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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Lots of tourists in Phuket, but they aren’t spending much
PHUKET TOWN: Arrival figures during this high season remain high, but tourists visiting Phuket seem to be spending less, industry insiders say. Bhuritt Maswongsa, vice-president of the Phuket Tourist Association (PTA), said that ‘per head’ expenditure seems to be much lower than in the 2007-2008 high season, the last time Phuket enjoyed a normal high season – the 2008-2009 high…
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TAT to focus on tourist spending, not numbers
PHUKET TOWN: Juthaporn Rerngronasa, The Tourism Authority of Thailand’s returning deputy governor for international marketing, has unveiled several strategies to approach a range of potential markets this year. Mrs Juthaporn was reappointed to head the international marketing department following an internal management reshuffle supervised by new TAT new governor Suraphon Svetserni. “This year, the authority will not aim at luring…
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Phuket Police nab murder suspects
PHUKET TOWN: Phuket City Police have arrested two minors for the stabbing murder of two men during an alcohol-fueled knife fight outside a Phuket Town nightclub on Saturday night. Phuket Provincial Police Superintendent Pekad Tantipong presented the young suspects at a press conference at Phuket City Police Station this morning. They are accused of stabbing to death two members of…
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Chanthaburi gem fair in Phuket
PHUKET TOWN: A gem and jewelry fair at Central Festival Phuket is doing brisk business, with some shops reporting sales of more than 500,000 baht on the first day. The Chanthaburi Gems & Jewelry Fair, organized by the Chanthaburi Commerce Office, will run until January 20 in the Grand Hall at Central Festival. From January 21 to 25 the fair…
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Crackdown on alcohol sales violations in Phuket
PHUKET: Phuket health authorities are launching a fresh crackdown on violators of Thai alcohol sales regulations. The 2008 Alcohol Control Act states that alcohol products cannot be sold at places of worship, health centers and hospitals, government offices, educational institutions, gas stations and public parks. For our previous report, click here. Director of the Phuket Public Health Office (PPHO) Dr…
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Murder most foul: infanticide in Phuket
CHALONG, PHUKET: Chalong Police are searching for a Burmese nanny they think was responsible for the murder by suffocation of a four-month-old Thai child left in her care. Police were notified of the death at 8:30am yesterday by the boy’s mother, 32-year-old Palida Phromraksa, a native of Ao Luk District in Krabi. When police led by Chalong Police Deputy Superintendent…
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Valium bust strands Kiwi teen in Phuket
PHUKET TOWN: A teenager from New Zealander is stranded in Phuket after being arrested for possession of diazepam pills without a prescription. The 17-year-old, who cannot be named for legal reasons, was set to fly back to his current home in Australia on December 11. But four days before he was due to leave, he was caught by Kathu Police…
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Rotarians launch Haiti relief fund in Phuket
PHUKET TOWN: The Rotary Club of Patong Beach is accepting donations to provide relief to survivors of the devastating earthquake in Haiti on Tuesday that killed tens of thousands and left many more without food and shelter. Brad Kenny, chairman of the clubs’ services committee, issued the following statement about the project: ‘The world opened their hearts to us in…
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Patong Hospital calls: dead on arrival
PATONG, PHUKET: Other than by email or personal visit, Patong Hospital has been completely out of reach for months. As the result of a telephone exchange fault, the numbers 076-342-633/4, printed in telephone directories and appearing on the first page of the hospital’s website, have been out of service for five months. Calling the numbers does produce a ring tone,…
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Seven Suzukis for Phuket City Police
PHUKET TOWN: The Phuket Chamber of Commerce and two private sector companies on Wednesday took part in a ceremony to hand over seven donated motorbikes to the Phuket City Police. Phuket City Police Superintendent Wanchai Ekpornpit accepted the Suzuki motorbikes at 10am in front of the police station. Phuket Chamber of Commerce President Sirichai Silapa-archa said the chamber had joined…
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Phuket Governor visits Aussie accident victims
PHUKET: Phuket Governor Wichai Phraisa-ngop rushed to Bangkok Hospital Phuket yesterday afternoon to comfort the 26-year-old widow of the young Australian killed in a jeep crash on Big Buddha Hill today. Gov Wichai told Aimee Malonzo, who married her husband Michael just a week ago, how sorry he was for her loss. The governor offered Mrs Malonzo and the other…
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Partial eclipse in Phuket
PHUKET: Thanks to clear skies, the partial solar eclipse predicted by astronomers was clearly visible throughout Phuket yesterdday. The entire event lasted three hours and 34 minutes, with as much as 57 percent of the sun’s surface obscured at its peak at 3:28pm. Because Phuket is the most westerly province of Thailand, it was the first province in the Kingdom…
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Aussie killed in Phuket Land Rover plunge
PHUKET: A driver lost control of a jeep full of tourists heading down Big Buddha Hill, killing a 26-year-old Australian man who was on his honeymoon in Phuket. The deceased’s name is known, but is being withheld pending notification of next of kin. Several other tourists were injured in the accident, which happened at about 11am this morning. The condition…
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45 murders in Phuket in 2009
PHUKET: Crime statistics compiled by the Phuket Provincial Police reveal 45 murders and 310 cases of manslaughter on the resort island in 2009. Based on the official population of just over 320,000, the figures put the total number of instances of murder and manslaughter at an alarming rate of more than one victim per 1,000 residents over the year. However,…
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Danes arrested on work permit violations
PHUKET TOWN: The Thai Hotels Association has sought help for a Patong-based tour company whose Danish employees were arrested for working illegally late last month. Tan Chee Kiong, vice president of the Thai Hotels Association (Southern Chapter), on Tuesday morning went to Phuket Vice Governor Tri Augkaradacha to plead the company’s case. The company, the local affiliate of a large…
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Phuket begins swine flu vaccinations
PHUKET TOWN: Doctors and nurses at Vachira Phuket Hospital on Monday became the first island residents to receive swine flu vaccinations. The hospital has joined others around Thailand in kicking off the nationwide vaccination campaign, which aims to reduce the number of victims of an expected second wave of A(H1N1) influenza. Dr Krit Sakulpat, Head of Community Medicine at Vachira…
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Bars demolished in Kata, Phuket
KARON, PHUKET: Patrons of five small bars in Kata will have to find new watering holes, after police and other security forces yesterday forced the owners to vacate their premises and had them torn down by heavy machinery. Representing landholding firm Yee MR Company Ltd, Attorney Chayapat Boonnak appeared at Chalong Police station at 8:30 yesterday morning with a court-issued…
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Young mom killed in Phuket hit-and-run
PHUKET: A young mother riding a motorbike was killed instantly in a head-on collision with a car in Srisoonthorn early yesterday morning. Maj Sekson Komsakorn of the Cherng Talay Police identified the deceased as 26-year-old Dok-aor Ponsri, a native of Ubon Ratchathani. After receiving a report of the accident just before 2am, Kusoldharm Foundation workers rushed to the scene to…
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Phuket to catch first glimpse of eclipse in Thailand
PHUKET: A partial solar eclipse on Friday will be visible in Phuket before any other province in Thailand, scientists say. Asst Prof Dr Sakshin Bunthawin, head of the Biotechnology of Electromechanics Research Unit at Prince of Songkla University Phuket Campus, said the eclipse will begin at 1:51pm and reach its peak at 3.28pm, at which time 57% of the sun’s…
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Police to tackle Patong traffic woes
PATONG, PHUKET: In a bid to solve the worsening traffic problems in Patong, police are considering establishing a vacant lot behind Jungceylon as a center for the local car hire industry. Many car rental companies are presently based along the heavily congested beach road, occupying much of the public parking spaces there. Col Jakkawat Boonthaweekulsawat, head of the Kathu Police…
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Phuket mourns Mel Purdue
PHUKET: Friends and family are mourning the loss of Briton Mel Purdue, who died at Phuket International Hospital late Sunday night at the age of 55. Mr Purdue died from organ failure after a year-long battle with Hepatitis C. He is survived by his wife of over 20 years, Elizabeth Purdue, his girlfriend Rowena ‘Vicky’ Nonez and his brother Michael,…
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Winner of Phuket Red Cross raffle announced
PHUKET: The Phuket chapter of the Thai Red Cross Society has announced the winners of the top two prizes in its annual charity raffle, the drawing for which took place on Saturday night at the Red Cross Fair at Saphan Hin. The winner of the first prize, a 2.7-million-baht detached home in the Phanason Parkville 3 housing estate in Srisoonthorn,…
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Phuket mini-marathon on February 7
WICHIT, PHUKET: Wichit Municipality will host its fourth annual ‘mini-marathon’ on February 7, with races over two distances. Wichit Mayor Kreetha Saetan said the event is meant to teach young people how to spend their time productively, support healthy drug-free lifestyles and – of course – support tourism. Races will start in front to the Wichit Municipality offices on Chao…
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Hanged man once a wealthy Phuket expat
PHUKET: The body of a man found hanged in a wooded area of Rawai last Wednesday has been identified as a native of Hamburg, Germany. Police have so far been unable to confirm the exact spelling of his name or his age, as no documents identifying the deceased were found. Officials at the German Embassy told the Gazette today they…
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B17m for Andaman Sea Rescue
PHUKET: The Andaman Sea Rescue Service (ASRS) has received a budget of more than 17 million baht to spend on new lifesaving equipment, though officials don’t expect to receive the new gear until the third quarter of this year. The ASRS carries out sea rescues off the coasts of five of Thailand’s six Andaman provinces: Phuket, Krabi, Phang Nga, Ranong…
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Panther on the loose in Chumphon
CHUMPHON: A huge black panther has been attacking livestock in a village next to a national park in Muang District. Local resident Sanguan Damsanit told reporters on January 6 that he saw the animal on New Year’s Day in a field in Tambon Tha Yang. Mr Sanguan, 55, said that when he went to round up his eight head of…
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Phuket kids have their way on Children’s Day
PHUKET: It was a busy day for kids in Phuket today, which is National Children’s Day in Thailand. There were numerous prizes and giveaways all over the island: Jungcyelon, Rajabhat Phuket University, Bangkok Hospital Phuket, Phuket Provincial Hall and the new provincial bus terminal in Rassada, to name just a few. It was mostly fun and games, but there were…
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Phuket Police find parents of abandoned baby
PHUKET: A four-month-old baby girl who was abandoned by the side of the road earlier this week has been united with her parents, but the baby’s safety remains a concern for authorities. The young baby was found outside a shop house on Palian Road in Ban Kuku, Rassada District just after 7pm on Wednesday by a local resident. Crying loudly,…
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Phuket Luxury property sales top Bt1.1bn
PHUKET: Phuket’s luxury property market saw transactions worth 1.1 billion baht for the period of July through November last year, according to market research by leading Thai consulting firm C9 Hotelworks.A growing resale sector accounted for 50 percent of the sales.According to Bill Barnett, Managing Director of C9, “There was an absence of new high-end product in 2009, which propelled the secondary…
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Course set for “fun’ regatta
PHUKET: The Phang Nga Bay Regatta 2010, one of the world’s most scenic sailing events, will be the center for the Southeast Asia’s yachting community this February 3-7.Encompassing four days of racing and five days of partying that covers the three provinces of Phuket, Phang Nga and Krabi, the regatta’s success in past years has helped it earn the nickname,…
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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