWAI: Jenjira Samart, 42, a well-liked fresh fish merchant in Chalong, was shot dead on Saturday by an alleged ya bah dealer and addict. Pol Maj Jetsada Sangsuree, of Chalong Police Station, said that, after finishing work, K. Jenjira rode her motorcycle to her home at 35/1 Moo 4, Tambon Rawai, at around 3 pm. As she arrived, she was…
-
Man found murdered near fishing port
PHUKET TOWN: A man believed to have been a Burmese fisherman was last Saturday found murdered at Baan Laem Tukkae, near the fishing port. Pol Lt Kanuang Pitakkulthorn of Phuket Town Police Station told the Gazette that the man, as yet unidentified, had died from blows the face and head with a blunt instrument. The victim is estimated to have…
-
Laser speed trap on airport road
PHUKET: Motorists traveling north towards the airport are advised to take their feet off the gas until the end of this week at least, or risk paying a fine for speeding. Every day until Saturday, police officers will be been perched atop the footbridge near the Muang Thalang School, armed with a pair of laser speed guns, while, 300 meters…
-
OrBorJor reviews Rassada Port bids
PHUKET TOWN: Companies bidding for a 30-year lease management on the Rassada Port made presentations to the Phuket Provincial Organization Administration (OrBorJor) on Friday. The companies that delivered presentations were Sri Fuengfah Co Ltd, Port and Marine Enterprise Co Ltd, and Seatran Travel Co Ltd. A fourth bidder, Thepkrasattri Petroleum Co Ltd, pulled out. The OrBorJor’s decision as to who…
-
Gambling tops arrest stats again
PHUKET: Gambling arrests topped the Phuket police scoreboard again in April, with 209 people held for gambling offenses between April 1 and 25. The figure does not include the 91 people arrested in raids on casinos on April 29. Provincial Police statistics released today showed arrests of illegal immigrants coming in second place, with 189 people locked up, followed by…
-
German man dies of overdose
PATONG: A 49-year-old German man died yesterday of heart failure after swallowing a lethal mixture of vodka and sleeping pills. Pol Maj Pisit Cheanpetch of Kathu Police Station told the Gazette that Patong resident Klaus Werner Blume was found dead in his room at Nanai Happy House, Soi Nanai. The victim’s partner, Noppawan Hemwanta, 24, told police that she returned…
-
Malaysia puts harsh brakes on Thai drivers
KHUAN DON, THAILAND: In a move sure to bring frowns and grimaces to the Land of Smiles, Thailand’s neighbor to the south has introduced measures making it an almost hopeless enterprise for Thais to enter Malaysia by automobile. At the Khuan Don border (near Satun) this afternoon, Malaysian authorities in spiffy blue uniforms were handing out “Rules” flyers to scores…
-
Thai Airways board members lose perks
BANGKOK (AFP): Thai Airways International board members, long accustomed to free flights and expensive perks, are to lose their privileges as part of an effort to streamline the national carrier, an airline official said this afternoon. Chairman Chai-Anan Samuddavanija, appointed with a new board of directors amid controversy this week, has vowed to cancel the perks offered since Thai Airways…
-
Thalang police set up suggestions box
THALANG: Pol Col Prapakorn Saksupa, superintendent of Thalang Police Station, has announced that the station has established a PO Box for the public. The box is specifically for people in Thalang district who wish to write to the Thalang Police Station to express views, make suggestions, or provide information on suspected criminal activities. The police have stressed that only senior…
-
Free dive master training for Thais
PHUKET: The Dive Operators’ Club of Thailand (DOCT), Phuket Chapter, is seeking Thai applicants to train as dive masters in response to the shortage of Thai dive masters on the island. Applicants must be at least 18 years old. They must have a working knowledge of English, a high-school education, be physically fit and able to swim, and have their…
-
Police seize 2 tonnes of smuggled meat
PHUKET TOWN: The Phuket Marine Police yesterday evening raided a warehouse in Moo Bann Iravadee on the bypass road after receiving a report that it contained smuggled cigarettes. But instead of illegal smokes, they found about two tonnes of illegally imported meat, worth about 200,000 baht. Pol Lt Col Bunjerd Piriyavong of the Phuket Marine Police told the Gazette that…
-
Mayor meets Governor over 2 am law
PHUKET TOWN: Thirty entertainment venue owners, led by Patong Mayor Pian Keesin, yesterday met with Provincial Governor Pongpayome Vasaputi at his home to inquire about the results of last week’s petition asking for Patong to be given an exemption from the 2 am limit on opening hours. The petition, signed by some 300 business owners in Patong, was handed to…
-
Headless corpse at Freedom Beach
PATONG: A headless corpse was found floating in the sea near Freedom Beach on Saturday afternoon. Police have been unable to identify the decomposed body, but assume the victim was male. “It was impossible to determine whether he was a Thai or a foreigner because the body was so severely decomposed. He must have died more than two weeks ago,”…
-
Thai Airways board appointments spark protest
BANGKOK (AFP): Hundreds of aviation industry employees rallied today outside the headquarters of Thai Airways to protest the company’s new board of directors, which they say is rife with cronyism. Wearing symbolic black dress, workers from Thai Airways and Aeronautical Radio of Thailand surrounded a limousine carrying Deputy Transportation and Communication Minister Pracha Maleenond, who will chair a meeting of…
-
Thailand to woo investors
BANGKOK (AFP): Thailand plans to expand the role of state investment promotion agencies in an effort to boost its damaged economy with fresh domestic and foreign investment, reports said today. During a two-day economic workshop chaired by Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, officials pledged to transform Thailand into a “knowledge-based” economy through new investment spurred by tax incentives and special privileges.…
-
Young Thais hooked on football betting
BANGKOK (AFP): Hundreds of thousands of Thailand’s young football fans are addicted to gambling on foreign matches, the government said in a report released today. Some 300,000 football-crazed students wager 50 million baht (1.1 million dollars) every day, according to ruling Thai Rak Thai party politician Poom Sarapon. A recent survey shows that most of the kingdom’s football gamblers are…
-
Bars must display anti-drugs message
PHUKET TOWN: Phuket Governor Pongpayome Vasaputi today announced that a new law is to be introduced requiring bars and entertainment venues to publicly display an anti-drugs message. The Governor urged district officers to enforce the requirement strictly, once it becomes law. The proposed penalty for not displaying an appropriate message is at least three days’ closure of the offending premises.
-
Vagabonds stroll home over Marines
KOH KAEW: The Phuket Vagabonds Rugby Club (formerly the Phuket Gazettes) started their preparations for next month’s International Tens Tournament with a convincing 30-20 win on Monday over the US Marines from the visiting USS Boxer. The Vagabonds took the initiative early in the game, played at Dulwich International College, piling up a 15-point lead before the Americans finally forced…
-
Provincial government gets on IT track
PHUKET TOWN: Phuket Governor Pongpayome Vasaputi has announced a government drive to ensure that every provincial government department on the island will have its own web site by the end of the year, and that all departments will start using email to share information. His announcement came at a meeting of departmental heads at the Phuket Provincial Hall yesterday, held…
-
TAT rejects “Phuket too costly’ claim
PHUKET: Anuphap Teerarat, director of the Phuket office of the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT), today rejected criticism from a German movie producer that Phuket has priced itself out of the market as far as film-makers are concerned. The producer, Wolfgang Rademann, was quoted in the Bangkok Post as saying that he had opted to shoot his made-for-TV movie, which…
-
Flight from Beijing lands in Phuket
PHUKET: Air China, in conjunction with the Chinese tour operator China Comfort Travel Co, is now operating twice-weekly charter flights direct from Beijing to Phuket. The charter service, aimed exclusively at mainland Chinese tourists, was launched with a maiden flight that landed at Phuket International Airport just after midnight on Saturday morning. “We’re operating only inbound charters right now, but…
-
300 sign opening hours petition to Governor
PHUKET: Some 300 business owners in Patong today petitioned Provincial Governor Pongpayome Vasaputi to allow an extension of opening hours from 2 am to 5 am. The petition argued that the enforcement of the 2 am law would not achieve the government’s aim of reducing crime and drug abuse. The petition was handed to the Governor by Chairat Sukkaban, owner…
-
Worst-ever road death, injury statistics
PHUKET: Sixteen people died in traffic accidents between January 20 and February 20, according to statistics from the Wachira, Thalang and Patong government hospitals. All the victims were on motorcycles, Ampaipan Pawawattananusorn of the Phuket Provincial Health Office reported. In the same period, 906 were hurt in crashes involving motorbikes, while 35 people were injured in car accidents. The year’s…
-
Another blow for foreign investors
BANGKOK (AFP): Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra today urged developing Asian nations to abandon economic policies modeled after the United States and Japan, and to try to build local businesses rather than attract foreign investors. At the opening of the 57th session of the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), Thaksin said that economic reforms…
-
Homeowners urged to join watch program
PATONG: Pol Col Paween Pongsirin, Superintendent of Kathu Police Station, has urged Patong homeowners and tenants to notify the police when they go on vacation, leaving their homes unattended. Police officers will check on the houses while on patrol. A red box will be installed in front of each home, containing a logbook for patrolmen to sign when they check…
-
Foreigners executed on drug charges in Thailand
BANGKOK (AFP): A Taiwanese man, a Hong Kong man, and two Thais convicted on drug trafficking charges were executed by firing squad this evening. A fifth man, also a Thai, was similarly executed for murder, officials said. “The Thai government wants to reassure the world that it takes the drug problem seriously,” Yongyuth Tiyapairat, a government spokesman announced, saying that…
-
Patong “may be exempt from 2 am rule’
PATONG: The Ministry of Interior is looking at the enforcement of the 2 am closing law and may decide to make an exception for Patong, allowing bars and other entertainment venues in the town to stay open later. The announcement of the possible reprieve was made today by the Governor of Phuket, Pongpayome Vasaputi. He stressed that the clampdown on…
-
Bikers raise B38,000 for schools
PATONG: Organizers of the 7th Phuket Bike Week have announced that the event, which ends today, has raised 38,000 baht for charity. Proceeds will go to Wat Suwan Kiriwong School, Baan Sai Namyen School and Baan Kalim School. Somnuek “Nicky” Phonkaew, one of the organizers of Bike Week, told the Gazette that the funds are to be earmarked to buy…
-
Man hangs himself from tree
PHUKET TOWN: A man was found on Sunday hanging from a tree behind his home in Phuket Villa California. A neighbor walking by saw Teap Bourkeaw, 73, a native of Nakhon Sri Thammarat, hanging by a piece of cloth from the tree. The neighbor managed to get K. Teap down from the tree and called the police, but K. Teap…
-
Police crackdown angers bar owners
PHUKET: Angry bar owners have threatened to stage a “mob” if police do not ease the enforcement of the 2 am legal closing time for entertainment establishments. One bar owner told the Gazette, “Take a look around Patong at 3 or 4 am. People are out in the streets drinking beer and whisky they buy at 7-11, fighting, or looking…
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.
Don't forget to check out some other things to do in Thailand - get help starting a business or finding a job in Thailand, buy Thailand property, rent a yacht or book a medical procedure worldwide.