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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Mangrove land “encroached upon’
PA KHLOK: The Mangrove Resources Development Office (MRDO) and the Phuket Provincial Forestry Office (PPFO) are expected to ask Thalang police to prosecute the owner of land in Baan Yamoo who, they allege, has encroached on some 15 rai of reserved mangrove land. Thawatchai Nuwan, from the MRDO, and colleagues from the PPFO have been surveying areas of Phuket for…
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Trash sorting facility opens
PHUKET TOWN: Phuket Town Municipality held a ceremony this morning to officially open its new trash separation facility, next to the incinerator at Saphan Hin. The new facility will cut down on the amount of waste that needs to be burned at the incinerator, which is currently operating at more than its design capacity. The outgoing Mayor of Phuket Town,…
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B5m blaze grills tuna boat
PHUKET TOWN: A tuna boat loaded with diesel fuel and bottled gas for a month-long trip burned to the waterline in a five-million-baht fire at Rassada on Saturday. The blaze was spotted about 11 am on Saturday but seven hours of efforts by seamen and firefighters failed to douse the flames and the boat was burned to a blackened hulk.…
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Officials check visa service firm
PHUKET: The investigation into fake entry permits for foreigners took a halting step forward recently when Immigration officers visited a “visa service” company and seized 20 passports found on the premises. “We checked the company where, foreigners informed us, they had obtained stamps, and now we are waiting for further instructions,” Pol Capt Krissarat Nusen of the Phuket Provincial Immigration…
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Police raid FantaSea over tiger cubs
KAMALA: About 20 officers from the Forestry Police Division, the Highway Police and the Tourist Police raided the FantaSea entertainment center in Kamala today and seized 14 tigers that had been transported there, allegedly without permission. Officers said that the tigers, most of them cubs aged three to six months, had been put on show for tourist photo sessions after…
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Patong vendors’ leader arrested
PHUKET TOWN: The President of the Patong Vendors’ Association was arrested on Tuesday night by Phuket Town Police for carrying an unlicensed firearm into a popular downtown restaurant. Somwang “Lae” Wonghan, 39, was taken into custody by police at about 11:20 pm as he sat in the new Chilli Phuket pub on Dilok Uthit Rd 1. Fellow diners contacted police…
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Concern over missing divemaster
KAMALA: Police and workmates say they are concerned for the safety of a divemaster who vanished after a party at a bar in Kamala last Saturday (November 29). Phikun “Nori” Srisaksungnoen, 25, from Kamala, had been celebrating with colleagues after returning from diving off Phi Phi. She was last seen at 10 pm, leaving behind her car and her two…
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Buffalo meat smugglers thwarted
KOH KEAW: Veterinarian Jirayu Niranvirot of the Phuket Provincial Livestock Office [PPLO] – working on a tip-off – today discovered two tons of smuggled buffalo meat in a pick-up truck outside a house in the Baan Na Nai area of Koh Keaw. Illegally-imported Australian cheese was also found. Sunart Wongchawalit, Chief of the PPLO, told the Gazette that the market…
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Phuket “winning’ War on Drugs
PHUKET TOWN: Governor Udomsak Usawarangkura today announced that Phuket is winning the war on drugs. “The island is not completely rid of them, or of the users and dealers, but society will no longer be affected by them,” Gov Udomsak declared. At a special ceremony at Saphin Hin, Gov Udomsak and others – including Vice- Governors Pongpow Ketthong and Winai…
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Paradorn to play at Laguna
CHERNG TALAY: Thai tennis hero Paradorn “Ball” Srichaphan will play two exhibition matches at the Laguna Beach Resort on December 20 and 21. The matches are part of the Paradorn Super Tour, a round-robin tour also taking in Chiang Mai and Khon Kaen, and featuring world No 11 Paradorn, Thailand’s top woman player Tamarine “Tammy” Tanasugarn, Mark Philippoussis of Australia…
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King’s Cup: Hi Fidelity moves ahead
PHUKET: In the first of two races today in the Racing Class of the Phuket King’s Cup Regatta, veteran sailor and 2001 winner Neil Pryde steered Hi Fidelity to provisional honors, followed by Spanish boat Pris Play with Fred Kinmonth’s Stella-Minter-Ellison finishing third. The highly rated Thai boat Pasaya, which is being chartered by a team from Switzerland this year…
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Wildlife sanctuary goes for double-pricing
THALANG: Khao Prataew Wildlife Sanctuary (KPWS) will begin collecting standard entrance fees of 200 baht from foreigners and 20 baht from Thais next week, the Chief of the sanctuary, Awat Nitikul, has announced. K. Awat told the Gazette that the park – which includes the Tonesai and Bangpae waterfalls – attracts about 4,000 tourists a month. Most of the foreigners…
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Plis Play takes line honors in King’s Cup
PHUKET: The first race in the 17th Phuket King’s Cup Regatta started with good winds gusting up to 15 knots when the action got underway off Kata Beach today. Under overcast skies with some rain the night before, racing started in good winds which hung around during the early afternoon instead of dropping off early, as in past regattas. Race…
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Phuket and Andamans sign memorandum
KATA: The Phuket Chamber of Commerce has signed a memorandum of understanding to develop trade links with its counterpart from the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, the Andaman Chamber of Commerce and Industry. The agreement is supported by the two associations’ respective governments, but comes over objections by some Port Blair-based NGOs that fear improved links could introduce social vices to…
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Illegal guns trigger 10 arrests
PHUKET: Although Phuket residents still have until December 15 to turn in illegal firearms without fear of prosecution, crime statistics from Phuket Provincial Police show that 10 arrests on charges of illegal gun possession were made between November 1 and November 25. And even though the province was declared drug-free on Loy Kratong Day – November 8 – there were…
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Aids rise troubles health chief
PHUKET TOWN: A worrying rise in the rate of HIV transmission on Phuket has led to the Chief of the Phuket Provincial Health Office, Dr Wanchai Sattayawuthipong, warning about the island’s secret sex industry. Phuket Governor Udomsak Usawarangkura revealed in his message for World Aids Day that the infection rate among pregnant women had increased in the year to June…
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Police hit underground lottery vendors
PHUKET TOWN: Seven vendors of underground lottery tickets were arrested on Friday, and 17,680 baht cash, a number of illegal lottery tickets and ticket sales records were seized. Masquerading as punters, officers led by Phuket Provincial Security Affairs Chief Nikorn Torhiranyapreuk bought tickets from the vendors between noon to 4 pm, then turned around and arrested them. K. Nikorn named…
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Australian wins Laguna Triathlon
CHERNG TALAY: Simon Thompson from Canberra, Australia, has won this year’s Laguna Phuket Traithlon in 2 hours, 35 minutes and 15 seconds. It was the 25-year-old Australian’s first appearance in the event, though he already has a significant international profile, having won the French Grand Prix and the ITU Hokkaido in Japan in 2001 and the ITU Luxembourg last year.…
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Phuket roads ‘getting safer’
PHUKET TOWN: More than 500 motorbike riders turned up at Saphan Hin yesterday to pick up free crash helmets and listen to a road safety speech given by Deputy Transport Minister Nikorn Chamnong. The event was part of a government “Turn on your light, put on your helmet” campaign to increase road safety awareness in the 20 provinces with the…
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Lucky numbers bring big bucks
PHUKET TOWN: Lucky car number-plate Kor Jor 9999 brought 1.2 million baht at an auction at Royal Phuket City in Phuket Town yesterday. The same bidder picked up 8888 for 560,000 baht. About 200 people, most of them businessmen or representatives of car dealers, attended to bid for four-of-a-kind and other quirky plates favored by drivers with money to splurge.…
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Jet-ski crash kills second tourist
PATONG: A young Swedish tourist was killed in a jet-ski crash off Patong yesterday – almost exactly one month after the death of a 13-year-old German prompted officials to decide they must take steps to prevent more fatalities in the wildcat jet-ski rental industry. But proposed action to rid the island of unregistered jet-skis and strictly control legitimate beachside operators…
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Holiday moved from this year to next
THAILAND: The Cabinet has declared January 2 next year a special holiday for government employees, but New Year’s Eve, December 31, will be a working day, a government spokesperson said yesterday. The switch in holdays allows state employees to enjoy a long weekend from January 1 to January 4. The Bank of Thailand had also directed banks to operate on…
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Road safety crackdown for New Year
PHUKET: The Governor of Phuket, Udomsak Usawarangkura, has anounced plans for a police crackdown to reduce road accidents over the New Year holiday period from December 29 to January 4. A death toll of zero for Phuket is the aim following a campaign last New Year that saw three die on the roads, with 400 injured. At checkpoints around the…
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Two old women attacked; one dead
CHALONG: Police are searching for a man following an attack on Friday morning that left a 66-year-old woman dead and her 70-year-old friend injured. The dead woman has been named as Teema Lakkoh and the injured woman as Maewan Bangjak. Pol Maj Sanae Panmee of the Chalong Police Station told the Gazette that the women were out sifting through trash…
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“Troublemaker’ found drowned
PATONG : The body of a drowning victim discovered 70 meters off Patong Beach on Sunday morning has been identified by police as that of 42-year-old German national Jürgen Schweiker. Mr Schweiker’s body was discovered by a local jet-ski operator, still clutching one of a string of floats used to demarcate the swimming area along the beach. Pol Lt Col…
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2,000 join mass dance
PHUKET TOWN: A sea of yellow shirts filled Surakul Stadium yesterday as 2,000 people in Phuket joined in with the nationwide “Yellow Shirt Power Dancing 2003” event. More than 8.2 million people around the country took part in the fun, aimed at persuading people to exercise for at least 30 minutes every day. The activities began at 2 pm with…
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Immigration warning over 90-day reporting
PHUKET TOWN: An Immigration official has advised foreigners holding any type of one-year visa extension that they must visit their local Immigration office every 90 days to confirm their identity and address – or face a 2,000 baht fine. “You will not be charged a fee for registering but you will be fined if you are late,” Capt Krissarat Nusen…
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Bloop gun ammo found in trash
PHUKET TOWN: Municipal trash collectors on Thursday found two rounds for an M79 “bloop gun” wrapped in newspaper and dumped in trash. The 40mm rounds were discovered in front of the Phuket Bus Terminal. Sorn Damri, who found the two projectiles, said, “We stopped to pick up garbage in front of the bus terminal. That’s when I saw [the ammunition],…
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Judges order Patong mayor to step down
PATONG: Chalermsak Maneesri was today ordered to step down as Mayor of Patong after two Provincial Court judges found that allegations of cheating in Patong Municipality elections in November last year were proven. Visawa Sasismith, Phuket’s Deputy Governor (Palad), told the Gazette that the court handed down its decision this morning. The judges ordered that a new election be held…
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Angry islanders in Phi Phi protest
PHI PHI: Boats to this tourist hotspot stopped running for about seven hours today after some 300 angry people assembled at the island’s pier, blocking incoming and outgoing traffic. The mob were protesting against an order to use a new pier in Krabi, three kilometers away from the old one in Krabi Town. They argued that it was too far…
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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