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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Songkhran celebrants warned
PATONG: The superintendent of Kathu Police Station has warned Songkhran celebrants not to throw or daub talcum powder or powdered dyes on other people. Such activities, Pol Col Paween Pongsirin says, reflect badly on Thailand’s culture. Those caught using powder risk being arrested for making public places dirty or for creating a nuisance. Both offenses carry a maximum penalty of…
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THAI announces extra Songkhran flights
PHUKET: Thai Airways International (THAI) has announced schedules for additional flights between Bangkok and Phuket during the Songkhran festival. The extra flights, on Friday, April 13, and Monday, April 16, are as follows: Phuket-Bangkok April 13 ………………Dep………..Arr. TG8739……0850………..1015 TG8743……0905………..1030 TG8741……1410………..1535 April 16 TG238…….0735………..0900 TG8739……1600………..1725 TG8741……1730………..1855 TG8743……1815………..1940 Bangkok-Phuket. April 13 ………………Dep………..Arr. TG8738……0645………..0805 TG8742……0655………..0815 TG8740……1150………..1310 April 16 TG8738……1345………..1505 TG8740……1510………..1630 TG8742……1610………..1730 For reservations…
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Governor “not worried’ about transfer rumors
PHUKET TOWN: Provincial Governor Pongpayome Vasaputi says he has heard the recent rumors that pressure is building to have him transferred out of Phuket because he is applying Thailand’s laws too stringently. He said he had heard that business people whose profits had been hit by his strict enforcement of laws were prepared to pay money to get him moved…
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Abattoir worker slaughtered
PHUKET TOWN: A slaughterhouse worker died an ironic death in the early hours of Friday morning when his throat was cut during an argument that got out of hand. Police were called to housing near Suan Luang Park on Chao Fa Nai Rd after neighbors witnessed the killing. Pol Capt Anukul Nuket of Phuket Town Police Station, naming the dead…
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Valhalla closed down indefinitely
PHUKET TOWN: Phuket Governor Pongpayome Vasaputi yesterday cancelled the operating license of the Valhalla Entertainment complex on Soi Sunset, Patong, closing it indefinitely. The closure came after police raided the place on March 21 and allegedly found five underage girls performing “improper” acts. “I have canceled their license because they have been operating a business that is different from that…
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Nun’s body found in klong
PHUKET: A body of an unidentified woman, believed to have been a nun, was found in the klong behind the Chao Fa Nai Rd branch of the Siam Commercial Bank on Thursday evening. Pol Maj Phailin Jamjomrat of Phuket Town Police Station told the Gazette that local people found the body in the canal. It was dressed in white nun’s…
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Appeal for 12-year-old’s kin to come forward
PHUKET: The Phuket Provincial Public Welfare Office (PWO) has made a public appeal for the relatives of Worawut Hahom – or anyone who knows anything of their whereabouts – to come forward. Worawut was eight years old when he was sentenced by a court to four years of state care and rehabilitation at the Observation and Protection Center (OPC) of…
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Crackdown on drunk driving
PHUKET TOWN: The Phuket Provincial Police and the Phuket Provincial Health Office are to launch a breath-test campaign to catch drunk drivers, starting in the early hours of Friday, March 30. Happily for drunk drivers, Dr Boonrieng Chuchaisangrat, Chief of the Health Office, has revealed that the checks will take place in front of Surakul stadium between 2 and 4…
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Swimming race ends in tragedy
KATHU: A young Thai man drowned on Sunday afternoon in the Bang Wat reservoir after getting into trouble during a swimming race with a friend. Pol Capt Boonlert Polkwang of Tungtong Police Station named the dead man as Uthai Srimuddee, 19, an air conditioning engineer with Pravej Chang Air. Capt Boonlert said that Uthai and his close friend and colleague,…
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“Chicken feeding’ lands Thai tourists in trouble
PHNOM PENH (AFP): A group of 28 Thai tourists visiting Cambodia’s famed temples of Angkor had to be rescued by police after being surrounded by a mob enraged at their treatment of temple beggars, a report in a Cambodian newspaper said today. The tourists – reportedly laughing and throwing candies to throngs of scrambling urchins – were escorted by police…
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Charn re-elected as Chamber Chairman
PHUKET TOWN: Members of the Phuket Chamber of Commerce, meeting late into the night, voted on Saturday to re-elect Charn Wongsatayanont as Chairman of the chamber. K. Charn received 11 votes, just one vote more than his rival for the position, Pamuke Achariyachai, president of the Kata Group of Hotels. The 21-member committee elected at the same time includes eight…
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IBAP looks at BoI advantages
PHUKET TOWN: The International Business Association of Phuket (IBAP) saw a record turnout of around 100 members and guests for its bi-monthly general meeting on Friday. Guest of honor was Charn Wongsatayanont, chairman of the Phuket Chamber of Commerce. The main topic of the meeting was the Board of Investment (BoI), its aims and the ways it can help businesses.…
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Rain brings flooding in Patong
PATONG: About 10 hours of torrential rain overnight left many streets and businesses in Patong flooded. Patong Municipality councilor Surasak Maneesri said the worst flooding was in Rat-U-Thit 200 Phi Rd at the junction near Sai Namyen School, where the water reached 80 centimeters, while lower parts of the beach road were flooded to a depth of 20 centimeters. “There…
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Police bust karaoke selling ya bah
PHUKET TOWN: Teerawit “Jiew” Saefu, the 32-year-old owner of Nong Kim Karaoke on Soi Sri Sena, was arrested during a police raid on Tuesday on drugs charges. Two minors were also arrested. Pol Maj Sanya Thongsawat of Phuket Town Police Station said that sources had informed him that ya bah (methamphetamine) was for sale at the karaoke bar, near the…
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Valhalla raid nets 5 underage girls
PATONG: Five underage girls were detained yesterday afternoon and charged with performing improper acts in public during a raid on the Valhalla Entertainment complex on Soi Sunset. Pol Col Paween Pongsirin, Superintendent of Kathu Police Station, said he received a call from Jenjira Heepkaew, 37, who said that she worked at Valhalla as a cook’s helper. She urged the police…
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Policeman wins luxury yacht auction
PHUKET TOWN: A police officer who declined to give his name, but who works in the Economic Crime Investigations Division in Bangkok, today won the auction for a luxury motor yacht at the Phuket Customs Region 5 office. And thanks to the fact that there were no other bidders, he got the boat for a song – just 5.5 million…
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Policeman held for smuggling Burmese
PHUKET TOWN: Acting on a tip-off, police today arrested 15 Burmese illegal immigrants. They also arrested three Thais who were bringing the Burmese into Phuket, one of them a police officer from Ranong. The Burmese were riding in two pick-up trucks and a car when they were stopped at 5 am, halfway between Thalang and the Heroines’ Monument, by officers…
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Foot-and-mouth outbreak
KATHU: An outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease discovered in Baan Mai Riab is now under control, according to Samart Jaranyanont, Chief of Phuket Provincial Livestock Office (PPLO). The PPLO was alerted to the presence of the disease on February 12 by a veterinarian who discovered the disease among a herd of water buffaloes. PPLO officers discovered that 67 animals had been…
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Passengers taken off cruise ship
AO MAKHAM: About 250 passengers aboard the cruise ship Andaman Princess were taken off the vessel yesterday afternoon after a bilge pump broke down near Maiton Island. “The problem arose in the engine room at 4:30 pm when a pump stopped working and the ship began to list,” said Narong Chinsot, Phuket Operations Manager of the Andaman Princess. K. Narong…
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Police learn about international crimes
PHUKET TOWN: Phuket Provincial Police hosted a seminar today aimed at educating police in Region 8 about economic and international crimes. Topics discussed at the seminar, held at the Royal Phuket City Hotel, included detection of counterfeit US currency and forged credit cards, and crimes involving international criminals. The seminar brought together police officers from Phuket, Surat Thani, Nakhon Sri…
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Provincial road tax revenues soar
PHUKET: The Phuket Provincial Land Transportation Office (PLTO) collected more than 93 million baht in road taxes last year. This continues the trend of higher year-on-year revenues. In 1998, the PLTO collected nearly 80 million baht, while in 1999 it collected more than 85 million. These figures exclude taxes levied on motorcycles. The PLTO says it expects to collect even…
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New dad ends up in handcuffs
PHUKET: Robert Clarke received more than he bargained for when he visited his Thai wife at the Bangkok Phuket Hospital after she gave birth to their child. As he watched over her early on Friday morning, police officers marched in and arrested him. Pol Capt Anukul Nuket of Phuket Town Police Station said that the Norwegian Embassy in Bangkok had…
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Fire rips through Patong stalls
PATONG: A fire raged through a collection of vendors’ stalls near Ocean Plaza on Thaweewong Rd early on Saturday morning, causing damage estimated at 20 million baht. Firefighters took about one hour to put out the fire. Pol Col Paween Pongsirin, superintendent of Kathu Police Station, told the Gazette that no one was hurt in the blaze. The forensic science…
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Police hit sour note in pub arrests
CHERNG TALAY: Several tourists from five-star hotels at Laguna Phuket narrowly escaped arrest Friday evening when they joined in a jam session at a neighboring pub. Not so lucky were well-known charity musicians Tyesan Hartall (American), Nick Paul (English), and Steve Anderson (Australian). They were arrested shortly after the tourists had left, at about 11:40 pm. They were charged with…
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Karaoke crackdown coming
PHUKET: Police in Phuket are to crack down on karaoke bars, Pol Maj Gen Kongpol Suwannaraks, commander of the Phuket Provincial Police, said on Thursday. In a speech to assembled police patrol officers from across the island, Gen Kongpol said that the anti-karaoke drive would focus particularly on juke-box karaoke bars, most of which are to be found in Phuket…
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New bikes for police
PHUKET TOWN: Police in Phuket this week took delivery of 73 motorbikes for use in patrol duty, as part of a nationwide project by the Royal Thai Police to upgrade police patrol transport. At a ceremony on Thursday at Phuket Town Police Station, the commander of the Phuket Provincial Police, Pol Maj Gen Kongpol Suwannaraks, handed over 14 motorbikes to…
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Burmese beaten to death, dumped
PHUKET TOWN: An unidentified man believed to have been a Burmese fisherman was found dead in front of the Fish Marketing Board’s refrigerated warehouse on Soi Si Sena just after midnight on Wednesday. “Motorbike taxi drivers witnessed a pickup truck with several Burmese in the back make a U-turn in front of the warehouse and then leave,” said Pol Capt…
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Thai-foreign firms face crackdown
PHUKET: As the crackdown on work permits in Phuket takes effect, both Thai and foreign shareholders in companies that have failed to restructure their shareholdings to conform with the Alien Business Law (ABL) of 1999 face close scrutiny and the possibility of severe penalties. As one of the members of the committee set up by Provincial Governor Pongpayome Vasaputi to…
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Thailand a hub for illegal wildlife products
BANGKOK (AFP): Thailand has become a regional center for the illicit trade in products made from endangered animals, the World Wildlife Fund for Nature (WWF) said this afternoon. During a three-month study, the WWF found more than 33,000 animal products in Bangkok made from internationally protected species, in all worth about 160 million baht (3.7 million dollars). Items made from…
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Austrian drowns at Patong beach
PATONG: Austrian Herbert Kodat, 60, drowned off Loma Park at Patong Beach on Monday afternoon. According to witnesses, Mr Kodat went for a dip to cool off after sunbathing. He swam out about 30 meters from the shore. A jet-ski operator sitting on the beach saw Mr Kodat waving for help and went to rescue him, but by the time…
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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