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.
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Fishermen refer marina row to human rights body
PA KHLOK: The Fishermen’s Association in Moo 6, Pa Khlok, which staged a protest at Provincial Hall and lodged a formal complaint over the construction of the Ao Por Marina on March 16, has applied for advice from the Human Rights Commission as to what rights it has in defending its members’ livelihoods.Rattanaporn Jaengjaidee, an adviser to the association, told…
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Rain staves off water shortage – again
PHUKET: The heavy downpours late last month boosted Phuket’s water reserves in Bang Wad Reservoir to 2.7 million cubic meters – enough to last until mid-June, Watchara Arepornsiri, Project Director at Phuket Irrigation Office, has told the Gazette.“The amount of water in Bang Wad Reservoir has risen to 2.7 million cubic meters, and we should have no problems because we…
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Patong gets environmental certification
PATONG: Despite being embroiled in a brouhaha over whether it correctly handled Initial Environmental Examinations for the Villa Santi project, Patong Municipality has received ISO 14001 certification from the International Standards Organization, one of only 20 municipalities in Thailand to achieve this, and the first one in the South.Ironically, the ISO 14000 family of standards, according to the ISO, exists…
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Thai Rak Thai flops in Phuket poll
SAPHAN HIN: Thai Rak Thai Party (TRT) candidate Dr Sriyada Palimapan has failed in her bid to be elected Member of Parliament for Phuket District 1.In District 2, counting of votes from two polling stations has yet to be completed, but the unofficial tally so far indicates that Wisut Santikul, also of the TRT, has also failed to get elected.Dr…
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Disqualifications leave Sriyada to run unopposed
PHUKET CITY: The Supreme Court has upheld the disqualification of two of the three parliamentary candidates for Phuket Electoral District 1, which includes Phuket City and its surrounds.This leaves Dr Sriyada Palimapan of Thai Rak Thai (TRT) as the sole candidate, the Phuket Election Commission (PEC) has announced. PEC Director Kittipong Thiengkunagrit told the Gazette that the Supreme Court on…
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Spa trots out “best’ detox treatment
PHUKET: A consortium of international investors known as the Gastro Group has announced a 1.5-billion-baht investment in what is being billed as the world’s first “detoxotel” – a 150-room facility specializing in state-of-the-art detoxification treatments.Construction of the facility, which will be on a 15-rai site coastal site, the location of which is currently being kept secret, is scheduled to get…
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Thieves put tsunami tower out of action
PHUKET CITY: Phuket Governor Udomsak Uswarangkura yesterday lashed out at thieves who stole the power cable from the tsunami warning tower at Ao Yon, rendering it silent.“I don’t understand them. Why would they steal [one of] the most important things for saving lives?” the Governor asked angrily at the monthly meeting of provincial office chiefs.“Whoever finds out who stole the…
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Bypass road fully open
PHUKET CITY: Today marked a milestone in the 111-million-baht bypass road widening project, as the new northbound lane, blasted out of the hillside near Tesco-Lotus, was finally opened fully to traffic. The opening caused some confusion among motorists, who had grown used to the counterflow traffic system using the southbound lane near Chan’s Antiques. Phuket Highway Department Engineer Boonyakiat Kongketyai…
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Hollioake and Mullally for Phuket Sixes
KARON: Former England Test cricketers Adam Hollioake and Alan Mullally will take part in the Lighthouse Phuket International Cricket Sixes 2006 to be held from April 12 to 16 at the Karon Stadium. Former England all-rounder Hollioake said, “I’m really looking forward to playing in the Phuket Sixes next month. “It looks like it’s going to be a fantastic place…
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Anti-Thaksin protesters march through city
PHUKET CITY: Some 200 members of the Phuket branch of the People’s Alliance for Democracy (PAD) marched today from the CB Market on Bangkok Rd to Provincial Hall.The marchers, who included a handful of foreigners, took a roundabout route through the city, taking about an hour and a half to reach their destination, and shouting “Thaksin, Get Out!” along the…
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Police name third Preecha killing suspect
PHUKET CITY: Police say they believe they now know the name of the gunman who assassinated Preecha “Ko Noi” Kraitas, owner of the Phuket Shooting Range and the Fisherman Way housing estate.Phuket Provincial Police Commander Pol Maj Gen Decha Budnampeth named the wanted man as Samrerng Klaising, from Petchaburi.Meanwhile, Pol Capt Wanchana Polpalangkul and Pol Sgt Pongsak Kosi-ratanapibal, both formerly…
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Phuket Airlines “will be off blacklist soon’
BANGKOK: Phuket Airlines, recently blacklisted by the European Commission (EC) as one of 93 airlines barred from flying to the European Union (EU) and Switzerland, is confident that it will be reinstated soon, a senior official of the airline said today. As if to reinforce that confidence, the Gazette has learned that Phuket Airlines has applied to launch another airline,…
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Police raid bypass main contractor
PHUKET CITY: A team of Crime Suppression Division officers led by Pol Col Sompop Pongrerk, along with officials from the Phuket Provincial Industrial Office, on Friday afternoon seized rock-crushing equipment belonging to Chiang Rai Harn Charoen Enterprise Co, the main contractor for the bypass road widening project. The seizures took place following complaints that Harn Charoen had been crushing rock…
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Rain “will linger a couple more days’
PHUKET: A low-pressure cell centered west of Phuket and just north of Sumatra will continue to bring unseasonably cloudy skies and scattered thundershowers over the next few days. Wiwat Intarapanich, Chief of Weather Forecasting at the Meteorological Department’s Southern Meteorological Center (West Coast), told the Gazette today that he expects the scattered thundershowers to stop within a couple of days…
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Andaman provinces to host Senior World Cup
PHUKET CITY: The Senior Footballers’ Association of Thailand (SFA), in association with the Tourist Authority of Thailand, is organizing the first Football Senior World Cup tournament to celebrate the 60th anniversary of His Majesty the King’s accession to the throne.The tournament is to be held in Phuket, Krabi and Phang Nga provinces, tentatively between April 24 and 30. It will…
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BCIS win Island Furniture cricket title
PHUKET: Once again the weather gods dealt out a wet hand and the pitch had to be moved to avoid various swamps around the outfield. ICC were going into the game as favorites, with depth in both batting and bowling. However, BCIS has proved during this season that four bowlers with a maximum of 10 overs each are all you…
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Eager candidates register for Senate poll
PHUKET CITY: Today was a busy day for the Phuket Election Commission (PEC) after it opened registration at Satree Phuket School for candidates in the Senatorial race.First to register, at 7:59 am, was Akkrawat Jitharn, followed close behind by Uthai Suksirisamphan and Prawat Suwannadithakul.Because all three were waiting to register before the doors opened, they drew lots for their election…
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Phuket Air barred from EU
BRUSSELS: Phuket Air has been included in a list of 93 passenger and cargo airlines barred from European Union countries and Switzerland, on safety grounds.It is one of only two airline in East Asia included in the list, the other being North Korea’s Air Koryo. Most of the list, made public on Wednesday, comprises airlines from Africa, with a sprinkling…
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Lawyer appeals against election ban
PHUKET CITY: Lawyer Thavorn Permpoon, would-be District 1 candidate of the Thai Chuay Thai (Thais Help Thais, or TCT) Party, has appealed to the Supreme Court after the Phuket Election Commission (PEC) ruled him out of the coming general election.Speaking to the Gazette yesterday, he explained that the PEC had removed his name from the register for the April 2…
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Cricket league reaches a climax
KOH KAEW: The grand final of the inaugural season of the Island Furniture Cricket League will be played on the top pitch at the British Curriculum International School (BCIS) this Sunday (March 26).Play in the 40-over-per-side match between the Island Cricket Club and BCIS CC – who finished first and second respectively in the league – will begin at 11.30…
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Call for Phuket people to join anti-Thaksin rally
PHUKET: The People’s Alliance for Democracy (PAD) is urging the people of Phuket to join in a massive rally planned for Saturday at Sanam Luang in Bangkok, where protesters will demand that caretaker Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra resign.Amnuay Koombaan, a vice-president of the Phuket PAD, told the Gazette that he and other alliance members will leave Phuket at 6 pm…
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Suwit quits politics
PHUKET CITY: Suwit Sa’ngaimkul today announced his decision to quit politics. K. Suwit served as the Phuket Democrat Member of Parliament for Phuket District 1 for five years, until the recent dissolution called by Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra.“I was intending to finish my political career at the end of my second term [in 2009], but Parliament was dissolved first, so…
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Soi Dogs President resigns
PHUKET: The Soi Dog Foundation (SDF) announced today that co-founder and President Margot Homburg Park has resigned from the organization for personal reasons.In a statement, the SDF said that Mrs Park’s resignation has been regretfully accepted by the board. Vice-President John Dalley said, “Her contribution to relieving the problems of the island’s stray dog population cannot be overstated. She will…
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Two cops held for Ko Noi murder
PHUKET CITY: Two Phuket Provincial Police officers have been arrested in connection with the March 14 assassination of Preecha “Ko Noi” Kraitas, owner of the Phuket Shooting Range and the Fisherman Way housing estate. K. Preecha was shot twice in the head while driving along Wiset Rd at 11 pm with his wife and son. He died in hospital the…
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Charity rules tightened to stop abuse
PHUKET: In an effort to prevent people from setting up charities as fronts to support themselves, Phuket Governor Udomsak Uswarangkura will require all organizations seeking foundation status to sign a consent form allowing the province to deregister them if they fall inactive, without having to resort to the courts. The surprise announcement was made Thursday morning by Phuket’s Chief Administrative…
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Ancient bricks and pots unearthed
THALANG: Researchers say bricks and earthenware pots uncovered by construction work in Tambon Ban Don confirm the area was the site of an Ayudhya-period settlement, Phuket’s largest at the time, more than 200 years ago.Ten funerary pots filled with human bones, along with numerous bricks, were unearthed by a team of builders led by Prayun Na-udomon on March 13, when…
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Police vow to catch tycoon’s killers
PHUKET CITY: Phuket Provincial Police Deputy Commander Pol Col Chalit Tinthanee said today that police were “certain to arrest the murderers” of Phuket businessman Preecha “Ko Noi” Kraitas. K. Preecha, 43, was shot twice in the head while driving home along Wiset Rd late on Tuesday night. (Sea earlier story here.) He was rushed to Phuket International Hospital, but died…
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Villagers protest against Ao Por Marina
PHUKET CITY: About 40 people from six villages in Tambon Pa Khlok protested at Phuket Provincial Hall this morning about damage to coral in Ao Por caused, they said, by Italian Thai Development Co, which is constructing a 95-million-baht marina in the bay. The villagers presented an official letter of complaint about work on the project, which they said is…
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PGTV launches on the Internet
PHUKET: Programming from PGTV, the Phuket Gazette‘s new TV production unit, can now be watched online at thethaiger.com/tv, or by clicking on the “TV-Phuket” link above. Ten minutes of news and 10 minutes of documentaries or interviews are now uploaded to the site every day, Monday to Friday, at 10 am from the PGTV studios. The program consists of Phuket news, followed…
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Former cop to take on Sriyada at polls
PHUKET: A former policeman will take on Dr Sriyada Palimapan of the Thai Rak Thai (TRT) Party in District 1 in the April 2 parliamentary election, but the TRT candidate for District 2, Wisut Santikul, will run unopposed.Provincial Election Commission (PEC) Director Kittipong Thiengkunagrit told the Gazette that in District 1, covering Phuket City and environs, the candidates will be…
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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