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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International help to improve air and water
PHUKET TOWN: The city of Boston, Massachusetts, and Phuket Town will cooperate in efforts to reduce air pollution, Phuket Town Mayor Phummisak Hongsyok announced yesterday. The mayor made his announcement after returning from the World Congress of the International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives held in Athens, Greece, earlier this month. At the convention, 502 people from 68 countries discussed…
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Cabinet approves zero import duty on boats
BANGKOK: The Cabinet today approved the axing of the 30% import duty on boats brought into Thailand for either commercial or personal use, but have yet to set a date for introducing the zero rate. The announcement follows expectations among the local boating community that the tax would be dropped by the end of the year, and just 11 days…
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Cannabis bust at Heroines’ Monument
THALANG: Police manning a checkpoint at the Heroines’ Monument arrested a man in the early hours of Sunday after finding 100 grams of cannabis resin on his person. Kanchanaburi-born Monsit Mapiyaphan, 31, aroused the interest of officers after he got off the back of a friend’s motorcycle and tried to walk past the checkpoint. Pol Lt Col Chanuchan Pongsuwat, Inspector…
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Meeting to discuss jet-ski crackdown
PHUKET TOWN: Following the death of a 13-year-old German boy on a jet-ski last month, the local office of the Marine Department will meet with the provincial government and other government agencies tomorrow to discuss measures to improve jet-ski safety on the island. Royal Thai Navy Lt Thongchai Mabangyang of Marine Department Office 5 told the Gazette that the department…
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Buddha image construction on hold
KARON: Construction of the giant Buddha image on Royal Forest Department (RFD) land high in the Nakkerd Hills in Tambon Karon has been temporarily halted while various government agencies review the project to ensure that it complies with the law. Achira Na Nakorn, head of the RFD regional office in Nakhon Sri Thammarat, told the Gazette, “We have ordered a…
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Drive to legalize “black’ taxis
PHUKET TOWN: The Phuket Provincial Transportation Office (PPTO) expects 50 to 100 drivers to register their vehicles as private metered taxis in the coming month. Teerayuth Prasertphol, Deputy Chief of the PPTO, told the Gazette that he expected the cabs to come from among the 800 or so “black” taxis currently operating illegally in Phuket. Once the registration period is…
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Senators check Bang Tao land “abuses’
CHERNG TALAY: The probe into land titles in Phuket, which recently went quiet in the run-up to the Apec summit meeting in Bangkok, reopened dramatically today with accusations of misuse of former tin mine concessions along Bang Tao Beach. Members of the Governmental Land Inspection Working Group (GLIWG), a self-appointed committee of senators led by Sen Pricha Pitanon, Vice-Chairman of…
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Battle over elephant’s death
PHUKET TOWN : Veterinarian Taweepoke Angkawanish of the Lampang-based Thai Elephant Conservation Center (TECC) has held a press conference at Phuket Provincial Livestock Department to explain his role in the controversial death of an elephant he admits to having treated without its owner’s permission. The pachyderm, a female in her 40s named Phang Wassana, died at about 5 pm on…
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Patong beautification an ugly mess
PATONG: Hotels and other businesses in Phuket’s capital of fun, having battled their way through the effects of the Bali bombing and the Sars epidemic, are now viewing with despair another deterrent to tourists. The deterrent this time is of local origin – a “beautification program” which has the beachfront looking like Sarajevo at the height of the Balkans war.…
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Filmmakers looking for extras
PHUKET: German movie company Lisa Film is looking for extras to fill out the cast of a romantic made-for-TV drama it will be shooting in and around Phuket over the next few weeks. The movie, Hotel zum Traumen (Dream Hotel) will run for 90 minutes and will premier on the ARD channel in Germany and ORF in Austria. The drama…
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Take a break and park your gun
THALANG: The Phuket Provincial Administration Organization (OrBorJor) is building a 2-million-baht rest area at the Tah Chat Chai police checkpoint on Route 402 that will include a weapons depository. The first-of-its-kind service will allow visitors to store registered firearms with police while they are on the island, in line with a government ban on carrying firearms on the island. The…
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Date set for car numbers auction
PHUKET TOWN: Phuket’s first auction of special vehicle registration numbers is due to take place on November 27-28 at the Royal Phuket City Hotel. Bidding will start at 10 am. Teerayuth Prasertphol, Deputy Chief of the Phuket Provincial Transportation Office (PPTO) told the Gazette that refundable deposits must be lodged by bidders. “The size of the deposit depends on the…
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Breakthrough “soon’ in land scandal killing
PHUKET: A senior policeman in charge of investigating the murder that triggered the Phuket land title deeds scandal believes there will be a breakthrough in the case soon. Pongtorn Hiranyaburana, Deputy Chief of the Phuket Land Office, was shot execution-style on a lonely stretch of road as he drove home to his wife in Surat Thani on April 25. Officers…
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TAT denies move to give foreigners right to own land
BANGKOK: Reports that foreigners who buy the one-million-baht Thai Privilege Card will be able to own land have been denied by a senior official of the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) parent of the card issuer, the Thai Privilege Card Co Ltd (TPC). The reports suggested that the government was moving to allow card-holders to buy and own up to…
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Sea Canoe boat sunk by arsonists
THALANG: Arsonists are believed to have been responsible for the total loss of a vessel owned and operated by tour company Sea Canoe Thailand, and an attempt to sink the company’s other boat. The Urida 98 had put into Ao Por and was moored at the pier after returning from a tour. The crew left the ship to attend a…
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Public urged to join bad food crackdown
PHUKET TOWN: The Phuket Provincial Health Office held a press conference at its offices on Narisorn Rd today to announce a major campaign to crack down on unsanitary restaurants and outlets that sell meat and vegetables laced with dangerous chemicals. Speaking at the press conference,Vice-Governor Niran Kalayanamit said the inspection regimen of the Clean Food, Good Taste project would play…
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Last call for yellow pages
PHUKET: With an unprecedented volume of listing activity in its online database, the publishers of the Gazette Guide, Phuket’s Business & Entertainment Directory, have extended the deadline for listings in the 2004 hard-copy edition from this Thursday until 6 pm on Friday, November 14. Listings (and any modifications to listings) received after Friday will not appear in the 2004 directory,…
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Report fake border stamps, expats told
BANGKOK: Some expat residents will be required to present a police document at Immigration border checkpoints in the continuing crackdown on illegally-obtained or forged entry-exit stamps in passports. Foreigners with passports containing fake stamps who do not report to police before leaving Thailand and are caught at the border may be arrested for conspiracy to commit forgery. The Gazette understands…
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Dog pound strays to wrong site
THALANG: Completion of Phuket’s first large pound for stray dogs will be delayed for at least a month – and the chief of the Phuket Livestock Department plans to lodge a complaint with the Phuket Provincial Public Works Department for not building the facility to his specifications. Sunart Wongchawalit, Chief of the Phuket Provincial Livestock Office (PPLO), told the Gazette…
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Island “has water for a year’
PHUKET: Huge amounts of rain in October and a freshly-filled Bangwad reservoir mean that Phuket should have no water shortage problems for at least a year, says Sayan Wareearoonroj, Manager of Phuket Provincial Water Supply. A total of 735.6 millimeters of rain fell as recorded at Phuket International Airport – up from 286.7 mm last October and the heaviest monthly…
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PSU joins French tourism project
KATHU: The Prince of Songkla University (PSU) Phuket Campus has joined a 5.4-million-baht project aimed at developing better ways of catering for tourists visiting France and Thailand. The aim is to improve standards and promote education about tourism, and to exchange knowledge about the cultures of the two countries. PSU will work on the program with the Université de Perpignan…
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Skipper accused of smuggling alcohol
THALANG: Marine Police seized 505 bottes of Champagne, wine and spirits in a raid on a rented house near the Yacht Haven marina this morning and accused a Frenchman of failing to pay import duty on the alcohol. Herve Letouze, 48, a catamaran captain, admitted importing the bottles but told police his intention was to drink the goods himself on…
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Island developers ready for Bangkok
In hopes of re-visiting the hearty welcome and strong sales enjoyed at their 2002 and 2003 exhibitions in Hong Kong, Phuket and Samui property developers will test the appetite for their products in Bangkok over the next three days. About 40 exhibitors will open their booths at Bangkok’s first “Phuket & Samui Property Exhibition” at noon tomorrow. The event takes…
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“Disgraceful’ swindler jailed
PHUKET TOWN: A Phuket man who swindled tourists from nine countries out of a total of two million baht was a disgrace to Thailand, Pol Col Paween Pongsirin, Superintendent of Phuket Town Police Station, said yesterday. Phuket Provincial Court sentenced Saratthawat Tangsathaporn, 31, who once ran the Rose Diamond jewelry story in Patong, to 81 months in jail after he…
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Weapons amnesty until December 15
PHUKET TOWN: Phuket residents in possession of unregistered firearms or explosives have until December 15 to turn them in without risk of prosecution. The amnesty, which actually went into effect two weeks ago, on October 17, was announced today by Phuket Provincial Chief Administrative Assistant Visasva Sasismit through a press release. It is not clear whether the amnesty is an…
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Minister discusses trilingual education
PHUKET TOWN: Education Minister Pongpol Adireksarn visited Phuket Technical College on Friday to discuss the relevance of both vocational education and trilingual (Thai-English-Chinese) programs to Phuket schools. “We talked about the importance of vocational education,” he said. “The Ministry would like to adapt the subjects in each institute to be in line with the major businesses in their areas.” K.…
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“Most wanted’ gang leader arrested
PHUKET TOWN: After a two-month manhunt, Phuket Town police have arrested fugitive gang leader Noparat “Ae BorKorSor” Boonyong and an accomplice. The arrest of the notorious 24-year-old, at the top of the police most-wanted list, follows a shootout outside the Lucky Complex in Saphan Hin in August, in which police killed two members of Noparat’s gang but were unable to…
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Bus passes to be launched in December
PHUKET TOWN: In an effort to increase the number of passengers using the Phuket Town Bus service and reduce traffic congestion, the Phuket Provincial Administration Organization (OrBorJor) will begin sale of monthly bus passes starting in December. The passes will allow riders unlimited use of the bus system’s two routes for a month and will be available to Thais and…
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More gamblers nabbed in Phuket
PHUKET: A total of 134 people were arrested between October 1 and 25 for gambling, including betting on soccer and selling illegal lottery tickets – up from 46 in the equivalent period in September, according to the latest statistics from the Phuket Provincial Police. Another 154 people were arrested in Phuket as illegal immigrants, one less than in September. There…
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Osaka-Phuket direct flights begin
PHUKET TOWN: Thai Airways International (THAI) has begun direct flights from Osaka, Japan, to Phuket using a 200-seat Airbus. The thrice-weekly service, on Mondays, Thursdays and Saturdays service, designated as flight TG-637, leaves Osaka at 1:25 am and arrives in Phuket at 6:35 am local time. The service got underway on October 27, the same day as the new THAI…
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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