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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Sponsored Top 5 luxury villas in Phuket and Koh Samui for your next holiday
Ask people to name the most beautiful places in Thailand, and you'll often hear Phuket and Koh Samui being mentioned. Who would disagree? One is renowned for its bustling nightlife, vibrant culture, and lively beach scene, while the other is...
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German tourist drowns in Krabi rip current
PHUKET: A German tourist drowned in Krabi yesterday afternoon while swimming with his son. Martin Hofstetter, 57, and his family checked into a bungalow resort on Koh Siboya, south of Krabi Town, on Wednesday, explained Lt Col Kittichet Kittiratanasombat of the Klong Khanan Police. “They took a sea trip to Koh Lola and went swimming there yesterday afternoon,” Col Kittichet…
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Phuket’s annual Valentine’s Day mass wedding is on (video)
PHUKET: All couples looking to tie the knot on Valentine’s Day tomorrow are invited to register their nuptials at the Muang District Office, where they can join a mass wedding ceremony and win lucky draw prizes and receive memorable wedding gifts that will be given away. “Among the gifts to be given away are stays in honeymoon suites at hotels…
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Video Report: Phuket kids shine at PSS international soccer tourney
PHUKET: More than 250 players from throughout Southeast Asia joined the Phuket Soccer Schools (PSS) 5th International Youth Tournament at Thanyapura’s Stadium Pitch last weekend. Players in Under-8, Under-10, Under-12 and Under-14 age groups competed during 12 hours of football involving 28 teams over the two days. “This tournament brings together youth footballers from across Southeast Asia to share their…
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Video: One killed, three injured in Phuket multiple-vehicle crash
PHUKET: Police are blaming a new set of traffic lights for a high-speed crash that killed one motorcyclist and injured three others on Thepkrasattri Road this morning. Police arrived at the scene, at the old airport junction north of Blue Canyon Country Club, at about 11:45am to find a 10-wheeled truck and a van overturned on the shoulder of the…
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All About Eva: Court probe opens door to new era for Phuket beachfront property projects
THAILAND stands on the brink of a great leap forward in boosting investor confidence in beachfront properties and resorts, if court officials uphold existing building regulations on construction of buildings along the Phuket shoreline. Here, the Phuket Gazette investigates what is at stake in enforcing the building code. SPECIAL REPORT PHUKET: The environmental court inspection of an upscale real estate…
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Cricket: Thalang big guns fire in Village win
PHUKET: The Thalang Cricket Team (TCT) big guns fired up last Sunday in a win over the Village Cricket Team at the Alan Cooke Ground (ACG) in Thalang. Fresh off an upset victory against top-of-the-league Patong, the Village were looking to climb higher up the ladder with a win against a TCT side that had yet to find form with…
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Classic car rally takes the road to Mandalay
PHUKET: An ambitious endurance classic car rally from Singapore to Myanmar saw about a dozen of the more than 70 magnificent vehicles taking part in the ‘Road to Mandalay’ race complete time trials in Phuket on Sunday. This was enough to inspire the Phuket Gazette to send a TV crew of six on Monday to Khao Lak where the full…
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Activist children manage unprecedented blow to Taiji dolphin slaughter (video)
PHUKET: A letter presented by a group of children from Phuket’s Gecko School was accepted by the Taiji Major’s Office, which in the past has publicly supported the annual slaughter of thousands of dolphins. “We will pass down the history of our ancestors to the next generation. Preserve it. We have a strong sense of pride about this,” Mayor Kazutaka…
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New beach rules now standard throughout Phuket, says Governor
PHUKET: The trial rule of restricting vendors to only 10 per cent of the beach is to be rolled out at all beaches in Phuket, Governor Nisit Jansomwong has confirmed to the Phuket Gazette. “Local administrations will remain responsible for regulating and enforcing the new rules [story here], which include no sun loungers at any beaches,” he added. “The local…
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Tourist crashes jet-ski into yacht, dies
PHUKET: A tourist died in hospital after crashing a jet-ski into a yacht anchored at Nui Bay, off Phi Phi Island, yesterday. Wu Xixiong, 46, was taken to Phi Phi Hospital with a broken neck, jaw, arm and leg. Due to the extent of his injuries, he was transferred to Bangkok Hospital Phuket, confirmed Surasak Mongkolchaiyasit of the Krabi Marine…
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Phuket fertility center to give birth to boost in medical tourism
PHUKET: IVF Phuket by the Safe Fertility Center is expected to boost tourist numbers, Vice Governor Suthee Thongyam said at the grand opening of the center’s new building on Sunday. “The prices at this qualified clinic are much cheaper than similar treatments outside of Thailand. Therefore, I am expecting the clinic to bring more tourists to the the island for…
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Phuket waste incinerator granted B530mn for repairs
PHUKET: A budget of 530 million baht to repair the defunct waste incinerator at the Phuket City Waste Management facility at Saphan Hin has been approved, Phuket Governor Nisit Jansomwong announced this week. “Though Phuket has two incinerators, one has been offline for almost two years, leading us toward an inevitable crises by 2020, if nothing is done,” said Kasem…
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Tuk-tuk driver punches Australian in face over fare
PHUKET: A tuk-tuk driver has confessed to punching an Australian national in the face after an argument about the price of a ride yesterday evening. “Mr Sipeng, 20, told us that he was punched by the tuk-tuk driver after he got into an altercation with him about the price of the ride from Sugar Palm Residence Condominium, where he lives,…
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Phuket public hospital denies any responsibility in expat nightmare ordeal
ALLEGATIONS of neglect and mistreatment at Vachira Phuket Hospital levelled by a long-term Phuket expat who has since died, pose grave questions about the state of public healthcare at the island’s main government hospital – many questions about which remain unanswered. Here, the Phuket Gazette investigates what counts for healthcare in Phuket. SPECIAL REPORT PHUKET: Top staff at Vachira Phuket…
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Special envoy to Chinese president Xi Jinping visits Phuket
PHUKET: Meng Jianzhu, a Chinese senior politburo member, security official and special envoy of Chinese President Xi Jinping, was in Phuket to pay a courtesy visit over the weekend. Phuket Governor Nisit Jansomwong and Monrudee Gettuphan, acting general manager of Phuket International Airport, welcomed Mr Meng as he arrived at the airport on Saturday. Mr Meng, who currently holds the…
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Police hunt temple thief after B100k donation snatch
PHUKET: Police are searching for a man who is suspected of stealing more than 100,000 baht in cash from Tah Reua Temple, which houses Phuket’s top monk, Phra Visutthi Thamma-kanee. Officers were alerted to the theft at 10:30am yesterday. “Phra Visutthi Thamma-kanee said that he saw a man about 40 years old sitting in front of the monks’ dormitory at…
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Australian arrested in insurance fraud scam
PHUKET: An Australian teen failed in an attempted insurance fraud scam after Phuket police investigated his claim of being robbed at knifepoint on Karon Beach yesterday. Alex Gorgees, 19, from New South Wales, told Karon Police that he was robbed of cash and personal belongings valued at about 389,500 baht. “He said that three unknown men held him at knifepoint…
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Phuket gears up for the ‘Year of the Goat’
PHUKET: Chinese New Year, ringing in the “Year of the Goat”, will be celebrated in style at Sanam Chai Park in Phuket Town on February 19. The highlights of this year’s event, kicking off at 5pm, will be a performance by a troupe of acrobats hailing from Beijing, as well as a concert by Getsunova, a famous Thai pop-rock band.…
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Patong bar raided for baraku, hookahs
PHUKET: Kathu District officials raided a bar in Patong early Saturday morning for selling hookah tobacco and providing water pipes – a smoking style called baraku in Thailand – to customers, mainly tourists. Barkeeper and Myanmar national Tan Ser U was arrested in the raid of the Red Sky Bar on Sirirat Road at the southern end of Patong at…
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New police station near airport, more officers slated for Phuket
PHUKET: National police chief Somyot Pumpanmuang has backed a new police station to be set up near Phuket International Airport, Region 8 Police Commander Decha Budnampeth told the Phuket Gazette today. Maj Gen Decha yesterday personally escorted Gen Somyot, who arrived in Phuket on Friday, to inspect several potential sites near the airport for the new police station. “I proposed…
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Phuket Valentine’s Day event to offer new homes to hermit crabs
PHUKET: In an effort to inspire a love of nature, the Ministry of Tourism and Sports (MOTS) is organizing a Valentine’s Day event aimed at donating new shells for the humble hermit crab. Hermit crabs have soft, spiral-shaped abdomens which are vulnerable to predators. They protect themselves by salvaging the empty shells of other crustaceans and other objects, sadly sometimes…
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Phuket to host NCPO Valentine’s Day concert
PHUKET: Joining the roster of Valentine’s Day events in Phuket will be the “Thailand toward reformation” concert and festival, to be held in Saphan Hin from 10am on February 14. “According to an order handed down from the National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO), 24 concerts are to be held in different provinces throughout Thailand to support the government’s…
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Russian tourist caught in Phuket cocaine bust
PHUKET: Police have arrested a Russian tourist for selling cocaine at a shopping center car park in southern Phuket after he tried to sell the drugs to an undercover police officer. Officers arrested Anton Rybak, 25, on Friday after a sting operation at the car park of the Makro store in Rawai, said Lt Col Kritsana Yardkham, senior inspector of…
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Village CC win over Patong CC lifts them off the bottom
PHUKET: Village CC secured their first win of the season last Sunday with a win over Patong CC to to move off the bottom of the senior league table. Village were looking for their first win of the season, whilst Patong in second place were looking to go top of the league. Patong won the toss and elected to bat.…
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Power pole transformer suspected of setting house on fire
PHUKET: Police are investigating whether a power transformer sparked a blaze in Thung Thong late last night in which the front of a house was set afire, with a car and a motorbike damaged, and another motorbike completely destroyed. Firefighters were called to the scene, in the Irawadee housing estate, at about 11:50pm. They took about 30 minutes to douse…
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Guns seized, staff test positive for drugs in Phuket beach mafia thug raid
PHUKET: Vice Governor Somkiet Sangkhaosutthirak and several high-ranking officials visited Nui Beach in Karon yesterday to investigate complaints by locals that mafia thugs were charging people a fee to use the beach. “We received a complaint filed through the Damrongtham Center that some people had taken control of the area and were claiming it as their own private beach,” said…
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Phuket FC season opens in Trat
PHUKET: The island’s premier football club, Phuket FC, will open their 2015 campaign in the Yahama Division 1 national football league against Trat on Valentine’s Day, with the modest goal of surviving the hotly contested division. “It is challenging to have new players join the squad and getting the whole team playing well,” a realistic Songyod “Coach Daeng” Klinseesuk told…
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BIS youth soccer camp open to all
PHUKET: Time is running out to register for the 3rd BISP Football Camp, to be held on February 16-18. The deadline for entries is February 10. The camp offers boys and girls aged 10 to 18 specialized football training by BISP Cruzeiro Football Academy Head Coach Jonathas Candido and Strength & Conditioning Head Coach Christopher Gaffney. “Our focus is to…
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Phuket beachfront estate faces court probe, trial
PHUKET: An inspection team yesterday investigated the site of an upscale estate by the Eva Group in Rawai ahead of a trial to be held “as soon as possible”. The inspection was led by Tawatchai Sontiwanit, chief judge of the recently formed environmental division of the regional Administrative Court responsible for Phuket. Nitisak Chobdamrongtham of the Architect Council of Thailand…
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England get revenge with 21-16 victory in Cardiff
PHUKET: England extinguished early Welsh fire with clinical finishing, a brutal display of forward power and a dominant second half show to secure a 21-16 victory in an absorbing Six Nations Championship opener on Friday. Striking the first blow in World Cup year, England held the hosts scoreless in the second half to quieten a noisy Millennium Stadium crowd and…
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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