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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Case of mistaken identity causes drug dealer to give up drugs, submachine gun
PHUKET: A fender bender in Phuket Town sent a drug dealer fleeing the scene, leaving a large stash of drugs and a submachine gun behind. After the small collision in front of the downtown market on Ranong Road [map here], both drivers stepped out of their vehicles to negotiate. One of the drivers was still in his municipality uniform.“The drug…
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PPHO issues warning over Phuket rainy season Dengue Fever deaths
PHUKET: With three recent deaths from Dengue Fever in Phuket and 59 deaths nationwide this year, the Phuket Public Health Office (PPHO) yesterday held an emergency meeting to renew their efforts to stymie the spread of the disease this rainy season. The meeting comes in the wake of Public Health Minister Pradit Sintavanarong urging all hospitals to diagnose their patients…
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Man charged with trafficking Rohingya refugees may face rape charges
PHUKET: One of five Rohingya who escaped the Phang Nga Shelter for Children and Family is waiting for doctors to confirm her claims of being raped, for three consecutive nights, by the human trafficker that had promised to get her and her two daughters safely to Malaysia.The alleged rapist, Koreemura Ramahatu, 26, is only facing human trafficking charges so far,…
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Young sailors get own Raceweek
PHUKET: Talented young sailors are getting anxious to show their seniors how sailing is done, with an inaugural Junior Phuket Raceweek to be held on the day before the 10th anniversary of the island’s premier Phuket Raceweek regatta concludes. Organized by Media Business Services (MBS) and co-hosted by Regent Phuket Cape Panwa and Panwa Beach Resort Phuket, the one-day youth…
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Wimbledon: Prestige and drama
PHUKET: RAFAEL Nadal’s blistering return to tennis from injury means that the top four male tennis players in the world will compete at Wimbledon this year – Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray and Roger Federer.Rafael Nadal enters Wimbledon playing some of the best tennis of his career. The Mallorcan spent seven months out with a knee injury and watched…
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World rugby round up – Wounded Lions
PHUKET: In sport, truth is often stranger than fiction. If someone had predicted that 36-year-old Shane Williams (who retired from international rugby two years ago), Brad Barritt (on holiday in the US) and both Christian Wade and Billy Twelvetrees (part of the recent tour of Argentina with England) would all be down under and playing in the last and crucial…
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Body of tortured, executed man dumped near Phuket school
PHUKET: Police are trying to establish the motive behind the torturing and execution of a man whose body was found in Koh Kaew, north of Phuket Town, yesterday morning.Col Sien Kaewthong of the Phuket City Police named the victim as Niwat Si-urai, 37.Police believe Mr Niwat was killed eight hours before his body was found by 52-year-old local resident Chalerm…
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VIDEO REPORT: Officials confirm high-flying monk not on Buddhist business
PHUKET: If renowned monk Luang Pu Nenkham is in Phuket, it is not on temple business, the Phuket Gazette confirmed yesterday.Luang Pu Nenkham is wanted for questioning after being filmed on board a private jet while sporting brand-name sunglasses and a Louis Vuitton bag. Chatpawit Jinapong, Director of the Phuket branch of the National Office of Buddhism, told the Gazette…
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Can Phuket host an F1 race?
PHUKET: The proposed Bangkok Formula 1 Grand Prix has been scuppered by a new law prohibiting racing in the city’s historic quarter. Strange? Well, Phuket looks like the leading contender to host a Thailand GP, if it goes ahead, and rumours have for years abounded of a track in the north of the island. Other Thai destinations have been mooted,…
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Phuket Police defend action over Russian gun threat YouTube video
PHUKET: Phuket’s top-ranking police officer Maj Gen Choti Chavalviwat called a press conference yesterday to announce that he has ordered an investigation into the posting of a YouTube video which he says damages the image of Phuket and Thailand The 2.16 minute video (click here) shows a Thai man using a gun to threaten a Russian man, kick him once…
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Russian, Belgian tourists drown at Phuket beaches
PHUKET: Two tourists drowned within half an hour of each other yesterday on the west coast of Phuket. In both cases, red warning flags had been posted on the beaches. Belgian Laurent Jacques Leopold Wanter, 43, was pulled from the surf at Laem Sing Beach, north of Patong at 3:30pm. Despite efforts by lifeguards to resuscitate him, Mr Wanter was…
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Phuket Town loan shop employee shot in holdup
PHUKET: Police are hunting for a man who robbed a motorcycle refinance shop in Phuket Town yesterday morning and shot one of the employees in the leg. “Before the robbery, three of us were checking a customer list,” said Somruedee Sriwichai, 26, who works at the money lenders on Kra Road (map here). “We saw a man park his bike…
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Police suspect heroin overdose in Phuket gas station death
PHUKET: An unidentified man died shortly after taking a hit of heroin in a Phuket gas station today. Witnesses saw the man park his motorbike near the men’s toilet and then rush into one of the four stalls. After a short period of time he toppled out of the stall dead, said Sakol Krainara of the Phuket City Police. Police…
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Phuket local set to skipper Sansiri in world’s oldest yacht race
PHUKET: In a world first for Thailand, Sansiri PLC today announced they are supporting Phuket local and member of Ao Chalong Yacht Club Mr Patinyakorn Buranrom to become the first-ever Thai sailor to skipper a yacht in a major international ocean yacht race, the TRANSPAC 2013. Mr Patinyakorn, an accomplished sailor, will compete in the longest of the two oldest…
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Alleged international fraudster caught at Phuket airport
PHUKET: Bangkok Immigration Officers at Phuket International Airport on Tuesday detained a 55-year-old Chinese national who is believed to be behind a multi-million-baht international fraud.Liu Benyue was taken into custody at the airport by Bangkok Immigration and Chinese authorities.“We found Mr Liu in front of the main terminal waiting to pick up his son,” said Assawin Naksawat, Chief of the…
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Helmetless Phuket motorbike driver dies from head trauma
PHUKET: A helmetless motorbike driver from Phuket Town died last night after losing control of his motorbike and hitting a utility pole in Thalang.Police rushed to the scene to find the body of Kongkait Ngamtong, 26, in a ditch in front of the Muang Thalang School on the northbound side of Thepkrasattri Road, said Thalang Police Officer Narong Muangdoung.“Witnesses said…
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Chinese killed by speedboat at popular Phuket day-trip destination
PHUKET: A Chinese tourist bled to death after being severely cut by a speedboat propeller at Phi Phi Island yesterday afternoon.Chen Peng, 37, jumped from the boat when the engine was still on and the propeller moving, the speedboat’s owner, Chairang Weerakij, told police.The propeller slashed Mr Chen’s legs and stomach. He was taken by speedboat from Pileh Bay to…
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Phuket’s new Airport Bus inked to start July 1
HUKET: The ruling committee for Phuket’s public transportation authorities has signed into effect the permit to allow the new bus service from Phuket International Airport to Patong to launch on July 1. The provincial transportation committee, chaired by Phuket Vice Governor Chamroen Tipayapongtada, voted unanimously yesterday to launch the service. The government departments represented at the meeting – and who…
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Phuket birthday fight ends in stabbing death
PHUKET: Two men were stabbed in a fight at a live-music venue near Chalong Circle early this morning. One of the men died; the other is expected to recover from his wounds.Police have arrested one suspect and are searching for four more.Officers received the report of the stabbing at 3am. When they arrived at Saraphanpleng bar on Patak Road, about…
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Gaping hole in Patong street blocked off, partially filled
PHUKET: Despite what the Director of the Department of Rural Roads Phuket office told the Phuket Gazette yesterday (story here), officials jumped into action to barricade a giant hole in Phang Muang Sai Kor Road in Patong after two motorbike riders found themselves over their heads in water and their motorbikes marooned at the bottom of the pit. The hole…
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Rough surf serves up bluebottles at Phuket beach
PHUKET: The Phuket Marine Biological Center (PMBC) has confirmed that the stingers found washed ashore at Surin Beach this week are bluebottles, also known as Portuguese man o’ war.The stingers found so far are juveniles, reported Phuket Gazette reader Daren Jenner.“The presence of these bluebottles on the west coast started about five days ago with the onset of strong southwest…
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Aussie envoy thrusts weapons in Phuket into the spotlight
PHUKET: The Deputy Head of Mission at the Australian Embassy in Bangkok, Jonathan Kenna, yesterday placed the carrying of weapons on the streets of Phuket into the spotlight at a meeting with the Phuket Governor. “I told the governor that the safety of the tourist is the most important issue,” Mr Kenna, speaking in Thai, told the press following a…
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Chinese tourist drowns off Phuket
PHUKET: A Chinese tourist on holiday with friends in Phuket drowned this afternoon while on a day trip to Koh Racha Yai, about 25 kilometers south of Phuket. Capt Wuttiwat Liang-boonjinda of the Chalong Police named the victim as Li Ran, 28. Ms Li was travelling with five friends who joined about 40 other tourists for the trip to Racha…
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Video Report: Man in pink raincoat robs Phuket Family Mart
PHUKET: A man wielding a knife and wearing a pink raincoat jumped over the counter of a convenience store in Thalang early this morning and made off with the contents of a cash register.Police responding to a call at 3:45am found the two female employees unharmed at the Family Mart at the entrance to Baan Lipon School in Srisoonthorn.One of…
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Phuket’s DJ Doris out of ICU
PHUKET: Paul Norris, Phuket’s renowned “DJ Doris” on Phuket Island Radio 91.5FM, is out of intensive care and recovering at Bangkok Hospital Phuket. Mr Norris suffered a head injury in what is believed to have been a motorbike accident in Patong early Saturday morning. He was rushed to Patong Hospital by rescue workers. However, he remained unconscious and was transferred…
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Police continue search for missing Rohingya children
PHUKET: Police continue to search for the missing 22 Rohingya children who have run away from the Phuket Shelter for Children and Families on Koh Sireh. The children have been missing since early April, says Phuket City Police Chief Sermphan Sirikong. “I have notified the investigation team, and from time to time we patrol Muslim areas to look for them…
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Elephant smugglers caught at work in Phuket
PHUKET: Thalang police seized three elephants being illegally transported into Phuket this morning. Nine people were arrested in the early-morning raid and the two trucks transporting the elephants were seized. Suspects told police that a “Piang Sala-ngam” had sent his son-in-law Sa-ngad Padphai down with the trucks from an elephant camp in the northeastern province of Surin. The trucks departed…
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PHUKET VIDEO REPORT: Infamous Black Hole of Patong may not be fixed for weeks
PHUKET: After two motorbikes plunged into a giant pothole in the back streets of Patong early yesterday morning, Phuket authorities say they will not be able to start fixing the road until at least next week. A video posted on YouTube shows a foreigner having to dive into the huge puddle – measuring at least two meters deep, several meters…
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V-Phuket braves wild weather to stage anti-government protest
PHUKET: Hundreds of V-Phuket protesters, wearing their iconic Guy Fawkes masks, braved the strong wind and lashing rain in Phuket Town yesterday afternoon to continue their protest against the Pheu Thai government under Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra. The rally in Phuket was held in concert with other “V for Thailand” protests in at least 22 provinces, as well as in…
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Cape Panwa Hotel to host Phuket Raceweek
PHUKET: THE 2013 Cape Panwa Hotel Phuket Raceweek – presented by Mount Gay Rum – celebrates its 10th Anniversary with a strong fleet of boats and international crews taking part from July 17-21 at the five-star Cape Panwa Hotel. The luxurious Cape Panwa Hotel is an ideal regatta venue with its established international reputation, private beach and pier, and spectacular…
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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